Environmental news

Wolves on the Internet, FWP asks for more online monitoring

Posted: Mar 24, 2010 9:23 PM
Updated: Mar 24, 2010 9:23 PM

HELENA - With the coming of spring, state wildlife officials remind hikers, black bear hunters and others in the outdoors that they can use the Internet to help monitor Montana wolves.

"Over the past several years, some of our best wolf-related information sources have been hunters, landowners and many others who spend time in the outdoors," said Ken McDonald, chief of the wildlife bureau for Montana, Fish, Wildlife & Parks in Helena.

Black bear hunters will head afield beginning April 15, many Montanans enjoy scouting national forests for shed antlers and many others are still enjoying Montana's snowmobile trails.

"Some of those folks will see wolves or wolf sign," McDonald said. "We want them to know there's an easy way to tell FWP when they see a wolf or wolf activity."

To report a wolf sighting visit FWP's Web site at fwp.mt.gov. Click Montana Wolves and look for the "Report a Wolf Observation" link. In addition, wolf-reporting postcards are available from FWP and most license providers, and anyone can report wolf sightings to their nearest FWP office.

Since the online reporting system was activated in 2005, more than 1,000 reports have been submitted from 25 different Montana counties. Information provided is directly shared with biologists in the field who track wolves, usually within two days.

"Reports from the public confirms known or suspected packs and helps put wolf activity in new areas on FWP's radar screen," McDonald said. "Lots of folks use GPS units, and if they can give us the coordinates of where they see a wolf, that would be especially helpful."

McDonald noted that as the wolf population has grown and expanded over the past five years, FWP has come to rely on public reports to prioritize work and to make sure Montana has solid information to make decisions about livestock conflict response and wolf hunting seasons and quotas.

The Rocky Mountain gray wolf was removed from the federal endangered species list last year, allowing Montana to manage wolves in a manner similar to how bears, mountain lions and other wildlife species are managed. The wolf's delisted status in Montana and Idaho, however, is being challenged in federal court by groups seeking to place the wolf back on the endangered species list. FWP is vigorously defending the delisting decision.

To learn more about Montana's wolf population, visit FWP online at fwp.mt.gov. Click Montana Wolves.