Quote:
BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) -- A new tally of gray wolves in the Northern Rockies shows the population held steady across the region in 2009, ending more than a decade of expansion by the predators but also underscoring their resilience in the face of new hunting seasons in Montana and Idaho.
Biologists said the region's total wolf population has remained stable and will be similar to 2008's minimum of 1,650 wolves in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming.
The number of breeding packs increased slightly, from 95 to 111. That's despite more than 500 wolves killed last year, primarily by hunters and government wildlife agents responding to livestock attacks.
Complete article at http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_ROCKIES_WOLVES_COUNT?SITE=FLTAM&SECTION=US
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Think their resilience is similar to that of coyotes--or prairie-dogs for that matter..the more of them you shoot, the larger the litters they have, more frequently they mate, etc. You can almost never eradicate them from an area once they get a foothold without going all in with every method available...snaring, trapping, calling, poisoning, etc...
Ripp
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