Three wolves were killed in Wyoming within three days of the de-listing of the gray wolf.
In Idaho, the Anti-Wolf Coalition has been traveling the state, seeking 45,000 signatures by the end of April in order to put an initiative on the November ballot.
At the meeting Tuesday night in Idaho Falls, the group says it has about 20,000 signatures, but it wants enough so that Idahoans can vote whether they can freely shoot wolves that are killing big game and livestock, without first clearing it with the government. Senate candidate Rex Rammell says there will be lawsuits from environmentalists who want to stop the de-listing. Rammell says lengthy court procedures will tie the de-listing up in court and allow the wolf population to continue to grow. The head of the coalition says the Canadian Wolf must be eliminated from Idaho, and should never have been introduced back in the 90s.
He says it is ruining the ecosystem, and kills wild animals and livestock not just for food, but for sport. Ron Gillett: "There's been no management of wolves, they are not going to be de-listed in Idaho, there's been no management plan, and no hunting. The politicians, the bureaucrats and the agency people have done nothing to stop this uncontrolled wolf explosion and population."
Rex Rammell: "I think it's just the beginning of what I'm referring to as war in the West, I think the battle between the environmentalists and the hunters and farmers and ranchers is going to come to a head and it's going to get ugly."
The coalition will continue traveling the state for signatures for an initiative. We will have more on this story as the group nears its deadline at the end of the month.
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