The WolfPresented by Lauren N. Watine

“We reached the old wolf in time to watch a fierce green fire dying in her eyes... I was young then, and full of trigger-itch; I thought that because fewer wolves meant more deer, that no wolves would mean hunters’ paradise. But after seeing the green fire die, I sensed that neither the wolf nor the mountain agreed with such a view.”

Aldo Leopold

What is a wolf?• Introduction• Ecology• Management• The Future

Introduction

• Origins– Fox-like ancestors in early middle

Pliocene– Eurasia: Pleistocene period• ~1 million years ago

Introduction

• Classification and Taxonomy– Largest living WILD canid• Grey wolf• Red wolf

Introduction

Grey Wolf• Order: Carnivora• Family: Canidae• Genus: Canis• Species: lupus

Red Wolf• Order: Carnivora• Family: Canidae• Genus: Canis• Species: rufus

• Classification and Taxonomy

Introduction

• Classification and Taxonomy– 5-24 ssp. recognized in North America– Nowak• Canis lupus occidentalis• Canis lupus nubilis• Canis lupus arctos• Canis lupus lycaon • Canis lupus baileyi

Introduction

• Classification and Taxonomy– Hybridization• Canis lupus x Canis latrans

– Eastern grey wolf x coyote hybrids

Introduction

Grey Wolf• Mature males

– 20-80 kg– 1.27-1.64 m long– 66-81 cm shoulder

height

• Mature females– 16-55 kg– 1.37-1.52 m long

Red Wolf• Mature males

– 1300-1600 mm long– 20-35 kg

• Mature females– 16-25 kg

• Physical Characteristics

Overall size and weight increases south north

Introduction

• Physical Characteristics

Introduction

• Distribution and Abundance– Circumpolar throughout Northern

hemisphere• North of 15-20° N latitude

Introduction

• Conservation and Legal Status– Grey wolf• IUCN: Least Concern

– Red wolf• IUCN: Critically Endangered

Introduction

• Population Trends–Many populations have been decimated

or completely extirpated– Causes of decline • Agricultural expansion• Overhunting of ungulate prey• Intensive predator control

Introduction

• Value– Traditionally: pelts – Scientists: natural ecosystems– 1970s: symbol of wilderness– Economics• Wildlife Viewing• Ecotourism companies

Ecology

Ecology: Natural History

• Survival and longevity– 13 years in the wild– Pup Survival• Van Ballenberghe and Mech, 1975

Ecology: Natural History

• Diet Selection– Obligate carnivores• Ungulates• Beavers• Hares

– Scavenging

Daily maintenance requirement: 1.7 kg/wolf/day

Ecology: Natural History

• Habitat generalist– Influences on use?

Ecology: Natural History

• Sex Ratios–Males more common in high density

populations

Ecology: Natural History

• Physiology and growth– Sexual maturity • 9-46 months

– 62-63 day gestation• Average litter: 4-6 pups

Ecology: Natural History

• Physiology and growth– Pups• Blind• Deaf• Thermoregulation?• Waste elimination?

Ecology: Natural History

• Reproductive Strategy– High reproductive potential– Females in estrus 5-7 days• 1-3 breeding females

–Mate January April • Latitude-dependent

– Litters-per-pack?

Ecology: Natural History

• Reproductive Strategy– Percent pups in unexploited vs.

exploited populations• Wood Buffalo National Park• Great Slave Lake Area (Kelsall 1968)

Ecology: Natural History

• Reproductive Strategy– Unexploited populations: 60% of

females breed– Exploited populations: 90% of females

breed

Management implications?

Ecology: Behavior

• Social Structure– THE PACK• Hierarchical• 5-12 individuals

Ecology: Behavior

• Communication– Postures– Scent – Vocalization

Video

Ecology: Behavior

• Interspecific interactions– Interference competition– Positive and negative effects: other

predators• Ravens• Brown bears

Ecology: Behavior

• Movements– Dispersal–Migration• Caribou movements

– Home-range• Territories• Pimlott et al. 1969• Oosenbrug and Carbyn 1982

Ecology: Population Biology

• Mortality– Starvation– Intraspecific aggression– Disease

– Compensation?

Ecology: Population Biology

• Mortality– Harvest– Road-kills

Ecology: Population Biology

Management

Management

• The Endangered Species Act• 1995: Yellowstone National Park– Translocation

• June 2013 Proposal

Management

• Current Management– Regulation of legal harvest– Protection from harvest– Translocations–Wolf population reduction*

Management

• Monitoring– Harvest statistics• Age assessment

– Radio telemetry– Ground surveys– Aerial surveys*– Line-intercept track sampling*

Management

• Harvest– Exports/imports• CITES, Appendix II

Management

• Harvest

Management

• Harvest– Alaska: the only state to allow public

harvest• 1960: declared a game species • 1996: eliminated aerial hunting• Require an export permit to remove from

the state

Management

• Harvest– Alaska: the only state to allow public

harvest• Compliance?• Liberal regulations• Annual harvest

– 700-1600 individuals

Management

• Habitat– Park size• Buffer zones?

– Travel corridors– Logging operations

Management

• Livestock Depredation–Wolf control– Annual depredation• 0.23-3.0/1000 cattle• 2.66/1000 sheep

Management

• Humans– Increase ungulate species for harvest?• Controversial

Management

• Red Wolves and Coyotes– North Carolina• Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge

The Future

The Future

• Coexistence at the local level– Social acceptance– Biological requisites

The Future

• Coexistence at the local level– Public education– Persecution

“We shall never achieve harmony with the land, anymore than we shall achieve absolute justice or liberty for people. In these higher aspirations the important thing is not to achieve but to strive.”

Aldo Leopold

Current EventWhat do we know about Canis rufus?• Extinct in the wild by 1980• Grey wolf X coyote hybrids not uncommon• Wolf X coyote hybrid, grey wolf, or a distinct species

Does it matter?http://www.fieldandstream.com/blogs/field-notes/2013/10/should-north-carolina-allow-coyote-hunting-red-wolf-country

Questions?

Idaho Department of Fish and Game: Wolf Monitoring Program

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkCE2IqYTFc

Sources• Wild Mammals of North America - P. Paquet and L. N.

Carbyn• Ecology and Management of Large Mammals in North

America - Demarais and Krausman• http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/links/3746/0• http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/links/3747/0• http://www.fws.gov/redwolf/• http://www.fws.gov/mountain-prairie/species/

mammals/wolf/• http://www.fws.gov/director/dan-ashe/index.cfm/

2013/6/7/Gray-wolves-are-recovered-next-up-the-Mexican-wolf#more

• http://wyoming.sierraclub.org/WOLVES%20AND%20ECONOMICS.pdf

• http://www.fieldandstream.com/blogs/field-notes/2013/10/should-north-carolina-allow-coyote-hunting-red-wolf-country

• http://fishandgame.idaho.gov/