Wild sheep in Idaho

[Salmonfg]

FYI, Newspaper article from the Boise Weekly.

1-21-09

"Sheep bailout
Idaho ranchers turn to legislative colleagues in wild sheep fight

While wolves and farmed elk have been VIP species at the Idaho Legislature in recent years, it is sheep that may make waves this year.
As Idaho sheep producers find themselves squeezed off of grazing allotments on the Payette National Forest because of concerns their sheep make wild sheep sick, they are turning to the Legislature for help.
But after an exclusive audience with the Senate Resources and Environment Committee this week?a committee stacked with fellow ranchers?the sheep industry won't say what it may propose.
"Wouldn't you like to know?" said New Plymouth Republican Sen. Monty Pearce when asked about a bill he is preparing.
Ron Shirts, the Weiser rancher who is fighting the U.S. Forest Service to keep his grazing privileges, introduced his attorney, W. Alan Schroeder to the committee. Schroeder delivered a short presentation about the conflict between the federal agency, wild sheep backers and ranchers. He argued that a 1997 agreement promised to hold sheep producers harmless as bighorns spread into their range and repeated the claims of a small group of scientists who remain skeptical that bighorns can be infected by their woolier domestic cousins.
But the Payette, under pressure from environmental groups, sportsmen and the Nez Perce tribe, undertook a lengthy scientific process which concluded that the two sheep species must be kept separate to prevent disease outbreaks.

"The biologists believe that separation is the way to go," said Jim Unsworth, chief of Idaho Department of Fish and Game's Wildlife Bureau.
The Senate committee did not hear from any biologists, wild sheep hunters or Forest Service personnel, though if a bill is introduced, there will be further public hearings hashing out the science and the questions of economic impact and history that Schroeder raised.
Since the Legislature is not in a position to regulate the Forest Service, legislation from ranchers could target Fish and Game, perhaps echoing the provisions of the 1997 agreement.
"We believe we've lived up to that agreement," Unsworth said. "If the Forest Service gives them a permit, we believe we can reduce risk."
Ranchers in the past have floated the idea of barring further bighorn sheep introductions in Idaho. Already, in the past year, Fish and Game has complied with a policy spearheaded by the Governor's Office, killing about a half-dozen bighorn sheep thought to have come in contact with domestic herds."

Tom Keegan
IDFG Salmon Region Wildlife Manager

 

[PopeShawnPaul]

Domestic sheep grazers continue to fight back. The Shirts brothers grazing sheep on the Smith Mountain allotments west of Riggins, Idaho, filed a 500+ page lawsuit with Boise federal Judge Lynn Winmill. It contained six complaints, part of which dealt with U.S. Forest Service process, and the remainder dealing with biological issues. The Judge threw the suit out, in a 3 page opinion, not based on the merits of the lawsuit, but the fact that it was not submitted on time (and that ruling has been protested). The domestic grazers, probably with elected officials? help, got U.S. Undersecretary of Agriculture (The U.S. Dept. of Agriculture oversees the Forest Service) Mark Rey (a political appointee) to put a hold on all bighorn transplants on all National Forests until the bighorns (but not domestic sheep) have been tested for disease. This was done by creating a Memorandum of Understanding-MOU- between the Forest Service and a sister agency-APHIS-Animal Plant Health Inspection Service. Note two things here: 1. The MOU has not been signed (as this is written in late December); 2. The WAFWA-Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (including Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife)-has strongly protested Rey?s action as the rights of individual states to manage resident wildlife is very much threatened here, and goes against federal law and policy. Rey also wrote a letter to Abigail Kimball, head of the Forest Service, outlining the new policy. Whether or not these actions become US Forest Service policy is uncertain, due to the change in Administration occurring in January 2009. Also, the ASI-American Sheep Industry-filed a lawsuit in federal court over this issue, but with a different judge from Lynn Winmill. That lawsuit has since been moved to Winmill?s court, but no action has been taken yet.

Continued uncertainties. The AOI?s-Annual Operating Instructions for the Mick Carlson Allotment east of Riggins, Idaho, have not yet been crafted for 2009 by the Payette National Forest (PNF). What the PNF will do is unknown at this point. The PNF also determined that there should be no grazing on this allotment in 2009, but was directed by letter from Mark Rey (who else?) to allow Carlson to graze it. The Forest Service is seeking other, unused allotments for Carlson?s use.

Making Progress. 1.Idaho Governor Butch Otter apparently has softened his anti-bighorn stance somewhat, as there has been a significant collaborative effort (8 meetings since August) between ASI-the American Sheep Industry, the Wild Sheep Foundation, the Nez Perce tribe, and U.S. Idaho Senator Mike Crapo?s office. These entities are working very hard to reach common ground, which is a difficult task at best. Recognizing the collaborative effort and the importance of bighorns, the governor is reportedly leaning towards disbanding his second Governor?s Task Force on management of bighorn and domestic sheep. 2.The Idaho Fish and Game Interim Management Policy for Bighorns, which included lethal termination of bighorns which strayed into domestic bands, has not been implemented that I know of. 3. The Salmon River Bighorn Study, crafted by the Nez Perce tribe and with financial help from several cooperators has seen GPS radio collars installed on many bighorns, by biologists working from helicopters and jet boats. The results from the first year indicate beyond doubt that bighorns, especially rams, use Mick Carlson?s allotment at least 11 months per year, putting to rest Forest Service doubts and uncertainties about whether bighorns used the allotment. And the radio collar data also indicate rams swim the Salmon River at will, much as rams do in the Snake River. 4. Dr. Sri Srikumaran and his staff crafted a research proposal which would explore the role of Mycoplasma species in the deaths of bighorns. The proposal lacked about $11,000 from its goal of $70,000. The Nevada Bighorns Unlimited, Reno Chapter very graciously fleshed out the proposal with a $10,700 grant. 5. The Forest Service has been actively searching for unused domestic sheep allotments to which Mick Carlson and the Shirts brothers could be redirected. There may be problems with this, however, due to regulations which forbid permittees from subleasing their grazing privileges to other grazers.

Your Help/Getting Involved. For those of you interested, you can access the SDEIS itself at the following websites:

www.fs.fed.us/r4/sawtooth/arevision/revision.htm

There are six alternatives for bighorns, described in detail. Only two are significant: 7H and 7E. 7H, the Payette?s preferred alternative, would eliminate domestic sheep grazing in all currently occupied bighorn habitant surrounded by a 9-mile wide buffer. Domestic sheep would be allowed to graze outside of that, on the current domestic sheep allotments. Alternative 7E is stricter: It would eliminate all domestic sheep grazing on the entire Payette Forest.

Until very recently, the latest final date for public comments was January 2, 2009. This date has been extended to March 3, 2009 at the written request of several organizations, including the WSF and the Nez Pierce Tribe. This is where you, bighorn hunter/sportsman(woman)/lover of bighorn country/photographer/back packer, come in. The only way bighorns are going to get what they need and deserve on the Payette is for you to let the Forest Service know how you feel about this situation, and what you, as a taxpayer and owner of federal lands, want done for bighorns. What happens on the Payette will set the standard on what happens on all National Forest throughout the West, and may well have an impact on what happens on BLM lands, as well. The bighorns need grass-roots support from you! That means individual letters or emails to the Payette. Form letters are all put in a pile and counted as just one comment, when the comments are counted, so individual responses are by far the best.

Here is who you write letters to:

Payette National Forest
Attention: Bighorn Sheep Comments
800 Lakeside Avenue
McCall, ID 83638

Here is the email address for comments : [email protected]

Following are some tips, regardless of how you contact the Forest Service: Tell where you live; why you care; and give any personal experience, education or professional expertise that informs your opinion (that includes watching and photographing and hunting them, among other things).

Points you could include in your comments: 1. The overwhelming majority of published science supports the concept that disease transmission from domestic to bighorn sheep is a serious threat to bighorns. 2. Urge the Forest Service, if it adopts Alternative 7H ( the existing bighorn habitat plus a nine-mile buffer) NEVER to reduce that area in size, based on future monitoring; 3. Stress that separation between species is crucial, regardless of how it is done-refer to the Payette Principles described in the Summer issue of Wild Sheep 4.; Or go with Alternative 7E, which eliminates domestic sheep grazing entirely; 5.. Urge the Forest Service to find domestic sheep allotments outside bighorn habitat, even if it means in other Forests in other states; 6. Given their propensity to travel long distances throughout the Hells Canyon and Salmon river drainages, management of bighorns on the Payette affects Oregon and Washington as well as Idaho. 7. Hells Canyon contains some of the finest bighorn habitat in this country, and bighorn populations would expand tremendously, given the opportunity. Keep in mind, please, that regardless of which way the Forest Service rules on this issue, there will be lawsuits, and the decision may be made in federal court. And each and every comment made by both sides will be considered in the Court's deliberations, so it is VERY important that you write, and soon, in favor of the bighorns.

 

[Wes]

This is an interesting situation where HUNTERS are taking the role of activists trying to eliminate another group from using public land. You are using the bighorn sheep to eliminate sheep ranchers just like other anti ranching groups are using the sage grouse and whatever bug or bush they can think of against the cattle rancher. The Forest Circus doesn't need anymore help especially from hunters keeping people off the land. Just keep pecking away till all we can do is stand at the fence and look in.
Wes

 

[BucksBullsandBroncs]

Ever been in the hills where dom. sheep have been? They are discusting, stinky, germy, range maggots that do a serious number on the vegitation. It looks like a hurrican blew through wherever they go. I can see the f&g reasoning and the forest service. They spent so much money putting the sheep back, they don't want to see them wiped out by disease. What would you rather see in the wild, a Bighorn Sheep or a Range Maggot. JMO. I'm all for them keeping them out.

 

[PopeShawnPaul]

I'd like public land to benefit the majority instead of a couple ranchers. I would not describe influencing public land managers to manage public land for the benefit of wildlife as "activism". It sure is memorable to go into a scenic area like Hell's Canyon and see a herd of a thousand white domestic sheep eating everything in sight...

 

[nevadakid]

LAST EDITED ON Feb-04-09 AT 03:10PM (MST)[p]the wild sheep beong to the people of the state, domestic sheep belong to the rancher. therefore keep domestic disease carrying sheep out of wild sheep ranges and habitat. this brings up another issue too, GRAZING ON PUBLIC LAND EQUALS WELFARE RANCHING.

i know down here in nevada there are many cases of domestic sheep mixing with wild sheep and killing the entire herd. historically most all of the ranges in nevada had sheep in them until the introduction of domestic sheep in the 1800s. now there are roughly 25% of the ranges that carry a wild sheep species, many of which is due to reintroduction of wild sheep by NDOW and BHU, aswell as FDB. NDOW works hand in hand with public land managers to ensure domestic sheep grazing does not border wild sheep habitat. there are still a few areas in nevada where in my opinion domestis sheep are allowed to graze to close to wild sheep. sorry about the soap box but just my 2 cents........