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Wolves act to help bighorn sheep near Yellowstone National Park
Wildlife News ^ | April 26, 2013 | Ken Cole

Posted on 05/02/2013 3:44:40 PM PDT by SJackson

I recently visited Yellowstone National Park and, while there, my father and I used a friend’s place as a base camp in Gardiner, Montana. From there we would drive about 10 miles to the Park where we watched wildlife, took photographs, and just enjoyed some of the solitude that Yellowstone provides during this part of the year when it receives few visitors.

One morning, as were driving to the Park we had to stop on the highway because of a group of about 15 bighorn sheep ewes and lambs. After the sheep got off the road we proceeded toward Gardiner but then I noticed a group of about 30 domestic sheep in a pasture on private land between the highway and the Yellowstone River. These domestic sheep were just ~750 meters from the boundary of Yellowstone National Park across the river and just across the highway from where I have seen bighorn sheep in the past.

Obviously their location was of concern to me because of the very real possibility that bighorn sheep would interact with them and contract deadly pneumonia that could result in a massive die-off. This concern prompted me to contact officials, and other people who might share this concern, to make them aware of the presence of these sheep.

Well, it turns out that nature has taken its own course and most of the sheep were killed by wolves on Tuesday/Wednesday night. The Bozeman Daily Chronicle is reporting that 13 of William Hoppe’s sheep were killed and 7 are missing. The Chronicle reports that the remaining 3 sheep will be moved to Jardine which is still within bighorn sheep habitat. Hopefully these remaining sheep will be properly secured away from wolves, grizzlies, and bighorn sheep. Additionally, I hope that the 7 that are missing don’t interact with bighorn sheep if they are still alive. Maybe the wolves will do us a service and kill them too.

While visiting the Park I saw more than 100 bighorn sheep near Gardiner alone. This population of bighorn are one of the many draws that bring tourists from all over the world. They are important.

Is it time to talk about state ordinances that require landowners in bighorn sheep areas to ensure that their domestic sheep cannot come into contact with bighorn sheep? Those who live in urban areas, like Boise where I live, have all kinds of ordinances to contend with. For example, it is illegal for me to keep a rooster on my property or to allow my dog to roam the neighborhood. Why is it okay for a land owner who lives in the most important winter habitat for the world’s oldest national park to have domestic sheep that could transmit deadly pneumonia to a large herd of bighorn sheep that millions of people enjoy?


TOPICS: Local News
KEYWORDS: nutcases
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1 posted on 05/02/2013 3:44:40 PM PDT by SJackson
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To: SJackson
"Wolves act to help bighorn themselves to domestic sheep near Yellowstone National Park

Fixed it.

2 posted on 05/02/2013 3:47:20 PM PDT by DannyTN
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To: Iowa Granny; Ladysmith; Diana in Wisconsin; JLO; sergeantdave; damncat; phantomworker; joesnuffy; ..
If you’d like to be on or off this Outdoors/Rural/wildlife/hunting/hiking/backpacking/National Parks/animals list please FR mail me. And ping me is you see articles of interest.
3 posted on 05/02/2013 3:48:27 PM PDT by SJackson (The Pilgrims—Doing the jobs Native Americans wouldn’t do !)
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Unselfish wolves. Whodda thunk it?


4 posted on 05/02/2013 3:49:45 PM PDT by AlmaKing
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To: AlmaKing

The real predator here is this ken Cole nut.


5 posted on 05/02/2013 3:51:41 PM PDT by AlmaKing
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To: SJackson
Well, big KUMBAYA!

LOL, what an idiot.

If an asteroid wipes us out, Kenny will say it did it to help out all the poor single-cell critters out there who are suffering under our brutal antibacterialocracy.

6 posted on 05/02/2013 4:08:18 PM PDT by LibWhacker (.)
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To: SJackson
Those who live in urban areas, like Boise where I live, have all kinds of ordinances to contend with.

...so let's bring urban Boise to Yellowstone! Happy, happy, joy, joy.

7 posted on 05/02/2013 4:09:08 PM PDT by Roccus
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To: SJackson

Wolves are decimating populations of sheep, deer, moose, and elk and this guy’s big concern is pneumonia?


8 posted on 05/02/2013 4:11:09 PM PDT by randita
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To: SJackson
Well, it turns out that nature has taken its own course and most of the sheep were killed by wolves on Tuesday/Wednesday night. The Bozeman Daily Chronicle is reporting that 13 of William Hoppe’s sheep were killed and 7 are missing. The Chronicle reports that the remaining 3 sheep will be moved to Jardine which is still within bighorn sheep habitat. Hopefully these remaining sheep will be properly secured away from wolves, grizzlies, and bighorn sheep. Additionally, I hope that the 7 that are missing don’t interact with bighorn sheep if they are still alive. Maybe the wolves will do us a service and kill them too.

Well, maybe the wolves will do us an even greater service, and chomp down on some greenie weenies like the author.

9 posted on 05/02/2013 4:17:54 PM PDT by meadsjn
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To: SJackson
So then the wolves helped the bighorn sheep by killing and eating their cousins. Is that what this is about???

Maybe Ken Cole could give the wolves the addresses of his cousins and they could help him accordingly.

Someone do him and us a favor and take away his laptop.

10 posted on 05/02/2013 4:31:22 PM PDT by Uncle Chip
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To: SJackson

11 posted on 05/02/2013 4:37:28 PM PDT by Albion Wilde (Don't believe any rumors in Washington, DC until they are officially denied.)
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To: SJackson

Ken Cole.....why, I remember Ken Cole. He was with that Chinese guy and they were sticking live eels up their ass. It didn’t work with Ken because his head was in the way.


12 posted on 05/02/2013 4:54:48 PM PDT by blueunicorn6 ("A crack shot and a good dancer")
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To: SJackson

I swear, I had a spiritual experience on night camping on the Gardiner River.


13 posted on 05/02/2013 5:03:49 PM PDT by mylife (Opinions $1, Half Baked 50¢)
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To: randita
IDK about some of these animals but one thing I am aware of is that the elk population had exploded, and they were destroying the natural habitat by overgrazing and riparian damage. The wolves have reduced the elk population and restored to a more natural balance.
14 posted on 05/02/2013 5:28:20 PM PDT by hinckley buzzard
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To: mylife

The big horn’s on Pikes Peak are domesticated...

I scratched one behind the ears in the parking lot.

Like rats they are.


15 posted on 05/02/2013 5:53:41 PM PDT by glasseye
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To: blueunicorn6

For those who have missed this lecture.

The reintroduction of wolves has nothing to do with regulating the ungulates (deer, elk, moose) or because, gosh, people just wanted to see wolves happily skipping and frolicking around wildflower studded meadows. Wolves were reintroduced by the liberals to destroy the ungulates. It is extremely hard for liberals to argue against hunting. Starving elk and blue-tongue deer are not good for anybody. Hunting acts to keep the ungulate population healthy. So, the only way to get rid of the hunting rifles is to get rid of the ungulates. We think gun control is checkers, and the liberals are playing chess.


16 posted on 05/02/2013 5:59:51 PM PDT by blueunicorn6 ("A crack shot and a good dancer")
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To: SJackson

I’m pretty sure domestic sheep have a better chance of picking up diseases and parasites from wild sheep than the other way around.


17 posted on 05/02/2013 9:56:56 PM PDT by VanShuyten ("a shadow...draped nobly in the folds of a gorgeous eloquence.")
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To: hinckley buzzard
IDK about some of these animals but one thing I am aware of is that the elk population had exploded, and they were destroying the natural habitat by overgrazing and riparian damage. The wolves have reduced the elk population and restored to a more natural balance.

In a word, Bullcrap.

18 posted on 05/03/2013 9:17:09 AM PDT by roamer_1 (Globalism is just socialism in a business suit.)
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To: randita
Wolves are decimating populations of sheep, deer, moose, and elk and this guy’s big concern is pneumonia?

And here, I thought it was the Bison who had Brucelosis.

19 posted on 05/03/2013 4:15:54 PM PDT by Smokin' Joe (How often God must weep at humans' folly. Stand fast. God knows what He is doing)
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To: roamer_1

Not to make too fine a point of it, but this thread began with BS (That Wildlife News is a blog that ain’t much but a collection of environazis stroking egos, with the author of this bit of fluff at the center of the circle jerk) and seems to have attracted enough misinformation to qualify as More Crap Than I Get On My Boots Going Through A Feed Lot.

Just one damn time, I’d like to hear information about my home (I live a hundred miles north of Yellowstone) from somebody actually knows WTH goes on either at the park or the ranches that are around the place and are still trying to stay in operation with that flock of fools screwing up everything they touch.

...and then we get some flatlander who couldn’t find Yellowstone on a map unless you tacked it to his forehead and probably couldn’t decide which end of a cow to go to for milk (if he didn’t stumble over that little detail about gender) happily quoting some pap about the elk population.

Sheesh.

I’m going for a walk before I break this damn keyboard..


20 posted on 05/05/2013 9:27:54 AM PDT by Unrepentant VN Vet (For why should my Freedom be judged by anothers conscience? 1 Cor 10:29)
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