Download Reintroduction of Wolves Into Yellowstone National Park

Do wolves have a place
in the ecosystem?
Wolves are predators.
Predators keep prey
populations under control
- they cull the herd and
keep it healthy.
Cull: to remove certain
members, usually the
sick or old animals.
But wolves have a bad
reputation because they kill
other animals for food…
And they have been known
to attack domestic
livestock.
This impacts ranchers and
farmers.
Before the Civil War, there were few people to interfere with
wolves. Their main source of food was herd animals such as
buffalo, elk, and deer.
After the Civil War, ranching and
farming expanded into the wolves’
territory, pushing them into smaller
hunting areas.
With man’s expansion, herd
animals became more scarce.
Wolves soon found domestic
livestock to be an easy meal.
The wolves were considered varmints because they
attacked domestic livestock.
Therefore, wolves became targets. Ranchers, farmers,
and hunters killed them in great numbers.
The government even offered bounties
for every wolf killed.
By the 1930’s, gray wolves were
virtually eliminated from the
lower 48 states, even in
Yellowstone National Park.
Yellowstone National Park was
established in 1872 to conserve
nature and wildlife.
Bison, elk, grizzly bears,
countless birds, small
mammals, and numerous
species of plants live in the
park.
As a result of the loss of
wolves in the park, coyotes
became one of the top
predators.
But coyotes did not cull the
herds the way wolves were
able to.
Without the wolves, the elk population in Yellowstone
increased. The large herds roamed the park, eating wide
swaths of vegetation and degrading the habitat, especially
along creeks and river beds.
In order to manage the large
populations of herd animals,
hunting was encouraged in the
park.
Even park rangers eliminated
many of the elk in order to
reduce their population.
The hunting of elk in Yellowstone
National Park attracted the attention of
the public.
It was not popular.
Why couldn’t a natural predator be used to
control the populations of the herd animals?
The Endangered Species Act was
passed in 1973 to protect plants and
animals whose numbers were so
low that they might become
extinct.
Species were
not only to be
protected,
but brought
back from
the brink of
extinction if
possible.
The passing of the Endangered Species Act proved to
be a salvation for the wolves.
Because their numbers were so low, they were placed
on the endangered species list.
Reintroduction of the wolves to their native habitat
would be a way to recover their numbers.
A plan was devised to restore a balanced
ecosystem to Yellowstone National Park.
The first written plan for reintroducing wolves to
Yellowstone National Park was released to the
public in 1980.
Ranchers and farmers didn’t
want wolves around to kill their
livestock.
Ecologists wanted to restore the
wolves to the unbalanced
ecosystem in Yellowstone.
The plan generated
arguments among
ecologists, ranchers,
and farmers.
The next 15 years saw numerous
debates, town meetings, and media
coverage either for or against the
reintroduction of the wolves.
It was resolved in 1995 and a plan
was accepted to restore the
wolves to Yellowstone.
 Fourteen wolves from various packs were captured in
Alberta, Canada in 1995 and brought to Yellowstone.
 They were kept in large enclosures called wolf pens for
10 weeks in order to acclimate to each other, the
weather, and the new territory.
Gray wolf in
preparation for
transport to
Yellowstone National
Park.
 Upon release, 3 packs formed from the fourteen
wolves.
 They quickly adapted to hunting elk and small game,
spread out their range, raised pups, and became strong
packs.
 A second release of wolves in 1996 resulted in the
formation of four more wolf packs.
 Fourteen surviving pups were counted the following
year.
 After this success, it was believed that the wolves
could maintain their numbers, and no more releases
were planned.
Elk populations
were not decimated,
as feared. In fact
the size of the herds
are healthy.
Wolf reintroduction was
less costly than
anticipated.
Livestock loss, which
ranchers feared, was
insignificant.
The addition of the wolves to
Yellowstone enhances the experience
for numerous visitors.
and wolves….
 http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/animals/crea
turefeature/graywolf/
 www.yellowstonenationalpark.com/wolves.htm
 www.nps.gov/yell/naturescience/wolfrest.htm
 www.nps.gov/yell/naturescience/wolves.htm
 http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/nature/wolves-
yellowstone.html