‘Wolves at Our Doorstep’: Advocates introduce gray wolf, address rancher concerns at Aspen Ideas Festival

From The Aspen Times:

As Colorado’s collared wolves continue to make their way deeper into the Western Slope, Professor of Wildlife Ecology at the University of Colorado Boulder Joanna Lambert pointed to previous wolf re-introduction efforts in the United States to bolster Colorado’s re-introduction plan during the Aspen Ideas Festival on Thursday.

“In talking to folks around Yellowstone, you know, those wolves went in 30 years ago … and it was intense, it was vitriolic,” she said. “Now, when you talk to ranchers right outside the park, say up in Paradise Valley, they’re like, ‘Eh, wolves, schmolves. We don’t want them here, and you guys put them in here, but I’ve figured it out.’”

 

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Wolves reintroduced to Isle Royale temporarily affect other carnivores, humans have influence as well

From Phys.org:

In a rare opportunity to study carnivores before and after wolves were reintroduced to their ranges, researchers from the University of Wisconsin–Madison found that the effects of wolves on Isle Royale have been only temporary. And even in the least-visited national park, humans had a more significant impact on carnivores’ lives.

The paper, published recently in Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, uses DNA from foxes and martens’ scat and hair to understand where these animals were and what they ate before  were reintroduced, following the first year of their reintroduction, and as they formed packs across the island.

 

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Colorado wolves still active in Grand, Jackson counties, while moving deeper into Summit, Eagle counties

From Sky-Hi News:

Colorado’s collared wolves have traveled deeper into Eagle and Summit counties while somewhat withdrawing from parts of Routt and Grand counties, according to a map released by Colorado Parks and Wildlife Wednesday.

The map, posted on the agency’s website, uses Colorado watershed boundaries to indicate where wolves have been detected. It is updated on the fourth Wednesday of every month.

State officials have released the maps monthly since January after reintroducing 10 wolves in Grand and Summit counties in December.

 

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Running Predators Down With Snowmobiles Could Stay Legal In Wyoming

From Cowboy State Daily:

Despite widespread outrage over a wolf being run down with a snowmobile in the infamous Daniel wolf torture incident, banning that practice in Wyoming doesn’t seem imminent.

Instead, the focus should be on requiring predators be killed quickly, regardless of the method.

That’s the takeaway from members of a legislative working group Tuesday looking into reforming Wyoming’s predator polices in the wake of the Daniel incident.

 

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Vote nears on ending ‘endangered’ status for WA wolves

From The Seattle Times:

The Washington State Fish and Wildlife Commission will decide next month on lowering gray wolves’ status under the state’s endangered species law.

Environmentalists and others say this would lead to inadequate protection for the animals when they still haven’t recovered in parts of the state. State Department of Fish and Wildlife officials and others contend that not much would change in terms of how the animals are shielded from hunting and argue the move makes sense because wolf numbers have strongly rebounded.

The Department of Fish and Wildlife’s recommendation is to downlist wolves from “endangered” to “sensitive.”

 

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Wolf Shows Playful Interest in Grizzly Bear’s Meal

From Yahoo News:

A wolf seemed super keen to get a piece of a bison carcass from a grizzly bear, footage by a nature photographer in Yellowstone National Park shows, but the bear seemed unimpressed by its antics as it bounced around.

Trevor LaClair said he filmed the scene in April 2023, when the bear pulled the carcass from a frozen pond.

“Two of the wolves approached the grizzly. One of the wolves got too close and the bear lunged at it as a warning. However, the wolf viewed it as an opportunity to potentially lure the bear away and began play bowing and bouncing around,” LaClair wrote on Instagram.

 

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Colorado Expands Ranchers’ Lethal Options on Wolves

From Drovers:

Colorado ranchers can now use artificial light to aid in killing wolves when they’re caught in the act of attacking livestock at night. Previously, ranchers could only use the night-vision technology to conduct hazing that didn’t harm or kill the wolves.

The rules change follows a 6-4 vote by the Parks and Wildlife Commission at its June 13 meeting.

Prior to the change, ranchers were only allowed to kill a wolf if they caught it attacking in daylight, though most wolf attacks occurs at night. So far wolves have killed 11 cows on ranches in Grand and Jackson counties and a calf in Routt County.

 

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Almost Entirely Black Wolf Pack Discovered in Northern Minnesota

From Microsoft Start:

A wolf pack consisting almost entirely of black wolves is quite rare for Minnesota. While it does occur, it is definitely not the norm. For reference, black wolves make up only 1.5-2% of the wolf population in Minnesota based on data collected from 1980 to 2020.

 

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Insights from the Voyageurs Wolf Project exhibit is at Ely wolf center

From Hometown Focus:

ELY – The International Wolf Center’s current exhibit, “Starvation, Adaptation and Survival—Insights from the Voyageurs Wolf Project,” is an informative exhibit that opened in May and will run through October 20. It offers visitors a unique look into the lives of wolves in northern Minnesota.

Since its inception in 2015, the Voyageurs Wolf Project, led by researchers from the University of Minnesota, has been dedicated to studying the summer ecology of wolves in the vicinity of Voyageurs National Park. This exhibit showcases the project’s significant findings and insights gained from nearly a decade of research.

 

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Q&A: MISSING WOLVES, FORGOTTEN LANDSCAPES AND LOST KNOWLEDGE

From The Wildlife Society:

Reintroduction efforts have returned wolves to parts of the American West, but their absence for much of the 20th century left long-lasting changes on the landscape. That not only affects the ecosystems, researchers say. It also changes how we understand them.

“Most published ecological research from this region occurred after the extirpation of wolves,” said William Ripple, a scientist at Oregon State University and the Conservation Biology Institute.

 

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