CHAPTER y. AI.rfrKNATlVES 



Wolf Habitat, Connectivity, and Land Management. FWP ungulale programs link habitat and 

 population management through sustained public hunting to achieve ungulate population objectives. In 

 this way, FWP takes an important habitat need of wolves into consideration. This, along with the amount 

 of land held in public ownership and adequate legal protections, provides long-term habitat availability 

 for wolves. Federal land management agencies are increasingly managing lands from an ecosystem-level 

 perspective, considering all components and functional relationships. FWP will collaborate with private 

 landowners as well to address concerns about wild ungulates or other habitat-related issues. 



Recent scientific peer review of the USFWS definition of a viable wolf population indicated that human 

 tolerance, strict regulation of human-caused mortality, long term management strategies, and maintenance 

 of the genetic connectivity among sub-populations will determine the long term viability of a recovered 

 population (USFWS 2002). Reviewers emphasized the regulation of human-caused mortality and the 

 importance of connectivity to long-term population security. These are the standards by which the three 

 state plans, when taken together, will be evaluated. 



In more practical terms, this highlights the importance of assuring that there are frequent natural dispersal 

 events in which individual wolves move between and among sub-populations in Montana, Idaho, and 

 Wyoming. Dispersal, then, constitutes the "connection" that allows genetic mixing of sub-populations 

 and ensures the viability of the entire northern Rockies population. Montana is an important geographic 

 and physical link "connecting" these sub-populations with Canadian populations. Canadian national and 

 provincial parks along the continental divide provide important secure habitats for wolves just north of 

 the international boundary. However, wolf dispersal from the U.S. northward appears to be as important 

 to the viability of Canadian sub-populations in southern British Columbia and Alberta as dispersal from 

 there to the U.S. Canadian packs will likely continue to be a source of wolves dispersing into the U.S. 

 while some U.S. wolves will continue dispersing into Canada. This exchange will be important to both 

 U.S. and Canadian wolf populations. 



By adopting the more specific federal breeding pair definition during the first few years of state-directed 

 management, Montana will be assuring that adequate numbers of dispersal events occur. As wolf 

 distribution slowly expands to suitable habitats with a minimal number of conflicts over time, the 

 Montana population will still be a reliable source of dispersers within the bigger regional population. 

 Across the wolf recovery area in the northern Rockies, Yellowstone and Glacier national parks function 

 as core habitats at opposite ends of current wolf distribution. Adequate wolf numbers and di.stribution 

 between those secure areas, legal protection, public outreach and education, and the network of public 

 lands in western Montana, central Idaho, and northwestern Wyoming facilitates connectivity and dispersal 

 between the sub-populations. The monitoring program and ongoing coordination with Idaho and 

 Wyoming officials will ensure regional connectivity and adequate dispersal. 



Specific habitat corridors, travel restrictions, or area closures are not incorporated in this alternative. 

 They were not necessary to restore the gray wolf in Montana, and they should not be necessary to 

 con.serve and manage a recovered population. Nevertheless, the gray wolf and other wildlife species will 

 benefit from linkage mapping efforts now underway for lynx and grizzly bears. FWP has attended 

 technical meetings for these efforts and is a member of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee. 



Economics / Livelihoods. The council acknowledged that the economic costs and benefits of wolf 

 restoration in Montana accrue to individuals or economic sectors differently. Some individuals or 

 economic sectors may benefit while others may be harmed. Thus, this issue is addressed in the Planning 

 Document by the council's general recommendation to integrate and sustain a wolf population within the 

 complex biological, social, economic, and political landscape. Furthermore, benefits and ct)sts seem to 

 affect individuals more significantly, rather than an industry as a whole. Therefore, this disparity is 

 addressed through the inclusion of certain management tools or strategies such as those described in the 



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