Idaho hunters will be able to kill between 100 and 300 gray wolves this fall under a plan proposed by the Idaho Department of Fish and Game after Thursday's federal decision to remove the animals from the endangered species list.
The plan next goes to the Idaho Fish and Game Commission for approval.
The commission is scheduled to meet March 6 to vote on the Idaho Wolf Population Management Plan 2008-2012.
The decision to remove wolves from Endangered Species Act protection was well received by Idaho's congressional delegation and lamented by environmental groups.
"The wolf has had a successful recovery in Idaho and the West," said Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho. "The state has followed strict scientific monitoring guidelines to ensure that all the benchmarks have been met for delisting this animal, and the announcement that the wolf no longer is an endangered species is a welcome one for wildlife conservationists, ranchers and sportsmen alike."
Defenders of Wildlife, a Washington, D.C.,-based conservation group, said it will not support delisting until the states establish sustainable management plans.
"Given the tremendous public support and resources spent to reintroduce the wolf to the Northern Rockies, it makes no sense to allow wholesale killing of wolves in the region and polarize the issue even more deeply with this one-sided plan," said Suzzanne Stone, the organization's Northern Rockies wolf conservation specialist.
Stone called for a "balanced solution based on science that also addresses the needs of ranchers, wildlife supporters and hunters."
At the end of 2007, Idaho had an estimated 732 wolves, said Steve Nadeau, large carnivore coordinator for the Idaho Department of Fish and Game. He predicted the population will increase 15 percent to 20 percent by this fall.
Nadeau said the department's goal for the next five years is to keep the Idaho population between the 518 counted in 2005 and 732.
"We're going to manage for a viable, healthy population," he said. "We've managed big game for a long time, and we're good at it."
He said the department plans to take a conservative approach the first several years while it learns how to manage wolves.
A 13-year restoration effort has seen the animals' population soar in the Northern Rockies, and an estimated 1,500 wolves now roam Idaho, Montana and Wyoming after the predators were largely exterminated in the United States outside of Alaska in the early 20th century.
Federal officials said plans submitted by the three states indicate the states will likely maintain between 900 and 1,250 wolves for the foreseeable future.
If the wolf population in Idaho were to fall below 10 breeding pairs, or 15 over a three-year period, wolves could again come under federal protection.
"The state of Idaho does not want to see these animals relisted," said Virgil Moore, the department's deputy director.
Nadeau said the department's plan for this fall allows traditional hunting methods for wolves, including rifles, muzzleloaders, shotguns and archery equipment.
Wolves would be hunted from October through December under the plan, with the dates and lengths of wolf hunts varying based on the area and the type of weapon used.
Idaho wolf hunting tags will cost $11.50. Nadeau said more tags will be sold than the number of wolves allowed to be killed, a system the department uses for other big game species.
Officials said Idaho hunters with wolf tags will be allowed to kill either males or females as it would be too difficult to tell them apart. Also, they said pups born in the spring will be adult size by the time fall hunting begins.
Nadeau said hunting wolves with dogs, bait or traps will not initially be allowed, though that could change in future years.
The plan has a quota system designed to stop the hunting when a certain number of wolves has been killed. The plan requires hunters to report the killing of a wolf within 24 hours to make sure quotas aren't exceeded.
Nadeau said wolf hunts might be more intensive in areas where wolves are preying on livestock.
"We will allow hunting to help control some of those livestock conflicts," he said.
But some other areas might be kept off limits.
"It's a process of us seeing how things go," Moore said.
A survey of Idaho hunters found 56 percent plan to by a wolf tag.
Environmental groups said Thursday they will sue the federal government to try to maintain wolf protections.
Three Idaho wolves rest in the snow. Photo courtesy Idaho Fish and Game
