Restoring the Mexican Gray Wolf and the Red Wolf
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RESTORING THE WOLVES U.S. FISH & WILDLIFE MEXICAN GRAY WOLF AND DOGS, SERVICE RESPONDS TO AND THE RED WOLF, page 10 HYDATID TAPEWORM DEBATE, page 4 page 20 THE QUARTERLY PUBLICATION OF THE INTERNATIONAL WOLF CENTER VOLUME 20, NO. 3 FALL 2010 Features Departments The Mexican gray 3 From the 4 wolf and red wolf Executive Director still struggle for survival 13 Tracking the Pack The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Bud Fazio, coordinator of the Mexican Gray Wolf Recovery Program, and Dr. David Rabon, coordinator of the Red Wolf Recovery 16 Personal Encounter Program, detail whether plans to restore these wolves are working. 18 Wolf Tracks by Cornelia Hutt Mexican Wolf Interagency Field Team Mexican Wolf 22 Members Matter Practical advice on how to 10 protect dogs from wolf attacks 24 A Look Beyond Jess Edberg, information services director for the International Wolf Center, describes why wolves attack dogs and which breeds are most On the Cover susceptible to attack. Photo by Bernard Marschner. by Jess Edberg Wolf looking for snowshoe hares in the willow thickets of the Plains of Murie in Denali National Park, Alaska. You can view more of Marschner’s images Scott Austin on his flickr page: http://www.flickr.com/ photos/70363861@N00/ Dotty Weber Did you know... one easy way for you to help us conserve natural resources is to make sure we have your email address. Simply email your address to: [email protected] Center Celebrates 25th Anniversary he International Wolf Center Wolf Curator Lori Schmidt helped Tkicked off its 25th year of an audience curious to learn more teaching the world about wolves about a common prey animal for June 18–20. Over 700 guests enjoyed wolves by dissecting a beaver and Publications Director special anniversary discounts on describing the nutritional parts of Mary Ortiz admissions and unique programs to the animal before feeding it to the Magazine Coordinator commemorate the milestone. Exhibit Pack Saturday afternoon. Bruce Erickson “We wanted to use the weekend to “The beaver dissection was all thank our members, our guests and new to me, so that made it interesting Graphics Coordinator Carissa L.Winter the community for their support over to watch,” added Birkemeyer. “Who the last 25 years,” said Mary Ortiz, knew something a beaver’s size could Consulting Editor executive director of the Center. have a 20–30 foot intestine.” Fran Howard Highlights of the weekend in- The move to establish the Center Technical Editor cluded a presentation by David Mech 25 years ago was sparked by the L. David Mech on his research of arctic wolves public’s rousing response to the Graphic Designer on Ellesmere Island, a beaver dis- award-winning Wolves and Humans Tricia Austin section and a drawing for several exhibit created by the Science donated prizes including an auto- Museum of Minnesota and exhibited International Wolf (1089-683X) is published graphed basketball from the across North America. It was installed quarterly and copyrighted, 2010, by the Minnesota Timberwolves of the at the Center’s new educational International Wolf Center, 3410 Winnetka Ave. N., Minneapolis, MN 55427, USA. National Basketball Association. facility in Ely, Minnesota, in 1993. n email: [email protected]. “I thought the anniversary week- All rights reserved. end turned out very well,” com- Publications agreement no. 1536338 mented Mary Milleker, 10-year member of the Center. “There was Membership in the International Wolf Center much thought given to involving the includes a subscription to International Wolf public whether it be with programs, magazine, free admission to the Center, and discounts on programs and merchandise. demonstrations, drawings, children’s • Lone Wolf memberships are U.S. $35 activities to keep the kids busy and • Wolf Pack $60 • Wolf Associate $125 even lunch. The wolves were very • Wolf Sponsor $500 • Alpha Wolf $1,000. accommodating also.” Canada and other countries, add U.S. $15 Guests on Friday night lis- per year for airmail postage, $7 for surface postage. Contact the International Wolf Center, tened to David Mech’s pre- 1396 Highway 169, Ely, MN 55731-8129, USA; sentation with images and email: [email protected]; stories from his annual trips phone: 800-ELY-WOLF to Ellesmere Island as well International Wolf is a forum for airing facts, ideas as plans for his 25th trip this and attitudes about wolf-related issues. Articles summer. Galen Sjostrom and materials printed in International Wolf do “It was great to see not necessarily reflect the viewpoint of the all of the people that International Wolf Center or its board of directors. showed up,” said International Wolf welcomes submissions of Steven Birkemeyer, personal adventures with wolves and wolf 14-year member. “I phoo t graphs. Prior to submission of other was surprised by the types of manu scripts, address queries to number of people Bruce Erickson, magazine coordinator. that came for the first PHOTOS: Unless otherwise noted, or obvious time, and how they from the caption or article text, photos are of were surprised at Galen Sjostrom captive wolves. what the Center had International Wolf is printed entirely with to offer.” Galen Sjostrom soy ink on FSC certified paper. Galen Sjostrom Top: A lucky winner of a wolf plush toy from the Wolf Den Store. We encourage FSC logo here Bottom: Lori Schmidt, wolf curator, dissects a beaver for a group you to recycle of curious guests. this magazine. 2 Fall 2010 w ww.wolf.org INTERNATIONAL From the Executive Director WOLF CENTER BOARDF O DIRECTORS Nancy jo Tubbs Chair “Why wilderness? Dr. L. David Mech Why Wildlands? Why Wolves? Vice Chair Because we like the taste of freedom. n 1750, about 200,000 wolves roamed what are Cree Bradley now the lower 48 states. In the early 1900s, the Because we like the smell of danger.” Secretary Bureau of Biological Survey authorized the shooting, —Edward Abbey, Paul B. Anderson environmental activist and author trapping and poisoning of wolves—almost to Treasurer Iextinction. States followed suit and instituted their own Dr. Larry Anderson bounty systems aimed at removing wolves and many other predators. In total, these Amy Bromberg Funk efforts extirpated wolves from most of the contiguous United States. The very last wolf in Yellowstone National Park died in 1930. The Endangered Species Act of 1973 and Nancy Gibson an enlightened public helped the wolf make a significant recovery over Hélène Grimaud the past 37 years in many areas of its former range. Jim Hammill After so much effort was expended to remove wolves in the past, Cornelia “Neil” Hutt why have we worked so hard in recent years to bring them back? Dean Johnson Examples abound of predators helping to regulate the impact of Linda Lemke herbivores on vegetation. In Yellowstone National Park, continuing Dr. Rolf O. Peterson studies show wolves are now significantly changing both landscape Mike Phillips and wildlife populations. Over-browsing by elk and bison had curtailed Debbie Reynolds the growth of aspen, willow and cottonwood trees, so no shoots or saplings could survive. Without an apex predator, the population of Jerry Sanders coyotes exploded and competed for food with bald eagles and hawks. Paul Schurke Mary Ortiz This effect is known as a “trophic cascade,” in which a change affecting Paul Sletten one species higher up the food chain indirectly affects those lower Ted Spaulding down. With more wolves and fewer ungulates, the vegetation has returned, bringing Teri Williams back many species of birds and even enriching stream ecosystems. The presence of large carnivores, then, can influence the flora and fauna of an EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR ecosystem and help to keep it in a more natural and diverse state than in areas where Mary Ortiz no dominant predators exist. Wolves have become a symbol of our desire to protect the last wild places. The inter- MISSION nationally acclaimed book Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv inspired growing The International Wolf discussions on “nature deficit disorder” of children in this civilized world. The symbolic Center advances the survival of wolf populations by and emotional value of wolves inspires children, teachers and other adults to recon- teaching about wolves, their sider the need for wild places for predator survival and for human imagination and relationship to wildlands and the adventure. Like a charismatic teacher, the wolf—real and symbolic—entices us to human role in their future. protect the ecosystems it inhabits and wild places in general. Educational services and Without large carnivores, that “smell of danger” Edward Abbey mentions is lost, informational resources and we know that wilderness is no longer truly wild. To preserve wildlands, we must are available at: continue to find ways to reconcile the physical, economic and psychological needs of 1396 Highway 169 human beings with the requirements of wolves and other apex predators to the benefit Ely, MN 55731-8129, USA of both, as well as to the benefit of a multitude of other species with which we share 800-ELY-WOLF 218-365-4695 the planet. n email address: Information and some text from [email protected] “Why do we need large carnivores?” Wolves and Human Foundation, Web site: http://www.wolf.org www.wolvesandhumans.org, July 14, 2010. International Wolf F a l l 2 0 1 0 3 EDITOR’S NOTE: Although wolves have made a remarkable comeback in the Northern Rockies and in the Upper Midwest, two wild populations, the Mexican gray wolf in the Southwest and the red wolf in the Mexican Wolf Interagency Field Team Mexican Wolf Southeast, struggle for long-term survival under intensive U.S. Wolves of the World Fish and Wildlife Service management programs. International Wolf contributor Cornelia “Neil” Hutt interviewed the recovery coordinators for each of these programs about the challenges they face and what we can do to participate in the effort to save the Mexican wolf and the red wolf from extinction in the wild.