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By Matt Blake


Easy pickings: All this wild wolf can do is wait until the eagle swoops back in for the kill, its razor-sharp talons glistening in the sun


Chained to a post in an open field, this wild wolf can never have felt more vulnerable.

He is used to being the hunter, never the prey.

But now all he can do is wait until the eagle swoops back in for the kill, its razor-sharp talons glistening in the sun.


The helpless animal leaps from side to side, snapping at the giant bird in a vain bid to scare it off.

But this eagle is a well-honed killing machine, trained to slay its prey by the nomadic eagle hunters of Kyrgyzstan.

It is the climax of Kyrgyzstan's ancient hunting festival 'Salburun', in the village of Tyup some 370km from Bishkek near Issyk-Kul lake on May 1.

Desperate: The helpless animal leaps from side to side, snapping at the giant bird in a vain bid to scare it off

Celebration: It is the climax of Kyrgyzstan's traditional hunting festival 'Salburun', in the village of Tyup some 370km from Bishkek near Issyk-Kul lake on May 1


No contest: This eagle is a well-honed killing machine, trained to slay its prey by the nomadic eagle hunters of Kyrgyzstan


The two-day festival draws the regions best hunting dogs, eagle and falcon hunters from all over the nation.

The program of the festival includes falconry, hunting with eagles, archery, and ambler races.

But this is the final event of the festival and draws the biggest crowds.
It is a gruesome battle to the death that almost invariably ends in the eagle's favour.

Wolves are considered a manace in rural Kyrgyzstan, responsible for killing horses, sheep and cows.


source:dailymail

Fair game: Grey wolves are going to become the first animals to be taken off the endangered species list


Grey Wolves are set to become the first animals ever to be removed from an endangered species list meaning that they can be hunted once again.

The animals are now fair game after U.S. Congress agreed to lift federal safeguards the western states of Montana and Idaho.

There are about 1,200 wolves in the wild and their removal from the list means they are now state controlled and allows for licensed hunting.


People against the decision say they fear it opens a 'Pandora's box' that will allow for more animals to be taken off the list


Ranchers, who have seen the population of the wolf growing in the Northern Rockies, have said they are glad that this has happened because of the threat they pose to their herds.

Cattle producers, hunters and state game wardens say that wolf packs in some places are going unchecked as they prey on livestock and other animals such as elk.


source: dailymail

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Gotcha: The wolf wrestles with his catch within just yards of a brown bear as he looks to bring in his own


His powerful jaws clamped around a huge salmon, this wolf looks mightily pleased with himself.

This wonderful photograph captures the rare moment that a wolf was caught on camera fishing after learning the technique from bears.

With a massive grizzly in the foreground the wolf can clearly be seen setting itself, leaping and then grabbing the huge fish from the water.

The amazing sequence - which some even dubbed a hoax or photoshopped - was captured in just minutes by wildlife photographer Paul Stinsa.

Along with a party of enthusiasts Mr Stinsa was on actually on an expedition to see bears not wolves in Katmai National Park, Alaska.

But it turned out some of the best shots of his life were waiting for him at a spot named Brooks Falls - when out of the blue a wolf appeared from the trees.

Just feet from the far more powerful grizzly bear the incredible moment unfolded before Mr Stinsa's eyes as he watched from a viewing platform.

Paul and others had been standing on the platform looking at a large and a small male bear fishing, but when the action stopped some decided to leave.

The party were also surprised to see a wolf at the river earlier but it had been chased off by the bears.


The wolf plunges into the freezing water after learning the technique from bears fishing on the same river


He said: 'Nothing was happening at the falls, and some of the viewers left the platform to head back to camp.

'This would prove to be a mistake, as the wolf soon came trotting down the riverbank and into the water across from the viewing platform.

'I stood on the platform, scrambling to set the camera properly to photograph a dark, moving subject against a black background on an overcast day.

'I watched intently as the wolf slowly crept through the shallow water along the rock wall below the falls, sneaking up on the resting salmon from downstream.

'As the wolf neared the base of the falls, it dove headfirst into the pool. In a flurry of splashing water, it pulled its head out of the river with a salmon, desperately flopping, clamped in its jaws.

'The wolf then cautiously walked downriver and ran up the trail into the woods.'
Mr Stinsa and the rest of the group were left stunned - none of the rest of the group had been quick enough to get their camera out.


Success: Wet but triumphant the cunning wolf steps out of the river with a huger salmon clasped in its jaws


Mr Stinsa, 42, from Chicago, USA, said: 'Nobody on the platform, including the park ranger, had ever heard of this behaviour from a wolf, much less witnessed it.

'We all felt as though we had received a unique bonus on our bear- viewing trip.
'Apart from a local paper in the US no one else has seen these pictures, but a lot of people have said they are a hoax on the internet.

'When I think of the risk and difficulty for the wolf required to evade territorial brown bears to either feed pups or hide the dead fish in the woods without being attacked, I'm amazed at the intelligence shown by the wolf while fishing at Brooks Falls.

'What appeared obvious to everyone watching that afternoon was that this wolf had fished like this before.

'Its fishing skill was not an accident but rather a repeatable, successful process. The wolf had no intention of scavenging the leftovers from the bears.

'It had managed to catch all 15 fish and take them into the woods, returning each time by the same trail, without coming into contact with the bears walking in the forest above the river.'


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