Ecological illiteracy soars in Idaho aswolf control bill goes to guv

I don't think the killing of Gray Wolves in Idaho has anything at all to do with legitimate wildlife management.It has plenty to do, however, with the revenue from the sale of wolf-hunting licenses and tags and just pure unabashed hatred for the predator. It's the same attitude that lead, more than a century ago, to the near extirpation of wolves in North America south of the border with Canada.
A new name for Idaho Fish and Game: Idaho Shoot-Predators-on-Sight Agency. Here's Idaho Statesman reporter Rocky Barker's blog posting about the wolf-control bill just sent to the Idaho governor for his signature.

Op-ed: Fearmongering, not science pervading elk management

The writer of this op-ed is a "hunter conservationist," whatever that is (I think I understand his point), and he's on the mark that science has taken a back seat in the management of elk in Montana. You can read his argument right here.

Idaho F&G closes another wolf-killing program

Actually, it's just been shut down for the season. The "hunter," after all, did take out nine wolves in the wilderness of the Middle Fork, Salmon River (public land!). And this article quotes the F&G boss as saying he wants a balance to allow the region's Elk population to continue growing (so that F&G can sell more hunting licenses and get more money from them for its operating budget!). This whole thing isn't about science. And Idaho F&G, like most state wildlife agencies, likes to talk about "harvesting" game, as if they are part of a crop of corn or spuds or sugar beets. What a debacle.