The elk population near Gardiner Montana has been decimated.
Why?
Because feeding wolves has been a higher priority than good management of wildlife.
The elk population in this area used to be nearly 20,000. It is where I shot my first elk. It is where my father shot the only elk of his lifetime. Now, I would not even consider an elk hunting trip there. Some reports list the current elk population under 2,000. The Billings Gazette published an article discussing the reduction in elk licenses by the Game and Fish.
For years, local residents have reported the loss of elk calves to wolves has been nearly 100%. Additionally, wolves have taken large numbers of adult elk. All of this while wildlife officials have stood by and watched, with the exception of their diligence in protecting the population of wolves.
South Dakota does not have any wolves… according to the SD Game & Fish Department. They are also the organization that has insisted for years that there was “no evidence” of breeding pairs of mountain lions outside of the Black Hills Fire Protection District. They are wrong on both counts. My brother and I personally saw a wolf on my ranch east of Rapid City. Many reports of wolf sightings in South Dakota are routinely dismissed by the GF&P. There have been two deer kills by mountain lions within view of my home at our ranch within the last year or so. To suggest that mountain lions live, kill and eat outside the Black Hills, but do not breed, is being seriously moronic.
As in Montana, the protection and/or mismanagement of predators has a devastating negative impact on other wildlife. In the last few years, deer tags in the Black Hills have become much harder to draw, and tags more difficult to fill. This, as the mountain lion population thrives. The GF&P will insist that mountain goat and bighorn sheep populations are not reduced due to mountain lions.
It might be a good idea to “manage” the government wildlife management programs.
***Gordon Howie is an author and CEO of Life and Liberty Media***
“It’s not about right or left, it’s about Right or Wrong.”
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