Research finds no case of wolves killing a person
The more familiar wolves get with humans, the more dangerous they become.
But a University of Idaho researcher didn´t find the attacks on school
children waiting for a bus that wolf opponents predict for Idaho.
Researcher John Carnes said Tuesday he couldn´t find any documented human
deaths caused by wolves in North America in the 20th century.
Of 21 attacks by healthy wolves John Carnes found, 18 came after the
predators began hanging around humans for hand-outs or became unnaturally
bold.
“If you look at these reports, they´re not consistent with predatory
behavior,” Carnes told the North American Interagency Wolf Conference at
the Owyhee Plaza.
The most vicious attacks came when people were caught in the middle of
fights between dogs and wolves, he said.
Several recent attacks in British Columbia, Ontario and Alaska all were
related to wolves that became “habituated,” or accustomed to humans. The
same behavior is seen in bears, coyotes and wolves in Yellowstone National
Park, where people feed them.
When this happens, it´s the animals that usually are killed, Carnes said.
“It´s my opinion people caught feeding wildlife should be treated the same
as people killing wildlife.”