Officials prepare to relocate wolves to Isle Royale park

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Associated Press


John Flesher, Ap Environmental Writer
Updated 5:25 pm CDT, Friday, September 21, 2018

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — A mission to rebuild the depleted wolf population at Isle Royale National Park is getting underway in Michigan and Minnesota, as specialists prepare to trap six to eight of the predators on the mainland and fly them to the Lake Superior archipelago, officials said Friday.

The initial relocation this fall is part of a three-year plan to place 20 to 30 gray wolves in the island wilderness, where since the late 1940s the species has helped preserve ecological balance by keeping the moose herd in check.

Inbreeding, disease and accidental deaths caused a sharp drop-off of wolves in recent years, leading the National Park Service to plan a rescue as a warming climate prevented formation of winter ice bridges that previously enabled natural migration to the island. Only two wolves remain.

Wolves targeted for movement to Isle Royale will be taken from populations in Michigan's Upper Peninsula and the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa reservation in northeastern Minnesota, park Superintendent Phyllis Green said. Officials also hope to get wolves from the Canadian province of Ontario in the future, she said.

Read more: https://www.chron.com/news/us/article/Officials-prepare-to-relocate-wolves-to-Isle-13248241.php

[elmac]

1. I hiked that island several times back in the 80's

took a 14 boat around it. Met hikers from Poland and Germany there, had some good cold war stories.

[DownriverDem]

2. Excellent!

Love Michigan my Michigan!

[GusBob]

3. Don't see how that solves the problem

Wolves need 2 things: lots of room and competitive packs for breeding

One alpha male and female per pack and territory, otherwise you will have In breeding, which wolves naturally avoid

There ain't enough room on that island for more than one pack. Either they will kill each other or inbreed.

They could adapt, but that would take generations, you can't take a deep woods wolf and put them on an island

[Kaleva]

4. There are normally about 3 to 4 packs on the Isle each having about 8 members

Changing weather patterns have led to the formation fewer ice bridges that allowed mainland wolves to migrate to the island. This led to severe inbreeding and the unhealthy pups did not survive to adulthood and the wolf population crashed. Without the wolves, the island moose population has exploded and there is fear that there will be massive moose die offs in coming years as the island cannot support so many.

[GusBob]

5. Yes I get that

Transplanting wolves doesn't fix the ice bridge problem. And the bridge works both ways. Wolves need space with their alpha/beta male/females pack dynamics and breeding. They need to migrate OFF the island as well, otherwise there is inbreeding. 2 year old wolves leave their natal packs for points elswhere.

Reading suggestion: American Wolf, by Nate Blakeslee.

The Isle Royale wolves should have adjusted to their habitat by now. The ice bridge failure messed that up. Bringing outside wolves will not solve the problem as they cannot adapt to a change in enough time, in my opinion

Maybe they should consider culling the moose or relocating some. Perhaps introducing other predators like black bears

[rwsanders]

10. There was a comment period and I suggested that they use it as a kind of genetic repository...

adding and removing wolves over time.
There was also a option for a phased introduction. It appears though they took the easy way and are just going to dump some more in to see what happens.
Another thing that might help is if they weren't being killed everywhere around the area. Even if the ice bridge is for a shorter time, or limited, a larger population would more naturally add or draw away wolves. I mean a young male probably isn't going to roam as far if there is no chance to find a female elsewhere.

[GusBob]

11. I am certain the wildlife biologists are doing the best they can

I am pretty sure they also don't know what will happen with the transplant

I'd bet the wolves there have been well studied. They probably have also studied the introduction of wolves into Yellowstone ( a huge success ).

I am actually not a huge fan of wolves. I like ungulates. But I get their place in the predatory cascade. The proper balance of wolves is vital for the biosphere

I hope the moose don't have a die-off up there

[Kaleva]

12. Bringing in outside wolves isn't much of a problem. I wouldn't consider it to be a problem at all.

Your comment:

"Maybe they should consider culling the moose or relocating some."

The moose themselves crossed over ice bridges during the early 1900's to get to the island. Moose are not native to the island.

" Both the wolves and the moose first became established populations on Isle Royale in the 1900s."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolves_and_moose_on_Isle_Royale

Your comment;

"Maybe they should consider culling the moose or relocating some. "

That doesn't really fix the problem either does it?

[GusBob]

15. If they are worried about the moose population getting out of control

Yes, it solves the problem, pronto

Problem is it would be next to impossible to establish a moose hunting season on the island due to lack of access

Once again I would recommend the book I mentioned

Wolves are the predators, moose are the prey. You need balance

[Kaleva]

16. It's like you are arguing from both sides of the coin.

One one hand, you say maintaining a healthy wolf population on the island by artificial means doesn't work but maintaining a healthy moose (which is a non-native species) population on the island by artificial means can work.

The proper thing to do would be to eliminate both the wolf and moose populations on the island and bring back the coyotes which were killed off by the invasive wolf.

[GusBob]

17. Yes you're right

It's called wildlife management. When mother nature fails, man steps in. When man fails, try and let mother nature take it's course

There is no guarantee the wolf relocation plan will work. They have no idea what will happen. I don't think it will work. Mother nature is handicapped by mans failure, global warming. You cannot predict the science. As the previous poster Has indicated, they opened up the idea for public comment. Hint, they don't know what will work. It's not an argument pal, it's a discussion.

If the moose population is out of control, you step in. Harvest or relocate to reduce the herd. Thats why they have hunting and quotas, they know the carrying capacity of the land. That's easier science

[Kaleva]

18. The wolves on the island have been studied continuously for over 60 years.

They have a good idea of about how many wolves the island can support.

Anyways, it's a done deal. Mainland wolves will be relocated to the island starting in a few weeks.

[roamer65]

13. They may adopt a lottery system like elk hunting in MI.

You enter a lottery for the chance at a license. Many try for years and don’t get one.

Only 100 licenses are given, of which only 30 can shoot antlered elk. The other 70 are antlerless.

[GusBob]

14. Too shoot moose you mean ?

That would be interesting

[NickB79]

6. Isle Royale is pretty big

Over 200 square miles.

But yeah, without ice bridges forming anymore (likely almost never again due to global warming), the packs will need "refreshing" by humans every few decades indefinitely.

[GusBob]

7. The range of an adult wolf is astounding

They cover a lot of ground, and they are territorial too

There might have been inbreeding, and packs may have been attacking each other.

Packs fighting each other occurs even in the wide open west

[Bayard]

8. I hope this works

I would also worry if there's enough turf for all though.

[Xolodno]

9. Band-Aid on the gushing wound of global climate change.

This is a temporary fix....or a solution of mutual extinction on the island. Wolves wipe out the moose...and soon after the wolves are gone.