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Wild Cam: As snow decreases, wolf stomachs rumble

From Wildlife.org:

Lower snow levels in Minnesota winters means fewer vulnerable deer for packs to prey on

The first sign that Thomas Gable and his colleagues were approaching a kill site was the calls of crows and eagles cutting through the winter silence in northern Minnesota.

The ecologist in the Voyageurs Wolf Project at the University of Minnesota was surveying wolf predation last winter when snowfall was particularly low. He and his colleagues had GPS collars on wolves in two packs near Voyageurs National Park. When data were relayed back to Gable and his team’s computer, they looked for the telltale cluster of location points that indicated a potential kill.

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‘Disastrous’ or ‘off to a good start?’: One year into wolf restoration, Colorado navigates divide between wildlife conservation and ranching

From VailDaily.com:

Around one year ago, gray wolves were released in Colorado, implementing the voter-approved mandate to reestablish the predators in the state after being eradicated over 80 years ago. Between Dec. 17 to 22, 2023, 10 wolves were captured in Oregon and released in Colorado’s Western Slope — eight in Grand County and two in Summit County.

While environmental advocates and Colorado Parks and Wildlife laud the reintroduction efforts as successful and remarkable from a biological perspective, the first year has been heavily scrutinized. Ranchers and legislators described it as disastrous, painful, frustrating, stressful and challenging.

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Grants available for producers to help prevent wolf attacks

From FarmProgress.com:

Livestock producers in Minnesota feeling the wrath of wolf attacks have access to funds for reimbursement for costs of approved practices to prevent wolf-livestock conflicts.

The Minnesota Department of Agriculture will award $45,000 through Wolf-Livestock Conflict Prevention Grants. Only costs incurred after entering into a grant agreement with the MDA are eligible for reimbursement.

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Colorado began reintroducing wolves 1 year ago. These are the struggles and triumphs of that year.

From Denver7.com:

GRAND COUNTY, Colo. — The accomplishments, turmoil and novelty of Colorado’s first gray wolf reintroduction exactly one year ago have captured the attention of the state and beyond, but controversy continues to follow the historic program as it heads into 2025.

In generalized terms, the past year looked a bit like this: Five wild wolves released. Another five released. The first calf killed. Outcry from ranchers. Adjustments. A string of more depredations. Wolf pups spotted. Outcry from ranchers. Adjustments. Outcry from ranchers. Adjustments. Another string of depredations. A wolf pack captured. Three dead wolves. Preparation for a second release. A petition to stop it.

Anguish. Hope. And lots and lots of questions.

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EU DECODED: How and why is EU downgrading protection status of wolves?

From EuroNews.com:

Wolves are now present in almost all EU countries and their numbers have increased from 11,000 in 2012 to more than 20,000 last year. Italy, Bulgaria, Romania and Spain have populations of more than 2,000.

The species that was almost extinct in the mid-20th century recovered after being granted strict protection status by the Council of Europe’s Berne Convention in 1982 and the EU Habitats Directive in 1992.

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Cohesion among canids: Insights into social behavior

From NPS.gov:

This study explored how animals in social groups, specifically those in the Canis genus (like wolves and coyotes), decide to stay close to each other or not. The researchers tracked 574 individuals from six different Canid species across 15 countries using GPS technology. They wanted to understand what influences the amount of time animals spend together, known as “cohesion.” Researchers defined cohesion by determining if animals within the same group were within 100 m of each other during the collection of each GPS location.

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Wolves could expand across the eastern U.S.—but they might need help

From GreatLakesEcho.org:

Gray wolves could thrive in the eastern United States well beyond their current range in the Great Lakes region, but they might have a hard time reaching other suitable habitats without human intervention, researchers say.

Wolves once had the largest known range of any land mammal but they were nearly exterminated in the United States in the early 1900s after persecution by humans. Their population only recovered after they were placed under federal protection in the 1970s. They have since recolonized some areas where they once flourished, including in Minnesota, Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

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Revisit our biggest story of the year: Calhoun County hunter harvests grey wolf by mistake

From BattleCreekEnquirer.com:

A hunter reported that he harvested a large animal in Calhoun County in January during a legal coyote hunt, but genetic testing by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources revealed the animal to be a gray wolf. This story drew more interest than any other published in the Battle Creek Enquirer in 2024.

“Michigan’s known wolf population is located in the Upper Peninsula. The department continues to search for wolves in the Lower Peninsula but has found only a few signs of wolf presence in that part of Michigan since the state’s wolf population became reestablished in the 1980s,” the DNR said in a press release at the time.

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A ranchers’ association outlines their concerns amid Colorado Parks and Wildlife’s announcement to release more wolves in the state

From KKTV.com:

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KKTV) -Over a dozen more gray wolves are set to be released in Colorado’s high country next year, but one organization says it would be premature.

“On the ground, what our producers are experiencing is we’re not ready, and that’s where a lot of this anxiousness is coming from,” said Erin Karney, Executive Vice President of Colorado Cattlemen’s Association.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) says they will be releasing 15 more gray wolves between January and March in 2025. The wolves will be placed in Garfield, Eagle and Pitkin county. This is after they released 10 in December 2023. But ranchers believe they will need more support and more time to properly protect their livestock.

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A Golden State Gray Wolf Update

From AgInfo.net:

They report that the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) recently issued a Wolf News Update, highlighting developments in gray wolf activity and livestock impacts. The update includes confirmation of five new livestock depredations in September and October. This brings 2024’s confirmed losses to 44 livestock across 38 incidents.

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