Super pack' of 400 Wolves terrorise remote Russian town

[akv]

Tough Place, Russia

Super pack' of 400 wolves terrorise remote Russian town after killing 30 horses in just four days

By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 11:15 AM on 7th February 2011

A 'super pack' of wolves has been terrifying a town after leaving more than 30 horses dead in just four days. Four hundred bloodthirsty wolves have been spotted prowling around the edges of Verkhoyansk, in Russia, attacking livestock at will.

Twenty four teams of hunters have been put together to get rid of the wolves, with a bounty of £210 for every wolf skin brought to officials. Stepan Rozhin, an administration official for the Verkhoyansk district in Russia, said: 'To protect the town we are creating 24 teams of armed hunters, who will patrol the neighbourhood on snowmobiles and set wolf traps. 'But we need more people. Once the daylight increases, the hunters will start shooting predators from helicopters.' A pack of wolves this size is unheard of, with the animals usually preferring to hunt in smaller groups of just six or seven.

The massive group is believed to be made from hundreds of packs and has left animal experts baffled. Dr Valerius Geist, a wildlife behaviour expert, said the harsh Siberian winter - where temperatures plummet to minus 49C - had killed off the animal's usual prey.

He said: 'It is unusual for wolves to gather in such numbers of hunt large animal like horses. 'However, the population of their usual prey, rabbits, has decreased this year due to lack of food, so wolves have had to change their habits. 'Wolves are very careful to choose the most nutritious food source easiest obtained without danger - which in this case happens to be horses. 'They will start tackling dangerous prey when they run out of non-dangerous prey.'
Villagers have already managed to snare a number of the animals but the pack is so sizeable that is likely to take some time to deal with.

Verkhoyansk, with a population of just 1,300, is one of the coldest and remotest places in the northern hemisphere and lies within an area known as Stalin's Death Ring, after the former dictator sent political exiles there due to the extreme conditions.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...-village.html#

[TOMAHAWK9521]

This town is going to have a huge summer sale on wolf-fur coats.

[JJ_BPK]

When Uncle Koba was the People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs,, the wolves didn't eat horses??

[Dusty]

Evidently there's no version of a PETA out there...

[Pete]

Originally Posted by Dusty

Evidently there's no version of a PETA out there...

Might get a new chapter of WETP.

Wolves Eating Tasty People

[Team Sergeant]

Anyone been following the global feral pig problem? Someone needs to say "no limit" before we run out of bullets.....


Wild Nature
No Oink About It, Feral Pig Problem Spreading
By Ruth Ravve

Published February 07, 2011
| FoxNews.com
War is being waged right now across the country -- against huge, ever-growing packs of feral pigs that are running rampant, destroying crops, killing wildlife and spreading disease everywhere they go, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reports.

They’ve been spotted all the way from Texas to California to Michigan and in New York.

“It's estimated there are at least 4 million of them nationwide, but its impossible to count them all so there may be much more” said Carol Bannerman, a spokesman for the USDA Wildlife Services.

Officials say they cause more than $8 million worth of damage every year. “That amount doesn’t include impact to the natural environment and native species, or to water” Bannerman said. One disease humans can get, she said, by coming in contact with the beasts bodily fluids is called "swine brucellosis," and is extremely painful.

Historians think the hogs were first brought by explorers to this country from Spain in the late 1500s. The boars bred and spread -- and have chomped their way across the country ever since, devouring crops and small livestock.
The pigs are most prevalent in the South, where the climate is most conducive. Texas is said to have the largest population.

In Florida, the animals’ numbers are rapidly increasing. Bryan Swanson, of All Star Animal Rescue in St. Petersburg, said his phone has been ringing off the hook lately, as the pigs make their way into neighborhoods and playgrounds.

“Their population is absolutely exploding because their breeding cycle is insane,” Swanson said. “Just six months after being born, the hogs can have a full litter of up to 13 more hogs. They have no natural predators, so there's nothing to stop them.”

Swanson said people have complained about pets being attacked and yards being destroyed. “You can have a beautifully manicured lawn one day and then wake up the next day and its like a bulldozer went through it," he said.

One group that enjoys the growing pork population are hunters.

“A lot of people like to hunt feral swine because the pigs are so intelligent, it’s a lot more challenging to hunt them than, say, deer or bears. They’re considered fun to hunt,” said Mary Dettloff of the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.

The state, which is estimated to have about 6,000 wild swine, now has a “shoot on sight order,” which means anyone with any type of hunting license can legally kill a feral pig. In July 2011, it will become legal for a person to shoot a hog that comes onto his property as well, she said.

Although Midwest states like Michigan have a smaller number of swine, the animals are so adaptable they’re able to survive even in harsh winter weather by growing hair on their coats and developing tusks, Dettloff said, so “we expect to see a lot more of them over the next several years.”

Animal rights groups are outraged over what they say is persecution of pigs. Don Anthony, of the Animal Rights Foundation of Florida, said he doesn’t believe the swine are causing all the problems that are claimed.

He wants state leaders to “leave them alone or find a way to neuter them to keep their population down,” he said. Since the hogs have been in the United States for five hundred years, they’re “almost natives,” so “we should be used to them by now. Killing them is barbaric and unnecessary,” he said.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is taking the problem very seriously. "Because of the impact it has on everything from agriculture to natural resources and humans’ health and safety, its an extremely important problem,” Bannerman said.





http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/...owing-problem/

[Dusty]

Where I live you get 25 to life for shooting a pig.

[Pete]

Originally Posted by Team Sergeant

.........He wants state leaders to “leave them alone or find a way to neuter them to keep their population down,” he said. Since the hogs have been in the United States for five hundred years, they’re “almost natives,” so “we should be used to them by now. Killing them is barbaric and unnecessary,” he said..............]

Did somebody just say they don't like eastern NC Bar-b-Que?

A vision of hunt, Bar-b-Que and plate sale just popped into my mind.

I've heard the mid size ones are best.

[Team Sergeant]

Originally Posted by Pete

Did somebody just say they don't like eastern NC Bar-b-Que?

A vision of hunt, Bar-b-Que and plate sale just popped into my mind.

I've heard the mid size ones are best.

I love BBQ, all kinds. I just think there should be an unrestricted hunt until the population is brought under control........

[JJ_BPK]

Although Midwest states like Michigan have a smaller number of swine, the animals are so adaptable they’re able to survive even in harsh winter weather by growing hair on their coats and developing tusks, Dettloff said, so “we expect to see a lot more of them over the next several years.”

Someone needs to review Animal Husbandry 101, chapter 99, Domestic Farm Hogs that go Wild.. (Not on Spring Break)

They all revert to growing hair and tusks no mater what the weather..

They also get a attitude,, real bad attitude...

Horny Fat Bastards...

But they eat good...

[greenberetTFS]

Originally Posted by Team Sergeant

I love BBQ, all kinds. I just think there should be an unrestricted hunt until the population is brought under control........

OK TS,what's your recipe for wild pig?..........

Big Teddy

[Team Sergeant]

Originally Posted by greenberetTFS

OK TS,what's your recipe for wild pig?..........

Big Teddy

Are we talking a leaner pork?

[Pete]

Originally Posted by greenberetTFS

OK TS,what's your recipe for wild pig?..........

Big Teddy

Whole lotta' pieces-parts on a medium size pig. So - so meat can be ground up and mixed with bear. Puts the sizzle in bear burgers. Childhood memories - all the kids standing around watching as the bear (black) was cut up and chunks of meat run through the hand grinder and mixed with ground pork and spices.

Oh, yeah, us kids knew what was coming next. A couple of grills were fired up and the patties made, charcoal spread out and then SIZZLE TIME. The burgers disappeared just as fast as they came off the grill and be slapped between two pieces of bread.

All the dads seemed content drinking beer while watching all the neighborhood kids down the bear burgers.

I can remember more than a couple of bears being the main attraction at a neighborhood cookout.

[TOMAHAWK9521]

I saw a local hunter's pictures posted in the Loveland, CO Sportsmans Warehouse taken from his Russian Boar hunt last February in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The animal was said to have weighed in excess of 400 lbs and looked like a freaking VW with fur.

[Pete]

Originally Posted by TOMAHAWK9521

I saw a local hunter's pictures posted in the Loveland, CO Sportsmans Warehouse taken from his Russian Boar hunt last February in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The animal was said to have weighed in excess of 400 lbs and looked like a freaking VW with fur.

".....Hunting Specifications for Russian Boar in Michigan
Enter hunters. While one state representative tried to introduce legislation in 2001 to allow the shooting of the feral Russian boars, it was defeated through opposition by the DNR. Not until the end of 2006 were hunters with valid licenses urged to shoot any wild pig in select Michigan counties. As of 2007, hunters can not only hunt at one of the hunting preserves (where the price can easily be $750 or more) but can also shoot any feral pig in 50 counties, ranging from urban Oakland and Wayne counties to rural Baraga and Lake counties. In these counties, prosecutors agreed to not prosecute hunters, as Schmitt notes. As of 2010, "provided there's a hunting season of some kind open," and the shooter is licensed, it's open-season on the Russians. "Just shoot 'em," urges the Michigan United Conservation Clubs.

Hunting Tips
So with virtually little limits, hunters can visit hunter's preserves in the Upper Peninsula that allow you to hunt for a price--or search out your own feral Russian boar in the wilds of Michigan. In spite of disease concerns, as long as the meat is properly cooked (cooked to an internal temperature of 170 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), there is little to no risk in eating the flesh. ................"




Read more: Upper Michigan Russian Boar Hunting | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/about_6497871_up...#ixzz1DgStzNGr