Sville;

It is. Very.

I think it is hard for Europeans to fathom what the combination of a hard winter + high predator populations WILL do to game populations. Reason I say it is on other forums I have read many who think sightings of wolves in France, expansion of Italian wolf populations and the support of wolf populations in Fenno-Scandinavia is a good thing, not knowing the end result once wolves reach a certain density. Not too many years ago we had lots and lots of hunters who thought the same thing here. Those of us who had researched the issue being a minority of hunters. I cannot tell you how frustrating it was to be belittled and mocked by hunters who thought wolves would never be a problem! Now their tune has changed...too late!

Trouble is...wolf populations in the developed countries were suppressed for so long most folks had utterly no idea just what wolves can AND WILL do if left to increase. Daryl here has posted quite a bit on the back and forth of Canadian policy on wolf control. Here in the USA stupidity reigns supreme and now we see the Idaho Fish and Game Department trying to shift from being a "Fish and Game" Department supported by hunting and fishing tag sales to a "Wildlife Department". And the Department is now searching for ever greater sources of funding besides those legislatively prescribed for it. Already over half the funding comes from non-tag sales, much of it from FEDERAL contracts! I susect another pitch will be made for general funds from the State in the near future on the grounds that they "serve all citizens of the state in managing all wildlife". They even changed the name of the Commision meetings last year to a "Wildlife Summit"...and...INVITED GREENS AND ENVIRO EXTREMISTS TO THE MEETINGS!!

Maybe the initial response in Germany might be to welcome wolves in order to control pig populations. Regardless, the end result may be catastrophe. Maybe Germans don't care. I do not know.

Mountain lion here kill on average 50 deer per year each. Wolves c. 20 elk per year per wolf. Bear a substantial number of both deer and elk calves in some notorious drainages. Coyotes about 12 deer/year per coyote {with an USDA estimated coyote population in Idaho of 50,000!!!}. Mostly fawns. Bobcat kill many deer fawns.

The old Idaho Fish and Game Biennial Reports I have compiled from 1899-1940 and the Federal Bureau of Biological Survey Reports 1915-1940 tell the EXACT same story. We do NOT need "more studies". We KNOW the science, and the requirement to dramatically control predator populations is necessary to preserve and protect hunting. The State ignores its own past research and the Federal government is hellbent on destroying our heritage as well. And they HAVE WON in many parts of the Northwest AND WILL IN MANY MORE.

In the absence of toxicant application we will NEVER see recovery of elk. NEVER.

You have your EU that, from what I have read, is no different in policy goals than our Federal government; destroy hunting and rural culture in the name of "protection of the environment", "preservation of biological diversity" and "protection of endangered species". ALL euphemisms for cultural and economic genocide. The destruction of a HUMAN cultural group; traditional rural people.

It takes years for small wolf populations to grow to a level that starts being noticed by hunters, but the collapse of game species occurs and often to locals quite "suddenly". Very sad indeed.

Good luck and learn from our loss. At least some good may then come from it.