Wolf depredations rise to highest level on record
By Luke Laggis
Outdoors Editor
Wisconsin’s wolf population continues to grow, and with the handcuffs of the endangered species tag locked tightly around the wrists of the state’s natural resources managers, problems associated with the predators are on the rise as well.
Statewide, the current wolf population is estimated at nearly 700. The population stood at only 25 in the winter of 1979-80, but that number has risen steadily in recent years as wolves have moved into new territory and established new packs without any threat of population control measures.
Wolf observation reports classified as “probable” or “possible” came in from 55 of Wisconsin’s 72 counties in 2010. The highest report rates for wolf observations were from Price (23), Marinette (22), Ashland (20).
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources’ 2010 Wolf Depredation Reports list a total of 223 incidents. Of the 223 reported wolf problems, a total of 109 incidents were found to be either confirmed or probable wolf depredations. Sixteen more were verified cases of wolf harassment or threats. The remaining reports were either unconfirmed incidents or confirmed non-wolf depredations.
Ten of the 223 wolf reports originated in Oneida County. Of those, three were unconfirmed or non-wolf related, one was a verified threat to deer on a deer farm, and six were confirmed wolf depredations. In the deer farm incident, three deer were lost, for which the farm owner was reimbursed $26,000.
The recently released Wisconsin Endangered Resources Report on the state wolf population provides an overview of all monitored wolf activity and shows a sharp increase in the number of livestock depredations.
Wolf depredation to livestock occurred on 47 farms in 2010, compared to 28 farms in 2009, and well in excess of the previous record of 32 farms in 2008, according to the report. Total livestock depredation in 2010 included 63 cattle killed, five cattle injured, six sheep killed, one goat injured and six farm deer killed. A total of 25 to 27 packs and two to four loners/dispersers were involved in depredation on livestock. Four verified cases of wolf harassment or threats to livestock were also recorded during 2010.
Livestock were not the only target of the growing wolf population. The report lists 34 cases of wolf depredations on dogs during 2010, including 14 cases of wolf depredations on pet dogs near homes and 20 cases of depredations on dogs in hunting and training situations. A total of 24 dogs were killed and 14 were injured by wolves from 21 different packs and one loner. The number of dogs killed was less than the record of 25 in 2006, but the 14 injured in 2010 exceeded the previous high of 11 in 2009. The rate of wolf depredation on hunting dogs was similar to recent years, but depredation on pet dogs was the highest ever recorded in the state.
Among hunting dogs, 19 were killed and four were injured, and among pet dogs, six were killed and 10 injured. Three of the 34 dog depredation cases occurred in Oneida County. All three were in the Pelican Lake area and all involved bear hounds. An injury to a bird hunting dog in Jackson County on Sept. 21, was the first depredation on a dog in a bird hunting situation ever recorded in Wisconsin.
A total of five packs were involved in depredation on both dogs (all pet dogs) and livestock. A total of 31 packs (approximately 17 percent of state packs) would have been likely exposed to control actions if wolves had been delisted (packs attacking livestock or pets near homes), and with typical success rate of these controls, wolves would have been removed from about half these packs. No authority for lethal controls, accept in human safety situations, existed for the Wisconsin DNR in 2010.
The expense from wolf depredations is also on the rise. In 2010, wolf damage payments totaled in excess of $188,000, well above the previous record of $134,750 in 2008 and more than double the 2009 total, which was just over $91,000.
Dogs and livestock were not the only ones to face the danger last year. Nine human safety concerns involving nine packs across five counties were documented in 2010. In two of these situations, levels of habituation were serious enough that WDNR exercised its authority to “take” wolves that were considered “demonstrable but not immediate threats to human safety.” In cooperation with USDA-Wildlife Services, 15 wolves and one wolf –dog hybrid were captured and euthanized or shot from a farm in Price County, and a cranberry bog in Jackson County. The Price County pack was also involved in livestock depredation and harassment, and the Jackson County pack had also attacked and threatened dogs.
Additionally, a wolf captured and collared from the Price County farm (770M) in spring 2010, was euthanized away from the farm when recaptured in October when it continued to show habituated and aggressive behavior.
In 2011, wolf depredations will continue to be investigated by USDA-WS. That agency will also provide advice and assist in deterring wolves from problem areas. The DNR says some limited lethal control activity may be allowed through a permit with USFWS, which has plans to start a new delisting program in the spring, although that is not likely to be completed until the end of 2011.