Unraveling the Biogeography of Wolf-Like Canids in the Horn Of
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Unraveling the Biogeography of Wolf-Like Canids in the Horn of Africa, PAGE 4 Denali’s Story: Nightmare Past Midnight, PAGE 7 Minnesota Wolf Management, PAGE 10 THE QUARTERLY PUBLICATION OF THE INTERNATIONAL WOLF CENTER VOLUME 21, NO. 4 WINTER 2011 Features Departments 3 From the Executive Director 15 Tracking the Pack ergen B 16 Wolves of the World obert Van obert Van Photo courtesy of Dan Stark 4Thomas Krumenacker 7 R 10 21 Personal Encounter Unraveling the Denali’s Story: Minnesota Wolf 24 A Look Beyond Biogeography Nightmare Management of Wolf-Like Past Midnight It has been more than Canids in the Denali, a wolf-dog hybrid, 10 years since Minnesota On the Cover Horn of Africa was the epitome of a gentle adopted a wolf management Mexican gray wolf (Canis lupus baileyi). giant. Terribly loving, he plan in anticipation of Photo by Jacquelyn M. Fallon New genetic evidence gave me his complete trust, wolves being removed from Jackie Fallon, education advisor to the reveals a new species and I gave mine to him. In the federal endangered Mexican Gray Wolf Species Survival Plan, of wolf living in Africa. conducts fieldwork with wolves in the five years we shared, he species list. Little has Formerly confused with Yellowstone National Park as well as in never showed any aggres- changed in the biological the southwestern United States. She has golden jackals, and thought sion, ever, not to my wife, status of the wolf population been involved with wildlife conservation to be an Egyptian subspecies for nearly 25 years, and her work focuses my kids, my grandkids or over that time, but changes of jackal, the African wolf on resolving conflict between humans me—until that fateful night. may be needed to address and wildlife, particularly canids. shows members of the the evolving landscape wolf lineage reached Africa Robert Van Bergen of legal status, regulations, about three million years funding and agency partici- ago, before they spread pation in light of delisting Did you know... throughout the Northern in the near future. one easy way for you Hemisphere. to help us conserve Dan Stark natural resources is to make Claudio Sillero- sure we have your email address. Zubiri Simply email your address to: [email protected] acchi M Sylvain Avery’s Walk for Wildlife n the summer of 2010, 14-year-old Avery Mikel decided to organize a fundraising walk in Nevis, IMinnesota, to raise money to help birds affected by the Gulf oil spill. With the help of community members, Avery’s Walk for Wildlife raised almost $1,000. Publications Director Tom Myrick In August 2011, Avery organized another walk. This time, he wanted to donate the proceeds of his efforts to Graphics Coordinator support the International Wolf Center. The second Avery’s Carissa L. Winter Walk for Wildlife drew 60 participants and raised $870, Avery Mikel which Avery donated in support of wolves. Consulting Editor At a young age, Avery is already making a difference in his community. On Fran Howard behalf of all of us at the International Wolf Center, thank you, Avery, for your Technical Editor generosity and commitment. We have every confidence you will continue to do L. David Mech great work in support of wild animals around the world. n Graphic Designer Tricia Austin International Wolf (1089-683X) is published quarterly and copyrighted, 2011, by the ikel International Wolf Center, 3410 Winnetka M Ave. N., Minneapolis, MN 55427, USA. aoma email: [email protected]. N All rights reserved. ourtesy of Publications agreement no. 1536338 C Membership in the International Wolf Center includes a subscription to International Wolf magazine, free admission to the Center, and discounts on programs and merchandise. • Lone Wolf memberships are U.S. $35 • Wolf Pack $60 • Wolf Associate $125 • Wolf Sponsor $500 • Alpha Wolf $1,000. Canada and other countries, add U.S. $15 per year for airmail postage, $7 for surface postage. Contact the International Wolf Center, 1396 Highway 169, Ely, MN 55731-8129, USA; email: [email protected]; phone: 800-ELY-WOLF International Wolf is a forum for airing facts, ideas and attitudes about wolf-related issues. Articles Sexton: and materials printed in International Wolf do Output from pdf provided not necessarily reflect the viewpoint of the International Wolf Center or its board of directors. “VCC-ad.pdf” International Wolf welcomes submissions of personal adventures with wolves and wolf pho to graphs. Prior to submission of other for some reason, this is types of manu scripts, address queries to separating.. should be 1c K Tom Myrick, magazine coordinator. PHOTOS: Unless otherwise noted, or obvious from the caption or article text, photos are of captive wolves. International Wolf is printed entirely with soy ink on FSC® certified paper. We encourage FSC logo here you to recycle this magazine. 2 Winter 2011 www.wolf.org From the Chair of the Board of Directors INTERNATIONAL WOLF CENTER BOARD OF DIRECTORS Nancy jo Tubbs Chair Just the Facts Without the Spin Dr. L. David Mech Vice Chair illiam Butler Yeats said, “Education is not the filling of a pail, but the Cree Bradley lighting of a fire.” Secretary People and organizations continually try to persuade us to their points Paul B. Anderson Wof view, filling our pails to overflowing with their spin on an issue. And Treasurer sometimes we subscribe to political parties, churches, or organizations because they fill Debbie Hinchcliffe our buckets with ideas we favor. I’m no different from most in that way. Nancy Gibson But I especially respect groups that don’t try to “educate” me to their Hélène Grimaud point of view, but rather offer opinion-free, in-depth information. These teachers stimulate my thinking. I respect a speaker who acknowledges Linda Lemke that people may legitimately disagree. I like a newsletter that introduces Dr. Rolf O. Peterson me to the pros and cons of an issue. Mike Phillips At the International Wolf Center we strive to present objective infor- Debbie Reynolds mation and not to take positions on the many juicy, controversial topics Jerry Sanders concerning wolves. Paul Schurke Should people own wolf-dog hybrids? Is it okay for the government to Ted Spaulding Nancy jo Tubbs kill wolves that kill livestock? Should Montana and Idaho allow wolves to be hunted? Does climate change endanger arctic wolves? Go online and Deb Wells you’ll find dozens of these discussions, some resembling blood baths. Ray Wells Members of the Center’s board and staff have opinions on these topics, but in our work Teri Williams we keep our opinions to ourselves and do our best to educate on the issues. Our latest temptation to advocate was a proposal that we publicly favor delisting gray wolves, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR which does not include the Mexican gray wolf in the Southwest, from the endangered Mary Ortiz species list. In the summer issue of International Wolf, we published arguments on both sides of MISSION the controversy: don’t delist because full recovery of the wolf has not been achieved in The International Wolf other than a few states and in only five percent of the wolf’s historical range in the lower Center advances the survival 48; delist because the ESA states that when wolf populations reach sustainable numbers of wolf populations by teaching about wolves, their the species should be delisted, and delisting could help defuse the fury of those who have relationship to wildlands and the legitimate concerns that wolves take livestock and pets or kill game animals. human role in their future. After intense discussion, we affirmed our non-advocacy position and recommitted to Educational services and addressing hot-button issues with the unbiased approach of the educator. informational resources I’m not implying that having an opinion is a bad thing. Perhaps we are drawn to are available at: groups and individuals whose thinking syncs with our own. But after them, don’t we next 1396 Highway 169 best trust those who give us the facts without bias or exaggeration—and without filling Ely, MN 55731-8129, USA our buckets with their “truth?” n 800-ELY-WOLF 218-365-4695 Sincerely, email address: [email protected] Web site: http://www.wolf.org Nancy jo Tubbs, Board Chair International Wolf Winter 2011 3 ew genetic evidence reveals a new species of wolf living Nin Africa. Formerly confused with golden jackals, and thought to be an Egyptian subspecies of jackal, the African wolf shows members of the Thomas Krumenacker Canis aureus lupaster. wolf lineage reached Africa about three million years ago, before they spread throughout the Northern Hemisphere. We tend to think of wolves as a Northern Hemisphere species. The only other wolf on the African conti- nent is the Arabian wolf, Canis lupus arabs, in the Sinai Peninsula, where a scatter of sightings has been recorded throughout the years. Having worked for many years on Ethiopian wolves (Canis simensis), a close relative of gray wolves, I have always been intrigued by CLAUDIO SILLERO-ZUBIRI by their evolutionary links. I have often pondered what might have been the routes and associated land bridges that “The cryptic African wolf: Canis aureus enabled Ethiopian wolf ancestors to reach the highlands of Ethiopia in the lupaster is not a golden jackal heartlands of the Horn of Africa. Scientists have consistently placed and is not endemic to Egypt.” Ethiopian wolves close to gray wolves and coyotes, with a common ancestor that might have lived a mere 100,000 years ago. Huddling by the fireplace under African skies, my associates and I have often had long conversations trying to undo that long winding road and wished-for fossil finds that might proffer the missing link we longed for.