DWR readies for return of wolf packs to Utah

SPRINGVILLE — Lyman Holyoke fears the inevitable.

Holyoke, who runs 350 cattle on Fish Lake National Forest and along the San Rafael River, worries that wolves will be relocated into Utah.

"I feel there will be an introduction of the wolf no matter how people feel," said Holyoke, one of the 200 or so people attending a Division of Wildlife Resources regional advisory council meeting in Springville Tuesday night. About 25 people attended a similar meeting Monday in Vernal. A third meeting is scheduled tonight at the Brigham City Community Center, 24 N. 300 West, Brigham City.

The light turnout in Vernal was surprising given the flurry of letters to the editor regarding wolves in rural Utah carried recently in newspapers in Duchesne and Uintah counties.

Perhaps it's because people are catching on that the Division of Wildlife Resources isn't talking about re-introducing the controversial animal into the state, but is gearing up to manage the complex issue of re-colonization when the inevitable occurs and wolves migrate here.

Two ranchers at the Vernal meeting asked about the ramifications of shooting a wolf that was destroying livestock. Due to the prevalence of hybrid wolves — there are six to eight times as many hybrids as there are wolves in the United States — one man wanted to know the legal implications if a suspected wolf hybrid was shot.

"The real short answer to that is you don't shoot the animal. If they take it to the lab for DNA analysis and it turns out to be a wolf, it's very likely you will be prosecuted. It's just not a wise idea to take the law into your own hands," said Craig McLaughlin, DWR mammals coordinator.

The DWR Northeastern Region receives just one to two calls a year regarding wolves, according to region director Walt Donaldson.

"Notify us as soon as you can and we'll try to get the animal trapped as soon as we can. I don't think that will be much of a problem. We just don't see that much out here," Donaldson stated.

Because wolves are listed as an endangered species, the DWR works closely with the federal wildlife service in any situation involving wolves.

Responding to similar concerns raised at the Springville meeting, McLaughlin restated the caution about taking the law "into your own hands."