Wolves kill three bear hounds
THE-BEE
Wolves from a pack located in the Town of Shanagolden killed three bear hounds in an incident confirmed by investigators from the United States Department of Agriculture – Wildlife Services on Aug. 4.
Adrian Wydeven, Park Falls, mammalian ecologist for the Department of Natural Resources, said this is the first depredation incident on bear-hunting dogs in 2004.
He said that wolves and pups are in rendezvous sites at this time of the year. It is unknown if the wolves were protecting the rendezvous sites at the time the dogs were killed.
Wolves have been in the Town of Shanagolden for a number of years. This is the first reported depredation from the area.
All the dogs were killed in close proximity to one another. Two were owned by a Stratford hunter and one by a Unita man. Hunters training bear hounds may want to stay away or exercise greater caution if they plan to train or hunt dogs in this area. The area of caution described by the DNR wolf biologist includes mainly areas south of Wisconsin Highway 77 near Glidden, to the east of Forest Service Road 168, north of Forest Service Road 164, and to the eastern edge of the National Forest. A second area of caution was also listed north of Highway 77, west of Highway 13, and south and east of Forest Road 181.
The owners of the dogs will be provided compensation from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources for the losses.
The DNR counted 373 to 410 wolves in Wisconsin in late winter 2004, and detected 108 packs in the state. The Shanagolden Pack with nine to 11 wolves was one of the largest packs in the state. Average pack size was less than four.
Wolves are currently listed as threatened by the federal government, and are listed as a Protected Wild Animal by the State of Wisconsin. The federal government has begun the process to delist wolves from the federal list and return all management to the state of Wisconsin. The Wisconsin DNR is currently conducting a review of the state management plan for wolves.