Confirmed Wolf in CO

[LarryBud]

Oh oh. This can’t be good.

https://www.coloradoan.com/story/news/2 ... 683487001/

[wawhitey]

Enjoy watching your herds take a nose dive. And watching your livestock get ripped apart.

[WapitiTalk1]

It appears that the wayfaring wolf is a member of a WY pack. Buckle up Centennial State, its just beginning.

[TennMatt]

As a transplant Coloradan I'm excited about the return of wolves. The simple fact is that we need large predators on the landscape to keep other species's populations in check. The mountain lions aren't getting the job done in many Front Range communities... Some herds don't migrate any longer because they've found safe havens that aren't pressured (Ex: Rabbit Mountain in Boulder County, its an open space). Hunters aren't getting the job done either as license sales are also declining.

A few questions. Does the spread of CDW coincide with the loss of wolves in the West? In the East too because red wolves are long gone? What about this hoof-rot thing that's seems to be creeping down for the Pacific NW? Can it be linked to a lack of predators?

While it might make my hunting more difficult I hope the return of wolves means that Colorado's elk and mule deer populations will be composed of stronger, smarter, and more resilient animals.

Matt

[Trumkin the Dwarf]

As a transplant Coloradan I'm excited about the return of wolves. The simple fact is that we need large predators on the landscape to keep other species's populations in check. The mountain lions aren't getting the job done in many Front Range communities... Some herds don't migrate any longer because they've found safe havens that aren't pressured (Ex: Rabbit Mountain in Boulder County, its an open space). Hunters aren't getting the job done either as license sales are also declining.

As a native Montanan, I hate to break this to you, but the predators actually worsen the population dynamics. Wolves drove our elk to the river bottoms and onto hay fields, or closer to town. Ranchers took hits to their crops when this happened. Why do you think the front range communities have deer problems? Because those neighborhoods are safer from cats already! Unless humans pose a bigger threat than the wild predators, game animals will always move closer to humans when predator populations increase, not further away.

At the end of the day, for other predators to exist in large numbers, humans need to behave like the apex predators we used to be. Part of that involves killing lesser predators, just like the wolves hammer the coyotes.

[LarryBud]

While it might make my hunting more difficult I hope the return of wolves means that Colorado's elk and mule deer populations will be composed of stronger, smarter, and more resilient animals.

Matt

I prefer plenty of game, not too smart and ready to respond to a call. I'm afraid the wolves will damage each item on my wish list.

[saddlesore]

Hunters aren't getting the job done either as license sales are also declining.

A few questions. Does the spread of CDW coincide with the loss of wolves in the West? In the East too because red wolves are long gone? What about this hoof-rot thing that's seems to be creeping down for the Pacific NW? Can it be linked to a lack of predators Matt

Ahh!!,you might look at the number of licenses sold.Sales are not declining. CPW sells almost every licenses they have even with the price increase. Go try to buy a left over deer license. Hunt OTC elk units and you will find a sea of orange of hunters.The elk in the Flat Tops were decimated to below management objective after CPW sold all those OTC cow tags several years ago. In unit 54,CPW over sold OTC Either Sex and then bull tags that cut the herd from about 6500 to less than 3000. By their own admission they screwed up. Now they are trying to build that herd back up. Instead of selling hunting license to cut the herd back in Rocky Mth National park they employed (paid) sharp shooters to kill the elk at night. Down around Alamosa,elk herds moved in and destroyed thousand of dollars of seed potatoe crops.They are suppose to have along season to get those elk out of there,but instead,of awarding tags to hunters, they give vouches out to land owners that sell them for big bucks.

As for CWD. Most of that is because of fenced game farm animals that escaped.CWD had been around for a long time. It just took CPW and other state game agencies to study it.Several years ago all elk in certain units were required to be tested.That stopped as it was not as prevalent as thought.Now only deer in certain units are required to be tested.

I'm sorry you are either mis-informed or have been drinking the Kool aid of the pro wolf introduction lobby . There is no way wolves in Colorado can benefit hunters and that is what members of this forum are. I don't know how long it has been since you moved here,but obviously you don't know the history of big game hunting in Colorado

[Lefty]

I just spent a few days with a fellow who moved to Salmon Idaho fresh out of High school just to hunt. that was one of the regions that extremely hard by the introduced wolf. He still hunts much of the same ground he did years back. It was sad to run through his trail cam and photos. Years back elk and dear by the hundreds,.. and more and more wolves entered his photo album fewer and fewer everything,

the numbers and reduction of deer elk and he even stated bears too was incredible.

[Pop-r]

Anybody that wants wolves in CO is misinformed and just plain wrong.