It wasn’t that long ago, a couple of decades actually, that the Utah wolves were spoken of in the past tense. There weren’t any. In fact, the last verified wolf caught in Utah, according to the US Fish and Wildlife Service, Predator and Rodent Control, was in 1930 in San Juan County. Before that, from 1917 to 1930, 162 were taken. With 48 of them in 1918 alone. However, only two were taken after 1926.
But many Utahns were recently shocked by a story in the Salt Lake Tribune…on September 25, 2010…about as many as 15 wolves sighting so far this year in the state. And not just run alone.
Where are they coming from? The US Fish and Wildlife Service, USFWS, has initiated a wolf reintroduction policy in the northern Rocky Mountain range. Well, it’s clear that while Utah hasn’t taken part in these efforts, the wolves don’t recognize state lines.
The natural migration of wolves from Canada to the Rocky Mountains of northwestern Montana over the years has resulted in several packs regaining a foothold there. Canadian wolves… 31 of them… were introduced to Yellowstone National Park in 1995 and 1996. And 35 of them were introduced to central Idaho. A very controversial decision.
In 2002, those numbers reached 261 in Idaho and 218 in the Yellowstone area. Montana’s population was determined to be 84.
But then a radio-collared wolf was captured in northern Utah in 2002. And there were other sightings of what were believed to be wolves in the state as well. Under Utah state law, if there are wolves in the state, they are protected.
And since 2003, there have been increasing reports of wolf activity in Utah. Last year… in 2009… there were nine reports statewide. But this year… 2010… there have been 15. And it’s still September.
Unsurprisingly, all this activity is naturally getting people excited. And nervous. As these reports have increased, so have reports of livestock predation. And now, two Utah congressmen have introduced legislation to remove the gray wolf from the endangered species list.
Once again, in a confrontation between federal courts and Western private landowners, a recent decision by a federal court ruled against the landowners. It determined that the US Fish and Wildlife Service did not have the authority to remove wolves from the state-by-state endangered species list. It had done so in Idaho and Montana to allow hunting in those states as wolf populations continue to increase.
Although not all reports of Utah wolves have been substantiated, the DWR… Division of Wildlife Resources… will concede that it is obvious that roaming wolves have entered the state from Idaho and Wyoming.
But they say there is no evidence of herds or breeding. Each sighting had been solo. Until now maybe.
Most of the confirmed sightings this year have been in the counties bordering Idaho and Wyoming. And two wolves were killed this year after preying on Utah cattle in these areas.
The Salt Lake Tribune article reports that on July 12, in the Uinta Mountains, someone reported seeing four wolves on the north side of Lily Lake, just off Mirror Lake Highway. The DWR says they don’t know if they were wolves or coyotes.
Then, not long after that, a University of Utah environmental studies graduate was camping on Lake Washington, just west of the aforementioned Lily Lake. He claimed to have experience with coyotes and wild dogs. And he has heard wolves in the wild.
He heard howls and shorter howls that he is convinced were made by a pack of wolves. He and his partner made enough noise for the “wolves” to shut up and move away. State biologists have not followed up on these reports.
On a personal note, it wasn’t long after that my family and I spent the afternoon and evening on this very Lake Washington. Fishing. And hang out at a campsite. But these reports became public a bit later, so we weren’t aware of these “sightings.”
Two things are evident. The wolves are moving to Utah. And state biologists… at least publicly… seem in no rush to investigate their arrival.