‘Town Crier’ – Briefs From the Region (1) – 11/5/19

Wolves slaughter eight Butte llamas, to be killed

A wolf pack located in the Basin Creek area southeast of Butte is responsible for the deaths of up to eight llamas, according to The Lewiston Tribune. At least three of the dead animals from an Oct. 11 attack are confirmed kills of the eight-member Spire Pack, one of three wolf packs in the area. Wolves tend to kill only what they need— typically one livestock animal at a time according to John Steuber, state director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services, so the sheer number of animals killed by the pack is startling. Steuber also said the pack will be killed after first fitting several members with tracking collars in order to study their movements and role in local ecology. According to Nathan Lance, a Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks wolf biologist, wolf attacks on humans are rare; should one encounter a wolf in the wild, he recommends standing tall, acting aggressively, throwing rocks and slowly backing away.