WOLVES: Ignoring their benefits

The new plan for Idaho to hire professional hunters to kill 90% of our wolves is tragic and misguided. Despite what I’ve heard people say, wolves have not decimated the elk population. In fact, the current elk population is more than 120,000, close to the all-time high.

The last six years of elk hunting in Idaho have harvested 20,000 elk per year, and Idaho Fish and Game say that populations are continuing to rise. Multiple studies have shown that wolves prey on the sick and weak, making elk populations stronger, and individuals larger.

When you get right down to it, wolves and hunters are not in competition. Managing wolves near livestock is reasonable, but in the rest of the state we should stop believing what we have seen in Disney movies and look at the facts: Wolves are good for Idaho.

ERIC STEIDLE

Post Falls