Wolf News - September 2019

HISTORICAL MOMENT: FIRST WOMAN TO BE NAMED CHIEF RANGER AT YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK

September 28th: According to a press release, Sarah Davis is a 20 year veteran of the National Park Service and most recently worked as a chief ranger at Natchez Trace Parkway. She will now oversee more than 275 employees in Yellowstone’s Resource and Visitor Protection division.

REPS. STAUBER AND PETERSON INTRODUCE GRAY WOLF LEGISLATION

September 28th, Minnesota: In 2012, the gray wolf was removed from the Endangered Species Act after a lengthy de-listing process. That ruling returned management to the states and allowed state agencies to hold wolf trapping and hunting seasons for a couple of years before a federal judge ruled that the Service had erred in taking wolves off the endangered list too soon. Now, a bipartisan proposal – called the Gray Wolf Management Act of 2019 – was offered up Wednesday by U.S. Rep. Pete Stauber, R-Minn. and U.S. Rep. Collin Peterson, D-Minn. to return wolf management to the states.

2 WOLF PUPS AT MICHIGAN ZOO DIED OF MOSQUITO-BORNE VIRUS; DEER HAD IT

September 26th: Binder Park Zoo in Battle Creek says results this week confirm the pups that died in early September were killed by Eastern equine encephalitis. Separately, in Kent County, a necropsy revealed that a dead deer also had it. The virus was also found in a Newaygo County horse.

AGENCY OK'S LETHAL STEPS ON WOLF PACK

September 25th: Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife will kill one or two animals from Grouse Flats pack after livestock attacks

Staci Lehman, WDFW spokeswoman, said the department will begin by killing one or two wolves before it will “take a pause” to see if the removal curbs the pack’s habits.

WHAT WOLVES' TEETH REVEAL ABOUT THEIR LIVES

September 24th, California: Essential to the survival of large carnivores is their teeth, which are used for securing their prey and chewing it, yet large numbers of these animals have broken teeth. Why is that, and what can we learn from it?

ISLE ROYALE GETS THREE MORE WOLVES, UP TO 17 TOTAL

September 23rd, Michigan: The latest three wolves came from the Upper Peninsula, as was planned as part of the National Park Service's ongoing efforts to restore a viable, self-sustainable wolf population to the island. The three new wolves are expected to be the last wolf relocations for this year, but the relocation effort is expected to continue until the island wolf population hits about 30.

MAN WHO SHOT TETON PARK WOLF GETS GUIDING PROBATION

September 18th: “By issuing such a nominal punishment to Mr. Taylor, Wyoming has set an outrageous and dangerous precedent,” the Humane Society of the United States’ native carnivore protection strategist, Wendy Keefover, said in a statement. “The state’s outfitter board has signaled that poaching wildlife on a national park in Wyoming is worthy of nothing more than a slap on the wrist.”

STOP THE WOLF IN COLORADO ADDS ROCKY MOUNTAIN FARMERS UNION

September 17th: The 20,000-member organization has joined the Colorado "Stop the Wolf Coalition" campaign against Initiative 107 on the 2020 ballot. Advocates for the ballot measure, led by the Rocky Mountain Wolf Action Fund, say bringing back the gray wolves would restore balance to Colorado's wilderness ecosystem.

WASHINGTON'S MOST DEADLY ANIMALS

September 16th: The next time someone regales you with how you should fear bears, cougars, and wolves, be careful: you may be talking to a dangerous animal.

WHAT WOLVES IN YELLOWSTONE CAN TEACH US ABOUT PROBIOTICS

September 11th: No one really expected the reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone to cause the chain reaction that it did. Still, it will be decades before scientists fully understand the effect reintroduced wolves are having there.

GROUP TRYING TO GET WOLF REINTRODUCTION QUESTION ON 2020 COLORADO BALLOT

September 11th, Colorado: The Rocky Mountain Wolf Action Fund (RMWAF) is hoping to get a question on the ballot for the next election- asking if you think wolves should be reintroduced in Colorado. The initial plan would be to introduce 20-30 gray wolves on the Western Slope.

HAGERSTOWN KIDS GET UP-CLOSE AND PERSONAL WITH AMERICAN RED WOLVES

September 11th, Maryland: The traveling American Wolves Exhibit features endangered Red, Gray, Mexican, and Eastern Wolves that live across the United States. The exhibit educates kids as if they are up-close and personal with each type of wolf. Discovery Station Staff hopes that the exhibit will educate kids on discouraging myths and pursuing careers to help the wolf population.

HOW SCIENCE WATCHDOGS CAN PROTECT THE GRAY WOLF

September 10th, California: Scientists can play an important role in watchdogging government actions. A new peer-reviewed study sheds light on how far we’ve strayed from what the science says we should do in protecting the wolf, and how the FWS can return to a science-based path to recovery.

FIRST MICHIGAN WOLF CAUGHT, FLOWN TO ISLE ROYALE TO KICK OFF RELOCATION EFFORT'S SECOND YEAR

September 7th, Michigan: A 70-pound male wolf, estimated to be about 3 years old, is the first wolf to be captured on Michigan’s mainland and flown by seaplane to the remote island in Lake Superior. The newest predator is hoped to be the first of many the NPS and its partners trap in the Upper Peninsula this year to bring to Isle Royale.

TIBETAN MASTIFFS BRED WITH MOUNTAIN WOLVES TO SURVIVE AT SUPER-HIGH ALTITUDES

September 6th: Tibetan mastiffs can thrive at high altitudes, where the thin air would kill other breeds. And now, according to a paper published July 30 in the journal Molecular Biology and Evolution, we know why: At some point in the past, the dogs interbred with Tibetan wolves, and their descendants inherited gene mutations that code for two amino acids ⁠— small pieces of a protein ⁠— that make Tibetan mastiffs' blood better at capturing and releasing oxygen.

WOLF WORKSHOP IN JACKSON COUNTY TO PREPARE FOR ROGUE PACK, LIVESTOCK CONFLICTS

September 5th, Oregon: The Rogue Pack has affected a small number of people, according to ODFW District Wildlife Biologist Steve Niemela, one of the weekend workshop’s organizers. But, he says, dealing with wolf kills is an emotional, as well as financial drain on ranchers. The two-day event this past weekend was focused on how Southern Oregon ranchers can protect their animals.

CALIFORNIA JUST BECAME THE FIRST STATE TO BAN FUR TRAPPING

September 5th, California: The Wildlife Protection Act of 2019, which Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law yesterday, bans commercial and recreational trapping animals for their fur on both public and private lands.

WOLF MEETINGS CANCELED AMID PUBLIC REACTION

September 5th, Washington: Following the controversy that emerged over the decimation of the Old Profanity Territory pack, Fish & Wildlife announced last week that it had canceled all meetings planned for the early phase of the post-recovery management plan process.