Wolf licenses went on sale in Montana Aug. 8 and by the end of the next day nearly 2,000 had been sold. Sales remained strong for the remainder of the week, including in Northwest Montana.
Idaho began selling wolf tags in May and Wyoming wildlife officials are now discussing the possibilities of their own hunt.
Meanwhile, three environmental groups are appealing an early August decision by U.S. District Court Judge Donald Molloy that upheld the removal of federal protections for gray wolves in Montana, Idaho and parts of Utah, Washington and Oregon.
This fall’s planned wolf hunt is Montana’s second. During the first hunt in 2009 Montana hunters killed 72 wolves, approaching the established quota of 75. State wildlife officials had approved a harvest quota of 186 wolves for a 2010 hunt before Molloy restored federal protections and shut down the hunting season.
Earlier this month, Wyoming state officials reached an agreement with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to remove the state’s roughly 340 wolves from the endangered species list. There are an estimated 1,000 wolves in Idaho and 566 in Montana, according to year-end 2010 counts.
Wildlife officials and state legislators in Wyoming must still approve the agreement.
The Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission set the quota for this year’s hunt at 220 wolves, to be harvested in 14 established wolf management units (WMU) during both archery and rifle seasons. Each unit has its own quota, while some have subunits with subquotas.
Reaching the quota would reduce Montana’s wolf population by about 25 percent to a minimum of 425, according to estimates from wildlife managers.
General archery season is Sept. 3-Oct. 16 and general rifle season is held Oct. 22-Dec. 31. Early backcountry archery runs Sept. 3-14 and early backcountry rifle season is scheduled for Sept. 15-Dec. 31. The hunting season closes in specific WMUs when the quota is reached.
Licenses cost $19 for residents and $350 for nonresidents, available at any FWP office or license provider. They are also available online at www.fwp.mt.gov. Hunters must have a valid 2011 conservation license.
John Fraley, spokesperson for FWP’s Region 1, said his office sold 84 tags the first day alone.
“That’s not counting Snappy’s and other (license providers), so that’s just a fraction of what was actually sold here,” Fraley said.
According to FWP regulations, hunters must report their wolf kill “within 12 hours regardless of their intent to retain possession of the hide and skull” by calling 1-877-397-9453.
If hunters choose to retain the skull and hide, they must personally show the skull and hide to a designated FWP employee within 10 days of harvest. Evidence of sex must “remain naturally attached to the hide.”
In 2009, FWP sold 15,514 tags to residents and 89 to nonresidents. Of the 72 wolves harvested, 11 were killed in Flathead County, the most in any county. Forty-one males and 31 females were harvested, with the largest weighing in at 117 pounds. Most were healthy, according to FWP, and seven were wearing radio collars.
For more information, visit http://fwp.mt.gov/hunting/planahunt/huntingGuides/wolf/default.html.