WS Idaho State Office Records --

The Wildlife Services Idaho State Office has a long history of providing rodent and predator control. Over the past hundred years, the program has been under the direction of the Bureau of Biological Survey (BBS), the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), Animal Damage Control (ADC) and Wildlife Services (WS) under the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS).

Federally sponsored predator control activities were first established in Idaho in 1915 when Congress appropriated funds for predator control and the suppression of rabies. Idaho’s first predatory animal control headquarters was located in Pocatello, Idaho, under the leadership of the BBS and L.J. Goldman. The first federally sponsored rodent control operations began in Idaho in 1913 under the supervision of the BBS and S.E. Piper, who led investigations into the control of jackrabbits and seed-eating rodents on Idaho’s national forests.

The predator control program began during the First World War when there was an increased demand for meat. It was argued that predatory animals took enough livestock and game from the American West to feed all the men fighting in Europe. Once Congress made appropriations for predator control, the BBS divided the western states into districts, each with an Inspector and a force of hunters who controlled predators such as coyotes, wildcats, and wolves. During 1919-1920, the Idaho district was briefly consolidated into the BBS Northwest District along with Oregon and Washington.

Until the early 1920s, predator control work in Idaho was financed exclusively by Federal funds. Beginning in 1922, the BBS entered into cooperative arrangements with the Extension Service, University of Idaho at Boise, the Forest Service, Grazing Associations, and ranchers who ran stock on Idaho’s national forests. The BBS furnished hunters and inspectors while local cooperative agencies provided bait materials and supplies.

Although shooting and trapping were the primary methods first employed for predator and rodent control in Idaho, a large amount of strychnine was also used. In 1918, the rodent control program treated nearly one million acres with strychnine to control ground squirrels, jackrabbits and pocket gophers. In 1920, processed strychnine was introduced and used extensively in predator control work in the form of fat baits placed near decoy stations. The first bait mixing station was established at McCammon, Idaho, in 1927. In the fall of 1932, the bait mixing station was transferred to Pocatello.

During the early years, predatory animal and rodent control work were conducted separately. In 1931, headquarters moved to Boise and the two programs were combined into a single control program under the leadership of T.B. Murray.

The BBS control program in Idaho participated in many New Deal programs during the 1930s such as the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), Federal Works Projects Administration (WPA), Reclamation Service, Soil Conservation Service, Indian Service, and the Rural Resettlement Administration. Under provisions of the Emergency Conservation work programs, CCC camps were established at various points on national forests and Idaho state lands in 1933. Large-scale rodent control campaigns were operated from 31 of these camps and the Idaho staff trained approximately 500 men and boys, many of whom had no previous outdoor work experience. According to the final report for the seasons 1933-1935, CCC workers treated a total of 1,901,650 acres with poisoned baits.

The Drought Relief program under the Federal Emergency Relief Administration provided funding for rabbit control work in southern Idaho in 1934. Due to a mild winter followed by excessive drought, jackrabbits invaded Idaho farms in hordes. To aid in the control of these rabbits, the BBS used Drought Relief funds to deliver poisoned baits to farmers and workmen from the Idaho Emergency Relief Administration. In addition, snow fences were borrowed from the State Highway Department for use in rabbit drives, which drew as many as 500 local participants.

From 1936 to 1942, the Works Project Administration (WPA) carried out predatory animal and rodent control projects in Idaho under the supervision of the BBS and FWS. The Rural Resettlement Administration purchased former farm lands in Idaho for developing into livestock range. WPA labor was used to distribute poisoned baits on the purchased areas and on adjacent public land. Under the WPA program, workers also constructed numerous overnight cabins and storage warehouses at Boise, Lewiston, Pocatello, and Idaho Falls. In addition, WPA funds paid for an experienced taxidermist to prepare mounts of the mammals and birds common to the state of Idaho, as well as for an artist from the WPA art program to paint backgrounds for display cases. In 1940, the BBS and Bureau of Fisheries were consolidated under FDR’s Reorganization Plan to become the Fish and Wildlife Service.

During World War II, an increased need for wool and meat products to further the war effort made it imperative to reduce livestock losses by predators. However, wartime restrictions on vital materials such as gasoline, tires, and field equipment made field operations difficult, causing staff to temporarily increase their use of horses for transportation. The Coyote-getter and thallium bait stations were employed to a greater extent during this time to cut down on travel. Wartime conditions also affected personnel as men left for the war or for other higher paying jobs.

In December 1945, the first Compound 1080 poison stations were used in Idaho with the assistance of Weldon Robinson from the Research Laboratory in Denver. The use of Compound 1080 in bait stations replaced the strychnine method by the mid-1950s. In the fall of 1946, two War Surplus planes (a Piper Cub Cruiser and a Howard plane) were secured for use in predator control work in Idaho. Airplanes were used from then on for aerial hunting, to place scent stations, and to drop poisoned baits in remote areas.

Increased awareness of environmental concerns in the 1960s resulted in the federal government banning the use of toxicants for predator control on Federal lands and by Federal agencies in 1972. However, in 1975, sodium cyanide was registered for use in the M-44 by government personnel. From 1977-1989, intensive predator control was conducted at Idaho’s Grays Lake National Wildlife Refuge to reduce coyote and red fox predation on Whooping Crane eggs and young. Control methods included the M-44, as well as aerial gunning, and trapping and snaring.

By the 1980s, predator and rodent control in Idaho was supervised by Animal Damage Control (ADC). ADC provided expertise to solve problems related to predator damage to livestock, poultry, personal property, and wildlife. In addition, ADC dealt with problems caused by rodents that damaged hay, grain, potatoes, and reforestation plantations. The program also dealt with birds that damaged livestock, crops and fish. Today, WS-Idaho continues to provide assistance with protecting livestock from predation, and damage caused by rodents and birds.