For Immediate Release: July 3, 2007

Contact: Laura Schneberger, P.O. Box 111, Winston NM 87943 505-772-5753

Habituated Wolf Packs Causing Multiple Problems in the Gila Region

The Diamond Family Who own and Operate the Beaverhead Lodge ranch in Eastern Catron and Western Sierra counties have been unhappy hosts to the Aspen Pack AF667, M863 and F1046; for the past three months. The first cow kill documented on the ranch by the Aspen pack occurred on June 6 2007.

Wednesday June 27, Crystal Diamond discovered a freshly dead yearling near Indian Cienega Tank just off the paved highway to Beaverhead New Mexico. The yearling was confirmed as a wolf kill and the strike will likely be placed on AM 863 who was observed eating the yearling. The next day Bud Womak, who has been working for the Diamond Family Ranch as a wolf watcher for the summer, discovered another dead yearling in the same area but closer to the highway. This yearling steer was also confirmed as a wolf kill. Womack was also able to watch AF 667 and her daughter F1046 chasing yearlings in the same area before he intervened and stopped them.

The ranchers do not yet know whether all or one wolf will have these confirmed livestock kills issued as a strike towards removal. Fish and Wildlife Service have told area ranchers that New Mexico Game and Fish officials will make that determination. Ranchers in the area are growing more frustrated over the way the wolf management agencies issue strikes towards removal. The policy, SOP 13 was written in 2005, it specifically states that if a wolf or several wolves are known or likely to have killed livestock, those wolves will receive a strike towards removal. Due to increased livestock predation by re-released problem wolf packs like Aspen and Durango, agency personnel appear to have stretched the policy boundaries by issuing livestock kills with multiple bite sizes on them, to only one wolf in the pack.

Ranchers believe this is an attempt to arbitrarily leave problem wolves on the ground much longer than policy dictates and has resulted in more than three strikes per pack. Coupled with the fact that for each wolf kill found there are at least 7 more that have been killed the increased predation is taking a toll on area ranchers.

The 1998 Final Rule specifically states livestock killing wolves will be removed this is not happening due to new policies that the agency's have put in place apparently in an effort to overrule the Final Rule. This year a new Rule is being authored that will supposedly address so many of the inadequacies in the 1998 Final Rule but ranchers are skeptical of the motives of the agencies who are authoring the draft their input into the draft rule will occur on the same level as the general publics even though they are on the ground dealing with wolves.

The Durango Pack (AF924, AM973) re-released in April 2007 have also killed cattle since they traveled out of the Wilderness soon after the late April release. Because of the enormous area on the ranch that the wolves are hunting, cattle are often found too late to necropsy. Decomposition and branding season taking it's toll on the ranch cowboys, have allowed a short term free ride for the wolves. Last Friday that changed with the discovery of a freshly killed cow and calf pair. The cattle were found Friday and confirmed as wolf kills. Because of their location and bite widths, the kill is suspected to be a Durango pack kill. If New Mexico Department of Game and Fish representatives agree, both animals should incur a strike towards removal from the program. This kill is the female’s third strike. Two other cow kills were committed prior to the April re-release, one in August 2006 and one in November 2006 in the same area. Her third strike should lead to permanent removal from the program immediately according to policy and the program's final rule but area ranchers say the wolf remains at large even four days after the third strike no decision has been made.

Ranchers are waiting to see if NMDG&F will ignore the evidence and pin the kill only on the male to in an effort to avoid removing a livestock habituated female as occurred in the Aspen pack kill June 6.

For the past two months, Durango have also localized at a ranch house a minimum of every other night, keeping the family alert and awake, waiting for daylight. Debbie Miller, who lives and works on the Adobe ranch, says that before her removal last December the female was a frequent visitor to her home. Debbie feels that she is ten times worse now that she has a mate and has come to the house so often that it is becoming a regular event to wait for the wolves to show up and stalk the cattle horses and dogs on the deeded land.

According to Ginger Whetten, whose husband Gene manages the Adobe ranch, the agency's management priorities are the whole problem.

"They were politely asked, time and time again, to remove these problem wolves from the Miller's house. They were also asked politely, not to allow the Aspen pack to den on Jack Diamond's land. They just don't do anything! If they have to kill more wolves it is their own fault because no matter what we do, they won't work with us."

Unsubstantiated opinions on the reintroduction and ranching float around the media as well.

“This portion of the Gila National Forest is perennially overgrazed, leading to conditions that make it hard to keep cattle alive,” said Michael Robinson of the Center for Biological Diversity in a press release issued July 2.

“The wolves pay the price.”

"Ginger Whetten responds, “The latest kills happened on the BLM part of the ranch not the national forest. We have been reading in the papers that the reason the wolves are here is because we are overgrazing and there are dead cattle everywhere. Whoever is saying that doesn't know what they are talking about and I can't believe the papers will publish that kind of information. It just is not true. Our Forest Service and BLM files and national environmental policy act analysis show this ranch to be in overall excellent shape and the forage on it is also in excellent condition. The only dead livestock we have are due to having wolves that kill cattle."

Also causing trouble are last years Aspen pups near the Link, private property in northeast Grant County. Mary Miller who lives at the link is documenting elk calf kills at a phenomenal rate.

"On one day, within 200 yards of each other, we found four elk babies killed the night before by just two of the Aspen pack, a male and one female from last years pups. They just killed the calves but didn't eat any part of them," says Mary.

On January 9 2007 Mary's 9 year old daughter Stacy lost her gentle horse Six to the Aspen pack, the previous November, Stacy who was 8 at the time witnessed an Aspen pack wolf attack and nearly kill one of the family's dogs in her front yard. Her parents believe the dog may have been defending Stacy from a stalking wolf.

Last week the Interior Department budget including yet more funding for the Mexican wolf program was approved and the program will continue unhampered and with very little oversight. This despite a Herculean effort to pass an amendment put forth by NM Congressman Stevan Pearce, the amendment would have revoked funding for the mismanaged program.

A spokesman for Congressman Pearce's office states, "As you know, we will continue fighting to protect the people of New Mexico and holding the Fish and Wildlife Service accountable for the management of this program. If there is any hope out of this vote, the Chairman of the Interior Appropriations Committee stated that there were problems with this program, although he opposed the amendment."