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FOR RELEASE: October 20, 1999 CONTACT: Adrian Wydeven, (715) 762-4684 SUBJECT: Wolf management plan signals recovery of gray wolf in Wisconsin PARK FALLS, WI -- The recovery of the gray wolf in Wisconsin provides living testament to successful efforts such as Wolf Awareness Week in helping to restore a prominent wildlife species to the state. This year, the successful efforts to restore this once endangered species will also be marked by a major milestone when the state Natural Resources Board considers a proposed Wolf Management Plan at its Oct. 27 meeting in Madison. Gov. Tommy Thompson has proclaimed Oct. 17-23 as Wolf Awareness Week in Wisconsin. The state has been honoring the gray wolf -- also called the timber wolf -- and educating people about it by designating a Wolf Awareness Week each year since 1990. Governor Thompson's proclamation says, in part, "the state of Wisconsin has successfully recovered the wolf, an endangered species, and has implemented efforts to aid in the management of this proud member of Wisconsin's wildlife heritage." It calls for continued public support of the wolf, citing a growing environmental awareness of biological diversity and noting "...the survival of the wolf in Wisconsin remains uncertain and depends upon continued public support and increased understanding...." Wolf Awareness Week is a joint program of the Department of Natural Resources and the Timber Wolf Alliance of the Sigurd Olson Environmental Institute at Northland College in Ashland, Wis. Thousands of wolves once existed within the area that became the State of Wisconsin. Europeans settling the area feared wolves, and eventually the wolf was placed on the state bounty list. By the time wolves were removed from the bounty list in the late 1950s, the species was essentially eliminated from the state. After protection was provided by the state and federal Endangered Species Acts, a wolf pack was identified in Douglas County in the winter of 1974-75. By 1980, five wolf packs had become established in the state, and in 1986 a team began work on a Wisconsin Wolf Recovery Plan. The initial recovery plan listed a goal of 80 wolves by the year 2000. That number was achieved in 1995, through reproduction and natural movements of wolves back into the state, without the need of any re-introductions. In 1996 a Wolf Management Committee began work on a plan for long-term management of the wolf in Wisconsin. Wolves were reclassified from state endangered to threatened this summer, and the federal government is planning to start federal reclassification to threatened status this fall. After extensive public input, the third draft of the plan was submitted last August to the Natural Resources Board, policy-making body for the Department of Natural Resources, for approval. The plan called for state de-listing of the wolf when the state population reached 250 wolves, and a long-term management goal of 350. Thirty-one people addressed the board at this meeting in Hayward and expressed a wide array of concerns about the plan including: that the management goal of 350 is too low to guarantee wolf population perpetuation in Wisconsin; that the management goal is too high and will cause increased depredation; that the Department of Natural Resources wolf counts are too low; and that depredation payments must be made promptly and at market rates when wolf damage occurs. Some individuals also disagreed with the plan because it did not contain a specific formula for wolf harvest. Following the presentation of the wolf plan and public discussion the Natural Resources Board deferred action to their Oct. 27 meeting and directed DNR staff to:
The fourth draft of the wolf plan to be submitted Oct. 27 to the Natural Resources Board in Madison includes language to address these concerns and has a new appendix added to discuss specific state statues and administrative rules that will need to be changed to allow a public harvest on wolves. Natural Resource Board approval will initiate implementation of the new wolf management plan. Extensive public input, legislative approval, and federal delisting will be necessary before public harvests can begin. The most recent draft of the proposed Wolf Management Plan is available on the Department of Natural Resources' World Wide Website on the Endangered Resources page at http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/land/er/publications/wolfplan/toc.htm. Dave Weitz, Public Affairs Mgr., West-Central Region Wisconsin DNR (715) 839-3715 |