From HumaneWorld.org:
For centuries, extermination was the law of the land for gray wolves in the United States. Driven by fear and ill-informed traditions, hunters, farmers, ranchers, and state and federal employees shot them. Trapped them. Poisoned them. They burned pups in their dens. In Minnesota, the last place in the contiguous U.S. where wolves hung on in significant numbers, the state dropped strychnine-laced meat from airplanes and, as late as 1965, offered a bounty of $35 per dead wolf. The number of wolves fell to 700 or fewer, all in the state’s remote northeast corner.
The species, an estimated 2 million in North America at the time of European colonization, looked as if they might disappear from the lower 48 states. But in 1973, the Endangered Species Act passed with bipartisan support and was signed into law by President Richard Nixon, granting gray wolves protection.
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Are deer hunters in Minnesota poaching wolves on the side?
From Yahoo.com:
Very few Minnesota deer hunters are wolf poachers. But a significant number of wolves are illegally killed during the deer-hunting season. The University of Minnesota’s Voyageurs Wolf Project on Friday shared a graphic image showing a dead wolf on the snow with a bullet hole in its side. The social-media post emphasized that “it is not fair or accurate to characterize all hunters as poachers.”
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The Endangered Species Act under fire again: What’s at stake
From HumaneWorld.org:
For centuries, extermination was the law of the land for gray wolves in the United States. Driven by fear and ill-informed traditions, hunters, farmers, ranchers, and state and federal employees shot them. Trapped them. Poisoned them. They burned pups in their dens. In Minnesota, the last place in the contiguous U.S. where wolves hung on in significant numbers, the state dropped strychnine-laced meat from airplanes and, as late as 1965, offered a bounty of $35 per dead wolf. The number of wolves fell to 700 or fewer, all in the state’s remote northeast corner.
The species, an estimated 2 million in North America at the time of European colonization, looked as if they might disappear from the lower 48 states. But in 1973, the Endangered Species Act passed with bipartisan support and was signed into law by President Richard Nixon, granting gray wolves protection.
Click here for the full story.
“They Usually Aren’t Second Tier”: When Wolves Adopt Pups From Rival Packs
From IFLScience.com:
Nature, as majestic as it is, can be extremely cruel – especially to stepchildren. Lions that take over an existing pride make infanticide the first order of business; dolphins kill off unrelated calves specifically so they can mate with the mother; heck, even in humans, a new partner is more likely than the biological parent they’re replacing to kill or seriously injure a child.
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Young people more fearful of bringing back wild wolves, survey finds
From AOL.com:
New research indicates that young people in the UK and Ireland are largely ‘cautious’ about the feasibility of reintroducing large carnivores, such as lynx and wolves.
This study, described as the first-ever probe into youth attitudes towards reintroducing such large predators, found only a minority of participants were in favour. Thousands of young people from Northern Ireland took part in the extensive research, which was conducted by the ARK social-policy hub at Queen’s and Ulster universities.
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This classic fairytale could be damaging Europe’s wolf rewilding efforts
From The-Independent.com:
Wolves are returning across Europe – but not to the UK and Ireland, where public support is lukewarm at best. Ecologists point out their benefits, while farmers worry about their livestock. But another influence on public opinion is rarely discussed: Hollywood’s obsession with the wolf as a monster.
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Yellowstone wolves get used to people, then become easier targets outside the park
From MTPR.org:
Yellowstone National Park draws millions of visitors a year, with stunning natural views and wildlife. Among the most popular sites in the park are its populations of wolves. So popular, in fact, that the animals can often get used to seeing and being near people. Nick Mott and Mike Koshmrl dug into what happens to Yellowstone wolves that leave the park now that they’re no longer classified as endangered.
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CPW director, embroiled in controversial [Colorado] wolf reintroduction, resigned to avoid being fired, settlement shows
From Denver7.com:
DENVER — The state’s top wildlife official in charge of overseeing Colorado’s highly controversial wolf reintroduction program resigned from his position late last month to avoid being fired, a settlement document obtained by Denver7 Wednesday shows.
Jeff Davis, now the former director of Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW), agreed on Nov. 22 to resign from his post beginning Monday with the understanding he would also be on paid administrative leave between Nov. 21 and Dec. 1.
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Wolf attacks two shepherds in Sughd province [Tajikistan]
From AsiaPlusTJ.info:
In northern Tajikistan, in Devashtich district, a wolf attacked two local shepherds, injuring them. The victims, Aindiddin Tojiboyev and Khursandmurod Olimov, residents of the Qalai Dush village in the Vahdat jamoat, were hospitalized at the district’s central hospital.
The incident occurred at a pasture when Aindiddin Tojiboyev was herding sheep. He told Asia-Plus that he saw a wolf and decided to approach it.
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[Colorado’s] third reintroduction of wolves moves forward despite new federal limits, citizen petition
From ChaffeeCountyTimes.com:
Two years ago, the latch of a metal crate clicked, sending a wolf running back into the Colorado wilderness for the first time since the animals were eradicated from the state in the 1940s. The lone wolf was soon joined by others, bringing the total to 15 new predators relocated from Oregon to the rugged peaks and valleys of the Rocky Mountain state. The release in Grand and Summit counties was the first step in a major conservation initiative to establish a resident wolf population, bringing wolves back to their historical range from northern Canada to the southwest.
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‘Is this what Ireland once looked like?’ Bison, wolves and nature itself roam free in Europe’s wildest forest
From IrishTimes.com:
To understand what nature does in our absence, there can be few better opportunities than Białowieźa, which straddles Poland and Belarus.
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