http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/usfws/ en-us Sat, 1 Nov 2008 16:28:44 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2121742/posts A federal trapper continues hunting for the wolves that have now killed five cows in the Big Hole Valley. Graham McDougal with U.S. Wildlife Services hasn't been able to kill any wolves from the pack, said Carolyn Sime, wolf program manager with the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. The pack has killed five cows and injured another ... Sime said ...she understands why Giem is frustrated with the problem but the wolves have remained elusive. "I share his frustration," she said. "It's one of those tough deals where wolves are just running around so much that it's really... The Montana Standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2121742/posts#comment Sat, 1 Nov 2008 16:28:44 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2043065/posts The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today announced it has removed the Preble's meadow jumping mouse populations in Wyoming from protection under the Endangered Species Act. The service said it is also amended the listing for Preble's to indicate the subspecies remains threatened in the Colorado portion of its range. "For Colorado basically nothing changes," A new management plant with a new critical habitat map will be developed by 2010... The determination is based on a better understanding of the distribution of and threats to Preble's meadow jumping mouse populations in Wyoming and Colorado The Denver Post http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2043065/posts#comment Wed, 9 Jul 2008 20:23:33 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2016072/posts WASHINGTON, D.C. – Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne today announced that he is accepting the recommendation of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Dale Hall to list the polar bear as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).  The listing is based on the best available science, which shows that loss of sea ice threatens and will likely continue to threaten polar bear habitat.  This loss of habitat puts polar bears at risk of becoming endangered in the foreseeable future, the standard established by the ESA for designating a threatened species. In making the announcement, Kempthorne said,... U.S. Department of the Interior http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2016072/posts#comment Wed, 14 May 2008 23:38:36 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1988514/posts Montana’s wolf population increased 34 percent over the past year, to an estimated 422 wolves in 73 packs... The wolves are nearly equally distributed between northern and southern Montana...although the bulk of the population growth was in northwestern and far western Montana... Wolves are still listed under the Endangered Species Act. Delisting was set for late March, but lawsuits are expected to delay that. As for conflicts with ranchers, the FWP reported an increase in the number of confirmed cattle deaths due to wolves, from 32 to 75, and an increase in the number of sheep deaths, from four to... Bozeman Chronicle http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1988514/posts#comment Thu, 20 Mar 2008 01:18:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1974108/posts Interior Department Removes Northern Rocky Mountain Wolves from Endangered Species List Contacts Ed Bangs (406) 449-5225, x 204 Joan Jewett (503) 231-6211 Sharon Rose (303) 236-4580 Joshua Winchell (703) 358-2279 The gray wolf population in the Northern Rocky Mountains is thriving and no longer requires the protection of the Endangered Species Act, Deputy Secretary of the Interior Lynn Scarlett announced today. As a result, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will remove the species from the federal list of threatened and endangered species. "The wolf population in the Northern Rockies has far exceeded its recovery goal and continues to expand... U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1974108/posts#comment Thu, 21 Feb 2008 20:28:17 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1933603/posts Juneau man recounts Friday morning bear attack on Admiralty Island . A "crack" in the brush. A split second to turn and see the bear. Another second to click the gun's safety off. That's all the time Dr. John Raster had before the brown bear attacked him. "I screamed and fired a shot into the air," he said. "It was already on me and the gun was still pretty much slung around my shoulder. He bit me and started scratching me and pushed me down into the water." The Juneau doctor had been walking alone Friday morning along a stretch... JUNEAU EMPIRE http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1933603/posts#comment Sun, 2 Dec 2007 17:24:01 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/994200/posts Wolf Kill Has Ranchers Demanding Re-introduced Wolves Removed By Jon Hanian Burgdorf, ID - The aftermath of a wolf pack attack that occurred last month north of McCall near Burgdorf has left 55 sheep dead and more than dozen maimed. The attacked, which has been confirmed by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, has also galvanized groups opposed to the federal government's efforts to re-establish grey wolves in the state. Ron Gillett heads up the Anti Wolf Coalition of Central Idaho. Gillett says a band of 100 sheep were attacked on September 18th by that wolf pack. "Where they... kbci http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/994200/posts#comment Fri, 3 Oct 2003 04:34:20 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1934165/posts Long ago, grizzly bears thrived in Montana as did tales - some tall, some true - told by frontiersmen of a man-eater even more fearsome than the other two bogeymen of the forest, wolves and mountain lions. Today, the reputation of Ursus arctos horribilis - along with other major predators ... Also changed is how people can handle encounters with grizzlies, using a chemical spray rather than guns to improve the odds that both humans and bears will escape the encounters unharmed. But Workman believes that if a bullet was good enough for his great-grandfather more than a century ago,... the Missoulian http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1934165/posts#comment Mon, 3 Dec 2007 23:09:30 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1933474/posts More endangered Mexican gray wolves have been targeted for removal from the Gila National Forest in southwestern New Mexico. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ... The wolf reintroduction program requires the permanent removal of any wolf linked to three livestock killings a year ... Fish and Wildlife spokeswoman Elizabeth Slown says the Aspen Pack has killed a horse and five cows since the beginning of the year. The Associated Press http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1933474/posts#comment Sun, 2 Dec 2007 05:24:58 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1913025/posts Political bullying in original plan triggers review of cats’ protection. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will revisit its Canada lynx-protection plan after acknowledging that a political appointee may have influenced scientific decisions. The 2006 lynx-protection plan is one of eight decisions that may have been politically influenced by former Interior Department Deputy Assistant Secretary Julie MacDonald. MacDonald resigned after the Interior Department's inspector general found she had "bullied, insulted and harassed the professional staff to change documents and alter biological reporting." "We need to make sure that the final decisions are based on the science," said Diane Katzenberger, a... Durango Herald http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1913025/posts#comment Thu, 18 Oct 2007 15:01:59 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1904698/posts Kill a sea lion, save a salmon. Kill a barred owl, save a spotted owl. In each of these high-profile cases, armed enforcers ranging from angry sport fishermen to the U.S. government have suggested extreme measures for resolving wildlife conflicts. However, natural processes don't easily lend themselves to Tony Soprano-style solutions. Whether the motive is to protect a "natural" environment, or simply to preserve desirable species, past experience shows that whacking unwanted rivals does little to address underlying problems. Yet that's what the federal government has in mind to protect two signature Northwest creatures. The National Marine Fisheries Service has... Columbian http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1904698/posts#comment Mon, 1 Oct 2007 03:50:20 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1640973/posts Thousands of vacationers in the West will likely see wolves in the wild for the first time this summer, often from the road but sometimes while camping or hiking. The federal government and state agencies that manage wolves have concise rules on what is legal in these encounters, and experts who study wolf behavior offer advice on how to handle what is likely to be an unforgettable experience. "Wolves don't turn and run away immediately like we're used to with other animals," said Carolyn Sime, gray wolf program coordinator with the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Department. "The other thing... AP/Star Tribune http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1640973/posts#comment Wed, 31 May 2006 03:22:07 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1834676/posts The number of bald eagles in Wyoming has grown to 185 breeding pairs, a population recovery that has exceeded expectations from ornithologists who predicted much lower recovery rates when the birds were first granted federal protection in 1967. The bald eagle population is soaring nationally, as well, with the number of breeding pairs in the lower 48 states climbing from a low in 1963 of 417 to more than 9,700 today, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said Monday. The population recovery offers evidence to some scientists that federal protection of the birds under the Endangered Species Act should be... The Associated Press http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1834676/posts#comment Wed, 16 May 2007 19:24:00 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1833251/posts Catron County Manager Bill Aymar says officials only want to prevent problems by asking the federal government to remove a pregnant female Mexican gray wolf released on the county's border after it killed two cows elsewhere. But Victoria Fox, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, says the agency has no reason to remove the wolf. The dispute over the animal -- designated F924 -- began as soon as it was released April 25 in southwestern New Mexico. The next day, the county demanded it be removed as an "imminent danger." Fish and Wildlife rejected the demand last... Associated Press http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1833251/posts#comment Mon, 14 May 2007 14:40:31 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1824921/posts PORTLAND, Ore. - A few hundred aggressive cousins of the threatened northern spotted owl may be killed by government agents with shotguns under a proposed federal plan. The spotted owl was listed as threatened 17 years ago, and its numbers continue to dwindle through much of its range in the Pacific Northwest, federal officials said Thursday in proposing the plan to prevent the species from dying out. The barred owls have crowded their cousins, the spotted owls, out of prime habitat, sometimes even attacking them. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service hopes that thinning the number of barred owls will... Philly.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1824921/posts#comment Sat, 28 Apr 2007 01:20:37 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1817549/posts An eastern Idaho man was mauled by a grizzly bear just outside his rural home, suffering deep bite and claw wounds across his back, investigators said. Authorities did not immediately release the name of the 33-year-old victim of the Tuesday night bear attack, saying he requested anonymity. They said he was in stable condition and good spirits in an Idaho Falls hospital. "He just stepped outside of his house to look for his dog ... then the bear knocked him down," said Idaho Fish and Game Regional Supervisor Steve Schmidt... "The bear caused significant injuries to his head, back, shoulder... (AP) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1817549/posts#comment Sun, 15 Apr 2007 02:13:56 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1817552/posts There are now at least 1,300 wolves prowling Montana, Idaho and Wyoming, far more than anyone imagined when the species was reintroduced in the Northern Rockies 12 years ago. The wolf population has, on average, grown by about 26 percent a year for the past decade. The latest estimates, which summarize counts completed at the end of 2006, show they aren't slowing down. "I keep thinking we're at the top end of the bubble," said Ed Bangs, wolf recovery coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. "I can't see that there's room for any more, but we'll see." As... Billings Gazette http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1817552/posts#comment Sun, 15 Apr 2007 02:32:16 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1803470/posts Insect could help fight spread of tamarisk. residents who have battled with the invasive tamarisk, or salt cedar, could find relief in the form of a beetle. The Colorado Department of Agriculture is introducing a beetle - the only known natural enemy of the tamarisk. The beetle comes from Asia, where tamarisk first originated. The tamarisk is an invasive, nonnative plant that was originally brought to the United States from Asia to control erosion. But the noxious shrub is said to cover 10,000 acres in Montezuma County. It can have roots that run as deep as 100 feet and can... Cortez Journal http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1803470/posts#comment Tue, 20 Mar 2007 00:20:37 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1789609/posts Residents in Bingham County have started a local chapter of the Idaho Anti-Wolf Coalition, which is collecting signatures to once again try to get an initiative to ban gray wolves from Idaho on the ballot. The group failed to gather enough signatures to get a similar initiative on the ballot last year. Coalition Chairman Ron Gillett of Stanley said the group's new goal is to gather 100,000 signatures. He also has instructed petition carriers to make certain that everyone who signs is a registered voter. In 2006, the group collected more than 40,000 signatures in six weeks before running out... (AP) -- http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1789609/posts#comment Fri, 23 Feb 2007 03:35:39 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1782372/posts The US Fish and Wildlife Service says a pack of endangered Mexican gray wolves has killed a horse belonging to a Catron County family. Mark Miller and his family returned to their homestead on the Diamond Creek in southwestern New Mexico about three weeks ago to find the remains of their horse. Tracks show the wolves apparently chased the horse from a pasture into a corral and killed it. Miller says his family has tried yelling at the wolves, throwing rocks and installing noisemakers, but he says the pack continues to be a problem. The Associated Press http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1782372/posts#comment Sat, 10 Feb 2007 03:34:01 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1719031/posts Legislation designed to control and eradicate tamarisk was signed into law by President Bush Wednesday night, U.S. Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo., announced Thursday... creating funding for a large-scale effort to control tamarisk, also known as salt cedar... "The tamarisk is causing severe problems throughout Colorado and the West," said Allard. "The President's signing of this legislation marks a major milestone in the ongoing effort by Congress and this administration to provide critical resources for the removal of this destructive and invasive species." The tamarisk has invaded the margins of streams, lakes and wetlands throughout the Western United States. An individual... THE PUEBLO CHIEFTAIN http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1719031/posts#comment Fri, 13 Oct 2006 22:14:12 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1710258/posts Facts from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service about wolves in Park County and northwest Wyoming include: There are at least 75 wolves in at least nine packs in Park County. Two additional packs are suspected but they haven't yet been confirmed. Final cattle depredation numbers won't be available until the end of the year. Wolf numbers this year have increased in Wyoming... There are about 143 wolves in Yellowstone Park in 14 packs. There's about 166 wolves in Wyoming outside Yellowstone Park in 17-20 packs. Idaho has about 650 wolves in 70 packs. Numbers from Montana this year are... Cody Enterprise http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1710258/posts#comment Thu, 28 Sep 2006 22:39:16 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1154839/posts Early this morning a group of eighth graders will gather at a New England riverbank to bid goodbye to some old friends. In a scene with laughs, perhaps a few tears, and lots of high hopes, they will release young Atlantic salmon fry into the Souhegan River. The Amherst, New Hampshire, middle schoolers hope the salmon's journey will take the fish all the way to the sea—and back. These are no ordinary salmon. The students raised them in their classrooms as part of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) program known as Adopt-a-Salmon Family. National Geographic News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1154839/posts#comment Wed, 16 Jun 2004 23:21:57 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1068022/posts Idaho Wolf Management - Wolves in Idaho January 29, 2004 Idaho Fish and Game Information (IDFG) http://www2.state.id.us/fishgame/ The US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) reintroduced fifteen wolves into Idaho in 1995. At that time, the Idaho Legislature strictly limited Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG) involvement with wolves and wolf recovery. The USFWS proceeded with recovery and contracted with the Nez Perce Tribe to implement wolf management in Idaho. In 1996 an additional 20 wolves were reintroduced. Since that time, the number of wolves in Idaho has increased, and in 2003 we have approximately 362 wolves, 25 verified breeding... Idaho Dept. of Fish and Game (IDFG) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1068022/posts#comment Fri, 30 Jan 2004 04:19:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/957008/posts Fourteen hundred farmers owning 200,000 acres in the Klamath River Basin of southern Oregon and Northern California were denied their water rights during the summer of 2001 because of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA). Nearly $200 million of life savings and hard work were wiped out instantly as the farmers were left with essentially worthless land. They are not alone. This has been the legacy of the ESA from its inception. It has confiscated billions of dollars of private property, harmed or destroyed the lives of hundreds of thousands of Americans and has not saved one endangered species!... NewsWithViews.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/957008/posts#comment Sat, 2 Aug 2003 16:10:48 GMT