In Protest To Wolf Hunt, Montana Rancher Shuts Down 45,000 Acres Of Hunting Land
October 23, 2009
That headline might be quite misleading. Some would think the rancher is closing his hunting lands because he doesn’t want wolves hunted. Quite to the contrary. Fred Hirschy, a Big Hole Valley rancher says he’s fed up with how Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks is managing the wolf population. He says there are too many wolves and not enough killing.
“We want more people on the ground and we want the people on the ground that can shoot some wolves.”
In response to his dissatisfaction, Hirschy is taking some 45,000 acres of his land out of the hunting lands program the state offers and closing it to public hunting. The hunters and state will lose the 45,000 acres and Hirschy will give up the $12,000 he would receive this year from the state for opening his land to hunting.
Tom Remington
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The article I read said he had lost a half dozen cows over the past 10 +/- years. Doesn’t sound like heavy predation to me. How many cattle, during those years, died from weather related factors? Rustling? Disease?
Maybe now that the rancher has broken his ties with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, he can implement a management plan which will also work for the ungulate population on his ranch.
Kevin
Of which ungulates on his land do you speak:? Bison, goats, elk, BH sheep, deer?