Gray Wolf

1. Gray Wolf • Historical Range • Present Range • Diet • Pack

2. Mexican Gray Wolf • Historical Range • Present Range • Diet • Pack

3. Artic Wolf • Location • Diet • Pack

4. European Wolves • Range • Italy • Spain/Portugal • Sweden • Diet • Pack

5. Red Wolf • Historic Range • Diet

6. Canine Parvovirus • disease of domestic dogs and coyotes • found in wolves of Wisconsin, Montana, and Minnesota • exposed wolves may die, show clinical symptoms, or resist symptoms • nutritionally stressed or parasitized wolves most likely to die • recovered CPV-infected dogs can shed fecal viruses for months and feces may be infective for up to seven years • in Minnesota, presence of CPV antibodies have been found in 87% of wolves, and when CPV antibody levels reach 76% in adult populations, wolf populations are expected to decline • Vaccines could be used, but three would be required

7. Problems With Wolves • European Wolves • Depredation of livestock • Minnesota • Yellowstone

8. Coyote-Wolf Interactions • Coyote and Wolf home ranges overlap • Coyotes often avoid areas of intense wolf activity • Coyotes use outer edges or avoid wolf territories

9. Reintroductions • In 1995 and 1996 66 wolves taken from southwestern Canada were reintroduced into Yellowstone National Park (YNP). The Rocky Mountain wolf population : The Northwest Montana recovery area The Central Idaho recovery area The Greater Yellowstone recovery area

10. reintroduction... • the goal was to have 30 evenly distributed breeding pairs of wolves throughout the 3 areas for 3 successive years. • site selection: • areas with large blocks of public lands, lots’o wild ungulates, and minimal livestock... • blood work (disease and genetic testing) was done and wolves were outfitted with mortality censored radio collars. • wolves were located 2-4 times per month, those involved with livestock depredations behavior were watched more closely • this goal is expected to be met within 3 to 5 years...delisting

11. management strategies differed for these groups because they were classified differently. • GYA and ID wolves were classified as nonessential experimental populations. This allows more flexible management to address local concerns. • the NWMT wolves are classified as endangered and are protected under the endangered species act. In 1986 wolves wandered down from Canada and established in Glacier National Park...not introduced.

12. bad dogs • in Northwestern Montana control was only implemented when livestock depredations occurred. • in the experimental areas wolf control was exercised when domestic animals were attacked

13. Control techniques • killing or relocating • when there is a minimum of 6 breeding pairs, wolves could be killed after their 1st offense • effective non-lethal approaches • intensive monitoring of wolves and livestock (including providing the pestered rancher with a telemetry receiver) • harassing wolves with noisemakers like cracker shells.

14. Outreach • good idea • in Mo outreach programs are implemented early...educate, $$ • informal talks to public and private institutions, special interest groups and rural communities

15. Minnesota • Minnesota managed to hang on to their wolves when none of the other lower 48 states could. • MN’s population probably never dropped below 650, credited to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area. • There was a constant influx of wolves form Canada to keep the numbers up. • The wolf is adaptable...can switch from bison and elk to cattle, use roads as convenient trails, use wheat and corn fields as cover

16. Minnesota’s Wolves Growin’ and expanding into agricultural areas The recommended population level was a minimum of 1,250 individuals. in 1997-1998 the population was double that sum and was increasing steadily at 4.5% per year. expected to be delisted in 2001 or 2002. population control will be considered 5 years after delisting. If managed for sustainable yield, MN population could support a 28-47% winter harvest.

17. Lone wolf dispersal and a possible sink? Wolves have long dispersal distances (thousands of km’s) • –wolves killed on the periphery of their range could be quickly replaced... causing a sink for the population. • Some Canadian provinces keep wolves from spreading into agricultural zones this way. They harvest 4-11% each year at the range edge.

18. Mexican Wolf • The southern most occurring and most endangered subspecies of Canis lupus • In the U.S.-extirpated in the wild by mid-1900’s • In Mexico- speculated that less than 50 breeding pairs existed there in 1978, unknown today...probably not. • In 1977 and 1980 5 wolves was taken out of Mexico (from Chihuahua and Durango) and a captive breeding program was set up.

20. Reintroduction • EIS statement: goal is to establish at least 100 wild Mexican wolves • The site: Blue Range World Recovery Area. These wolves were a recovery priority of 3C, which means that they were an endangered subspp. with a high degree of threat and recovery potential. • 5 pairs of release candidates were soft-released in 1988.

21. Mexican update... • They are beginning to function like a population and less like a series of separately released wolves. • Their prey base is natural, with 80% of their diet being elk. • They are successfully reproducing. • The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service expects that the goal of 100 wolves will be reached by 2006.

22. New World Mgt Techniques • Back in the day • Bounty programs initiated in 19th century ended 1965 • 1848 1st bounty in Minnesota was $3 • 1965 last bounty paid in Minnesota $35 • trapped, shot from planes and snowmobiles, dug from dens and hunted with dogs. Poison still used today in parts of Canada main method of wolf extirpation in the past illegal in Minn

23. New World Mgt. Cont. • Poison cont. • animal carcasses were slated with strychnine were left out for wolves and other animals also died because of this. wolves had been exterminated in lower 48 states with the exception of a few hundred in extreme NE Minn and were finally protected by the in 1973 by the Endangered Species Act of 1973.

24. Yellowstone-Idaho introduction • wolves designated as non-essential instead of endangered because they were introduced. • this was an experimental act under the Endangered Species Act • allows federal, state and tribal agencies and private citizens more flexibility in managing these populations • wolves that prey on livestock will be removed or destroyed • Rancher may kill wolves that they catch depredating livestock on private lands • Ranchers may also be issued a permit to do the same on public lands

25. Montana • Wolf control only when livestock or other types of domestic animals such as dogs were attacked. • Control • Intensive monitoring of wolves and livestock (telemetry) • adversive conditioning (cracker shells, capturing, radio collaring and releasing) • controlling measures continued until livestock depredation ceased • wolves that repeatedly depredated livestock were killed

26. aversive conditioning: test conducted at Flying D ranch in Bozeman, MT. • 4 problem wolves were penned, allowed to acclimate for a few months, and outfitted with shock collars. Wolves were shocked if they came within 1 meter of a calf placed in the pen. • one wolf ventured too close, got zapped, and cowered for hours...the others took notice and avoided the calf. • the calf continued to live with the wolves for 10 days • interactions between wolf and calf varied: there was napping, pacing (by both parties), and even calf in pursuit of wolf • results: no more depredations have been documented by these reformed wolves

27. Montana Cont. • Compensation • private program compensated ranchers full market value for confirmed and 50% for probable wolf kills of livestock and livestock guarding animals • all mortalities were looked into by the USFWS • after investigations were complete : skulls, carcasses were used for educational and scientific purposes.

28. Montana Cont • 1996-1997 winter • dramatic reduction of white-tailed deer throughout NW Mont • result: record high livestock losses by wolves • represented nearly 50% of all confirmed livestock depredation and lethal wolf control on NWMont since 1987.

29. Distribution and dispersal • NW Mont • slower than expected • removal of problem wolves and prey declines in 1997 winter • Central Idaho and GYA • expanded greatly • protected area and they stayed within boundaries

30. Depredation of Livestock • low compared to other causes of livestock mortality, but controversial • private compensation fund by Defenders of Wildlife • many of the problem wolves that depredate livestock end up doing it again • ends up costing more money • livestock losses could be significantly reduces by killing the problem wolves instead of relocating. • study showed that 25 of 28 or 89% of relocated wolves wolves either died or attached livestock again

31. Depredation Cont • In GYA the wolves were predicted to kill 19 cattle and 68 sheep annually • from 1995-1998 only killed 8 cattle, 84 cheep,and 4 dogs (below what predicted) • study showed that 13 wolves depredated and were caught and returned to park • of 13, only 2 or 15% did not leave park and kill again • (of the 13 wolves,one wolf was responsible for killing 56 sheep)

32. Depredation Cont. • Minnesota in 1998 paid out: • $50,000 compensation payments • $255,000 for control costs • $301,413 for a total cost • predicted for 2005 • $75,002-$182,074 for compensation payments • $245,060-$512,610 for control costs • $320,062-$694,684 for total cost

33. Depredation Cont • livestock producers exaggerate the threat that wolves have on livestock • many losses cannot be confirmed • many ranchers don’t check livestock regularly in summer • agencies need a confirmation process so they are not abused by ranchers • agencies require confirmation and report losses • sometimes this can be hard to prove

34. Depredation Cont • to date, livestock losses have been low and have occurred on private lands • control of problem wolves by lethal means rather than relocating them, should result in lower costs, quicker resolution of problems, and fewer livestock losses • Effective control may translate into increased tolerance of nondepradating wolves by livestock producers on private and public lands

35. What are are options? • After delisting and Minn DNR regains management authority. • Fed govt gain control as before • Controllers to do preventive control by capturing wolves in areas of chronic depredation before livestock losses occur. • DNR could capture and kill wolves in areas of chronic losses or in broad areas where wolves are problems • Expensive and time consuming

36. Options Cont? • Involve the public (legal shooting of wolves by issuing licenses to certain parts of the state) (zone 5) • Let hunting take place near areas that are highly depredated by wolves. • Deliberate hunting is very difficult and most killing of wolves are killed by deer hunters who just happen to see a wolf. • Trapping of wolves could also be used but it depends a lot on the fur prices which fluctuates a lot. • Most skilled trappers of the past are not around

37. Options Cont. • Could allow livestock owners to shoot and trap wolves on their property with or without restrictions. (this could result in innocent wolves being killed and it also could help landowners to feel better about being able to kill the wolves)

38. Options Cont • Problems? • Human populations have become more urbanized and animal rights activists are strengthening (hunting and trapping are decline) • Proven methods of wolf control are less acceptable • Increased human and wolf conflicts are on the rise and there is little agreement on what to do with them.

39. Wolves in Europe and the Middle East: Past Distribution

40. Wolves in Europe and Middle East: Present Distribution

41. History of Wolves in Europe • wolves were persecuted in most of Western Europe, with viable populations remaining only in Spain, Portugal, Italy, and Russia • Viewed as “man-eaters” and seen as a threat to human livelihood

42. Fairytales and Myths • many of the fairytales we know today originated in Europe (Little Red Riding Hood etc...) • the myth of werewolf was also born here • since very little people have actually been attacked by wolves, the origins of the tales are a mystery

43. Wrongful Persecution? • in Europe, many believe that the man eaters in stories were actually man’s best friend, the dog • the Roman Empire had domesticated a variety of large dogs • after it’s demise, many dogs were forced to form packs and roam the countryside in search of food • these starving dogs were said to have dug up bodies of the dead and attack and kill people • interestingly, these occurrences correlate well with the emergence of wolf fairy tales

44. The hunt is on... • in the Middle Ages, built pits and baited • 1600’s-1800’s... government mandated “town hunts” required everyone 16 and up to participate (sometimes up to 20,000 people) • Bounties were implemented (more money for females and pregnant females)

45. Still hunting... • literature about hunting wolves dates back to the Middle Ages • hunting guides shared the tricks of the trade: how to poison, track, anti “stinky” shoes (for horses too!), the “wolf iron” etc.... • 1699- survival guide published in Germany... knowledge required to survive includes how to kill a wolf

46. Wolves in Europe Now • Wolves have dispersed back into many European countries, including Germany, Poland, Sweden, Greece, and France to name a few. • The international body for the World Wide Fund for nature estimates total numbers in Europe to be 15,500 - 18,000. • Expansion of wolves appears linked to protection by law, significant habitat improvement, reduced hunting effort, and increased wild ungulate populations • Should still be considered endangered species due to population fragmentation and low genetic variability • Human attitude towards wolves is probably one of the most important factors determining wolf distribution

47. Problems with wolves in Europe now... • Habitat fragmentation is definitely a problem • Depredation of livestock • especially sheep, many countries allow flocks to roam hillsides all summer without checking on them • not very common when abundant ungulates are present • Foraging in garbage dumps near cities (like in Central Italy- get 60-70 % of food there) • People are still REALLY scared of wolves • Poaching- an estimated 15-20 % of Italy’s wolf population is illegally killed each year

48. Getting over the fear • The big objective for wildlife managers in Germany is to educate the public on wolves, hoping to alleviate the deeply rooted fear • Hope to reach the younger generations by giving presentations at schools • Hold meetings to educate the public • Pass out informative pamphlets at different gathering events • Sponsor the production of educative t.v. shows

49. Decreasing depredation... • Encourage ranchers to: • use breeds of sheep that tend to disperse rather than flock • use livestock guarding dogs • provide nocturnal housing for livestock • get a shepherd to watch over the livestock • discontinue the practice of free-range grazing • Offer compensation to ranchers who lose livestock • Norway wants to cull approximately 20 wolves to please farmers

50. Habitat fragmentation • Each country should designate a zoning system of areas and connect them via corridors • Each area should be managed for wolves in ways appropriate to local ecological and economic conditions • If each country would connect their corridors, this would allow dispersal to occur, providing the much needed genetic diversity