This week is “Wolf Awareness Week” and it is time to stand up for Wolves! Canis Lupis were once among the most widely distributed wild mammal in North America. In recent years we have seen those numbers plummet! This is why Mr. Simmons and his team travel to the wilds of North America to protect wolves in the wild. His team, called WildGuard, go into eh wilds of North America to protect wolves. This grueling commitment to balance our planet and protecting the wolf pushes them to the brink at times. This dedication to the wolf and future generations is something that he and his team strive for every year so that their impact can be felt for generations..
Previously present in all US states save Hawaii, gray wolves were nearly driven to extinction in the country through a century-long, systematic eradication campaign by private landowners and the federal government. Colonists’ tales of demonic and bloodthirsty wolves spurred these efforts, as well as the misbelief that they were vermin that would decimate wildlife and livestock. Today, misinformation and negative stereotypes persist, often enabling politics and special interests to take precedence over science in wolf management and conservation. However, since they began in the 1990s, wolf recovery efforts in the contiguous United States have generated numerous societal and ecological benefits.
Many narratives about wolves disregard the reality of their disposition and ecological role as intelligent, family-oriented animals that help secure ecosystem balance. They serve as keystone species in many biological communities, meaning that these ecosystems rely on them to maintain stability and biodiversity. Ecological studies in Yellowstone National Park have helped affirm this relationship. The eradication of wolves from the park in 1926 led to significant ecosystem alterations and degradation.
A growing body of evidence supports the connection between wolf reintroduction and ecological improvements in Yellowstone, such as higher biodiversity and greater ecosystem balance. For instance, wolves provided population control for elk, whose overabundant numbers have decimated vegetation and stunted regrowth. A 2020 Oregon State University (OSU) study linked the suppression of elk to the recovery of tall willows. In 2018 OSU scientists released research results that tied the return of wolves and cougars to greater stream function and structure through repopulated vegetation along stream banks.
In addition to rebalancing ecosystems, wolves have enhanced the herd health and resilience of elk, moose, and other preferred prey in many areas. Wolves rarely kill more than they can eat and primarily target sick and aging members of the herd, which removes these animals from the breeding pool and increases the availability of food for younger, reproductively active individuals. Furthermore, a University of California, Santa Cruz study in 2020 reported changes in hunting behavior following droughts that favor elk reproduction. During years of lower vegetation regrowth, wolves’ preferred prey shifts from female to male elk. Male elk generally enter winter in a weakened state due to eating less and burning more calories in the fall, and food scarcity exacerbates this. With wolves primarily hunting these malnourished males, more females can reproduce.
Another benefit of wolf reintroduction is the management of the coyote population. Coyotes historically inhabited deserts and prairies in Central and Western North America, but their range widely expanded due to wolf elimination, as well as largescale logging and agricultural developments in the 1900s. Wolves regard coyotes as competition and will drive off or kill them if they come too close or scavenge their kills.
According to research, natural means of limiting coyote populations are more effective than human-led lethal control. Higher reproduction rates often follow extensive coyote culling by humans, producing counterproductive results in the form of larger litter sizes. Population reduction also increases food availability for the remaining coyotes, allowing mothers to birth healthier pups. Additionally, coyote removal allows immigrating juveniles to move into recently unoccupied territory. Natural control of the coyote population via the reintroduction of wolves does not lead to these issues.
Wolf reintroduction also generates local and regional economic benefits. Financial reports and national park surveys show that wolves have boosted tourism and increased visitation to natural parks. In 1992 the environmental impact statement compiled as part of the wolf recovery plan estimated an annual net gain of $19 million from wolf-driven tourism in the greater Yellowstone area, and data from visitor surveys between 2004 and 2006 credited wolves with an annual average of $35 million in tourism expenditures. This spending included purchases at businesses such as hotels and restaurants.