Montana wildlife commissioners on Tuesday closed wolf hunting in a district adjacent to Yellowstone National Park where nine wolves were killed in the past three weeks, but kept the statewide wolf hunt quota unchanged at 75.

While the Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission voted to lift the suspension of the state's first-ever wolf hunt in the southern management unit on big game opening day, no more wolves can be shot in hunting district 316, which is adjacent to Yellowstone National Park and where most of the wolves in Montana have been taken.

"This isn't a change to the season. It's just a slight adjustment in our management and is, more than anything else, a recognition that we want to be on top of the management of this animal," Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission Chairman Shane Colton said during a conference call Tuesday.

State wildlife officials had voiced concerns at a meeting last Thursday after learning that nine wolves, out of a quota of 12 for most of Montana south of Highway 200 and east of Dillon, already had been shot as part of the backcountry hunting season instead of during the general big game rifle season, which starts Oct. 25.

The problem is hunters were taking wolves out of the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness along the northern border of Yellowstone National Park, instead of on private property where they've been known to prey on livestock.

State and federal officials say they want to use hunting to lessen livestock depredation, and were hoping hunters would take wolves off of ranches instead of going after those that are "behaving" themselves in the backcountry.

Hunting also is being used as a management tool to keep the wolf population in check. Montana is home to an estimated 500 wolves, and set a quota of 75 wolves for this hunting season; so far 11 have been taken.

Idaho has about 850 wolves, and set a quota of 220 for this season. Hunters have taken 47 as of Tuesday.

Wyoming is home to about 300 wolves, but they remain on the list of animals protected by the federal Endangered Species Act. Wolves in Idaho and Montana were delisted earlier this year by the federal Department of the Interior, but that action is the subject of an ongoing lawsuit.

At last Thursday's meeting, the FWP Commission had discussed changing the quotas among the three Wolf Management Units, or WMUs, in order to allow for a larger take in the southern WMU 3, where livestock depredation has been a problem for ranchers, especially in the Madison and Gallatin valleys. They also were concerned that on the first day of the season, hunters might go over the 12-wolf quota in that WMU.

Commissioner Bob Ream noted that they were careful to set a low quota in WMU 3, in which an estimated 130 wolves reside. It's an area where wolves disperse out of Yellowstone National Park, allowing for enhanced genetic diversity. That diversity is one subject of the delisting lawsuit.

"I think we were being very sensitive and wanted to maintain connectivity between units two and three," Ream said.

WMU 1 generally extends across Montana north of Highway 200, with a quota of 41 wolves. WMU 2 is a small patch of southwestern Montana stretching from Missoula south through the Bitterroot and Upper Big Hole valleys, with a wolf harvest quota of 22.

While shifting quotas among the three WMUs was one of five options on the table, the commission unanimously agreed that it wasn't necessary at this time.

Commissioner Ron Moody said by suspending the wolf season in that backcountry unit last week, he had wanted to ensure at least some minimal hunting opportunities for some of the 11,000 people who have bought wolf licenses in Montana. He also wanted to learn how hunting would affect wolves in the human-wildland interface.

"But after thinking about this for a few days, I really do not believe that moving the wolf quotas between these units in order to provide additional hunting is an adequate reason for doing that," Moody said. "There's an expectation that people who get permits for limited quota hunts that there will be some hunting left, but history is replete with that not happening."

He added that it's important to be cautious when making changes to the wolf season, because many people watching don't understand the role of hunting in managing wildlife.

"This is a very special undertaking that is taking place before the eyes of the world, with many people with many perspectives observing what's going on," Moody said. "… We have to earn the public's trust of hunting as a management tool."

Ream urged people to have patience as Montana works its way through this first-ever hunting season, saying that the state is trying to be conservative and responsible, and learn how both hunters and wolves react.

"We are breaking new ground here," Ream said. "If we had known nine wolves would be taken in that backcountry area, I think we would do things differently, and I, for one, will think about that in the future.

"I guess you could say we erred, but we're erring on the side of being safe and conservative with what we do for the rest of the season."

Colton, however, took umbrage at the idea that the state had taken a misstep in handling the wolf hunt.

"We didn't err because from the beginning we've been very conservative," Colton said. "What we may have failed to do is predict a harvest, and we said all along that it may be difficult. That's why we set very conservative numbers for this hunt."

Eve Byron: 447-4076 or eve.byron@helenair.com

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