Wolf numbers rise in northwest

[Doondoo]

State wildlife officials are reporting significant increases in the number of verified wolf packs and individual wolves in northwestern Montana.

The news comes as the Interior Department prepares to remove the northern Rockies wolf population from the endangered and threatened-species list.

From 2005 to 2006, the number of verified packs in northwestern Montana rose by 63 percent, and individual wolves rose by 27 percent, said Kent Laudon, a wolf management specialist with the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks.

Laudon said some of these packs and individuals existed previously but could not be documented until 2006, which artificially inflated the one-year increases. But new packs and individuals documented last year also contributed to the population jump, he said. And even if the increases were spread out over two years, they would still represent a significant gain in population.

"This year it seems like we may be turning a corner," Laudon said.


http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2007/02/24/news/state/55-wolf.txt

[Olney Blue]

1. I thought this was about Wolf's ratings numbers on CNN.

My bad!