Wisconsin's wolf population has risen past 800.

[Lee Borgersen]

Sunday, April 17, 2011

  The Associated Press
Researchers say Wisconsin's wolf population has risen past 800.

State biologists say Wisconsin's gray wolf numbers have reached a modern record of about 825 animals in over 200 packs.

Adrian Wydeven, wolf ecologist for the Department of Natural Resources, says the estimate represents an increase of 100 over the previous counting period.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports the number was released Friday at the annual Wisconsin Wolf Stakeholder Committee meeting in Wausau. It came out a day after the Fish and Wildlife Service announced plans to remove wolves in Wisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan from the Endangered Species List.

The growing wolf population has led to increased depredation in Wisconsin. The state paid a record $203,943 in wolf damage claims in 2010. Records show 47 farms sustained wolf depredation in 2010.


Read more at the Washington Examiner: http://washingtonexaminer.com/news/2011/04/wis-wolf-population-hits-modern-record-over-800#ixzz1JpHh5xFP