Up to six wolves, in danger of starvation, could be moved this weekend
Contacts:
National Parks of Lake Superior Foundation – Carol Brady
Phone: 906-362-3152
E-mail: [email protected]
International Wolf Center – Chad Richardson
Phone: 763-560-7374, ext. 225
Email: [email protected]
Cell: 651-214-4989
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – National Parks of Lake Superior Foundation (The Foundation) announced today that, with the support of the International Wolf Center, an urgent final effort is underway to move four to six wolves to Isle Royale National Park over the next four days.
Earlier this year, two wolves from Michipicoten Island (located in northern Lake Superior) were moved to Isle Royale. Four to six wolves still remain on the island and are at risk since their only available winter prey on the island, caribou, are gone. Officials had hoped to move all of the wolves off Michipicoten earlier, but poor weather, government shutdowns and a lack of funding delayed that effort.
The Foundation and the International Wolf Center agree that this wolf relocation project needs a strong start to have a more immediate impact on the current burgeoning moose population on Isle Royale, where an estimate of more than 1,600 moose are threatening the ecosystem.
“On Michipicoten, nature’s lessons can be cruel and starvation is one of them,” said Sona Mehring, the chair of the Foundation. “For the remaining wolves on Michipicoten, that will be their fate unless we help move them to Isle Royale National Park, where their hunting skills and genetics can add value to establishing a new population of wolves on Isle Royale.”
“We’re especially proud of the fact that the International Wolf Center is helping to save the lives of a small pack of wolves on Michipicoten Island,” said the Center’s Executive Director Rob Schultz. “Since all of the caribou have been removed from Michipicoten, there’s nothing left for the wolves there to eat this winter and there is a real threat of starvation.”
It is estimated that the four-day effort, which will begin either Friday (March 22) or Saturday (March 23), will cost $100,000. The Foundation raised $30,000. The International Wolf Center raised an additional $45,000. The organizations have started a GoFundMe page to raise the final $25,000. That page can be found at bit.ly/isleroyalewolves.
“As we discussed this project, we found many people who supported seeing the forests of Isle Royale remaining healthy,” Mehring said. “We are close to realizing the goal of providing another capture opportunity to move these iconic wolves to an island that needs them in its ecosystem.”
Science has long showed that wolves play an important role in nature. This translocation shows how wolves can be used to naturally manage ungulate populations.
“Since the reintroduction of wolves in Yellowstone National Park, we’ve seen first-hand the positive impact wolves have on ecosystems,” Schultz said. “A thriving wolf population in Isle Royale’s ecosystem will make a similar impact. If left unchecked, moose would over-consume the island’s vegetation. Apex predators, like wolves, are important components of any healthy, natural ecosystems.
“This shows just one more way we put our donor’s support to hard work to advance wolf populations around the world. We’re honored to team up with National Parks of Lake Superior Foundation to make a difference together.”
-30-
National Parks of Lake Superior Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to preservation of the natural resources and unique cultural heritage of Lake Superior’s five U.S. National Parks. National Parks of Lake Superior Foundation funds research, restoration, education, and resource protection projects for Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, Grand Portage National Monument, Isle Royale National Park, Keweenaw National Historical Park, and Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. The National Parks of Lake Superior Foundation has a proven record of funding projects both large and small providing more that $1.5 million in funding across all five parks.
The International Wolf Center, founded in 1985, is known worldwide as the premier source for wolf information and education. The mission of the Center is to advance the survival of wolf populations by teaching about wolves, their relationship to wildlands and the human role in their future. The Center educates through its website, its ambassador wolves, museum exhibits, educational outreach programs, International Wolf magazine, and a beautiful interpretive center in Ely, Minnesota.
Foundations fund urgent wolf transfer to Isle Royale
Up to six wolves, in danger of starvation, could be moved this weekend
Contacts:
National Parks of Lake Superior Foundation – Carol Brady
Phone: 906-362-3152
E-mail: [email protected]
International Wolf Center – Chad Richardson
Phone: 763-560-7374, ext. 225
Email: [email protected]
Cell: 651-214-4989
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – National Parks of Lake Superior Foundation (The Foundation) announced today that, with the support of the International Wolf Center, an urgent final effort is underway to move four to six wolves to Isle Royale National Park over the next four days.
Earlier this year, two wolves from Michipicoten Island (located in northern Lake Superior) were moved to Isle Royale. Four to six wolves still remain on the island and are at risk since their only available winter prey on the island, caribou, are gone. Officials had hoped to move all of the wolves off Michipicoten earlier, but poor weather, government shutdowns and a lack of funding delayed that effort.
The Foundation and the International Wolf Center agree that this wolf relocation project needs a strong start to have a more immediate impact on the current burgeoning moose population on Isle Royale, where an estimate of more than 1,600 moose are threatening the ecosystem.
“On Michipicoten, nature’s lessons can be cruel and starvation is one of them,” said Sona Mehring, the chair of the Foundation. “For the remaining wolves on Michipicoten, that will be their fate unless we help move them to Isle Royale National Park, where their hunting skills and genetics can add value to establishing a new population of wolves on Isle Royale.”
“We’re especially proud of the fact that the International Wolf Center is helping to save the lives of a small pack of wolves on Michipicoten Island,” said the Center’s Executive Director Rob Schultz. “Since all of the caribou have been removed from Michipicoten, there’s nothing left for the wolves there to eat this winter and there is a real threat of starvation.”
It is estimated that the four-day effort, which will begin either Friday (March 22) or Saturday (March 23), will cost $100,000. The Foundation raised $30,000. The International Wolf Center raised an additional $45,000. The organizations have started a GoFundMe page to raise the final $25,000. That page can be found at bit.ly/isleroyalewolves.
“As we discussed this project, we found many people who supported seeing the forests of Isle Royale remaining healthy,” Mehring said. “We are close to realizing the goal of providing another capture opportunity to move these iconic wolves to an island that needs them in its ecosystem.”
Science has long showed that wolves play an important role in nature. This translocation shows how wolves can be used to naturally manage ungulate populations.
“Since the reintroduction of wolves in Yellowstone National Park, we’ve seen first-hand the positive impact wolves have on ecosystems,” Schultz said. “A thriving wolf population in Isle Royale’s ecosystem will make a similar impact. If left unchecked, moose would over-consume the island’s vegetation. Apex predators, like wolves, are important components of any healthy, natural ecosystems.
“This shows just one more way we put our donor’s support to hard work to advance wolf populations around the world. We’re honored to team up with National Parks of Lake Superior Foundation to make a difference together.”
-30-
National Parks of Lake Superior Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to preservation of the natural resources and unique cultural heritage of Lake Superior’s five U.S. National Parks. National Parks of Lake Superior Foundation funds research, restoration, education, and resource protection projects for Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, Grand Portage National Monument, Isle Royale National Park, Keweenaw National Historical Park, and Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. The National Parks of Lake Superior Foundation has a proven record of funding projects both large and small providing more that $1.5 million in funding across all five parks.
The International Wolf Center, founded in 1985, is known worldwide as the premier source for wolf information and education. The mission of the Center is to advance the survival of wolf populations by teaching about wolves, their relationship to wildlands and the human role in their future. The Center educates through its website, its ambassador wolves, museum exhibits, educational outreach programs, International Wolf magazine, and a beautiful interpretive center in Ely, Minnesota.
Wolves kill flock of sheep in France
From FieldSportsChannel.tv:
French farmers blame wolf attacks for the deaths of a more than 50 sheep and goats in a single night. The attack took place in Avançon, in the Hautes-Alpes region of France. The following morning, the farmer affected reported eight ewes, 21 lambs and four kids killed, with 10 kids and 16 lambs missing.
Click here for the full story.
Wolf packs thriving in the mountains of Madrid
From MurciaToday.com:
Cattle farmers in Madrid reported almost 400 attacks on their animals last year.
Click here for the full story.
WILDLIFE OFFICIALS CONFIRM ROGUE PACK WOLVES RESPONSIBLE FOR PUPPY DEATH
From KDRV.com:
BOUNDARY BUTTE, Ore. — Wolves from Southern Oregon’s local pack are believed responsible for the death of a 16-week-old puppy on a rancher’s land last week, according to the latest wolf depredation from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW).
On Friday morning, a livestock owner in the Boundary Butte area found one of his “mastiff-mix pups” dead near his home and reported it to ODFW. He said that he’d last seen the dog alive at midnight the same morning when his dogs began barking.
Click here for the full story.
Wolves on the rise in Belgium
From The Brussels Times:
Click here for the full story.
Why is Georgia Land of The Wolves?
From the Georgian Journal:
Georgia is described as Land of The Wolves on the map published by the Culture Trip. The Culture Trip is a start-up inspiring millions of people to explore the world’s culture and creativity.
Click here for the full story.
Africa’s rarest carnivores face threats from disease-carrying dogs
From Mother Nature Network:
A thick layer of frost blankets the landscape, creating a gauzy haze over the tans and pale greens of the Ethiopian Highlands. Amidst the frozen stillness, a rust-colored lump dusted in rime stirs. A black nose appears from beneath a thick tail, and two ears twitch atop an elegantly long head. At last, the wolf rises, arches its back in a long stretch, and shakes. Nearby, several other pack members rise as well, touching noses in greeting. Pups, just weeks old, emerge from a shallow den and begin playing, scrambling over rocks, tugging at each other’s tails. As the sky brightens, the adults trot off to patrol the edge of the group’s territory and begin the day’s hunt.
Click here for the full story.
‘It’s that black or white’: Wolves must die to save Canada’s caribou
From the Calgary Herald:
EDMONTON — An extensive study of caribou herds across British Columbia and Alberta suggests a way to reverse a long and steady decline of the endangered species — kill more wolves and moose, and pen pregnant cows.
“It’s go hard or go home,” said Rob Serrouya, a University of Alberta biologist and lead author of the study released Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
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British Columbia Interior hunting groups under fire for ‘wolf-whacking’ contests
From GlobalNews.ca:
Environmentalists are calling on the B.C. government to intervene after learning of at least three Interior hunting groups promoting contests for killing various predators.
An open letter signed by 47 members of pro-animal groups — as well as another letter from Bears Matter dated March 2 — has been sent to Minister of Forests, Lands and Natural Resources Doug Donaldson, demanding the end to all “wildlife-killing contests” across the province.
Click here for the full story.
Wolves Kill Two Women In Tajikistan After Villagers’ Hunting Rifles Confiscated
From RFERL.org:
DUSHANBE — Wolves have killed two women in eastern Tajikistan, prompting complaints from residents that they have been unable to defend themselves against wolf attacks since local authorities confiscated their hunting rifles.
Umeda Yusupova, a spokeswoman for the Tajik government’s Committee on Emergency Situations and Civil Defense, told RFE/RL that the deadly wolf attack took place in the early morning hours of March 7 in Tajikistan’s Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous region.
Click here for the full story.