Wolves around North Pole and Fairbanks

[warptman]

Never Cry Wolf

[Merlander]

Originally Posted by Arcticthaw

There are breeds that get really huge, maybe this is an errant geene.

That is one errant gene we don't need in the general wolf population...

[User 2]

Originally Posted by Arcticthaw

One may wish to look at how fast the wolf population in and around Yellowstone has increased since they were introduced. From several pairs to over a thousand the last time I looked.

That mention of 'in and around' is, maybe, a qualifier.

Yellowstone Park wolf population in 2006 was 136 animals, adults and pups.

How far 'around' are you describing here?

[RayinAK]

Originally Posted by User 2

That mention of 'in and around' is, maybe, a qualifier.

Yellowstone Park wolf population in 2006 was 136 animals, adults and pups.

How far 'around' are you describing here?

According to some reports, wolves have migrated out of the park, and the number seems to be 1,000 total, which includes the 136 you have mentioned.

[Arcticthaw]

Originally Posted by User 2

That mention of 'in and around' is, maybe, a qualifier.

Yellowstone Park wolf population in 2006 was 136 animals, adults and pups.

How far 'around' are you describing here?

Well the distance is kind of releative as the wolves were wiped out prior to reintroduction. So one could deduce all wolves in a 500 to 1000 mile radius could be from the original group.

[User 2]

Originally Posted by RayinAK

According to some reports, ..........

....according to some reports.

The only numbers reported in any study I know of that mention that many wolves is a USFWS report covering the entire northern Rocky Mountain region.

Unless you have some source which contradicts that USFWS report......

There's a tendency for some opposed to reintroduction to exaggerate when it comes time to 'report' numbers.

Political arguments against the Endangered Species Act listings are not immune to such manipulation.

Like any political issue, the science usually is 'shaped' to send whatever message is intended by whoever reshapes the data.

A more realistic perspective would be to compare todays wolf population with historical carrying capacities over the extent of the range of habitat in question.

A thousand wolves is not a very large number for the whole of the northern range of the Rocky Mountains.

USFWS reports show that wolves only occupy 6% of their historic range in the northern Rocky Mountains, and that's a very small part of what used to be their entire historic range.

There's approximately the same number of grizzly bears left in the same range, representing only one percent of their historic numbers and living on only one or two percent of their historic range.


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[User 2]

Originally Posted by Arcticthaw

Well the distance is kind of releative as the wolves were wiped out prior to reintroduction. So one could deduce all wolves in a 500 to 1000 mile radius could be from the original group.

Wolves were not 'wiped out'. Their numbers were drastically reduced, but they were not 'wiped out'.

Prior to reintroduction, USFWS acknowledged that viable packs were still living in the norther Rockies, but there weren't enough in some areas to self sustain.

As far as all the wolves in a 1000 mile radius is concerned, you seem to forget that wolves migrate up and down the Rocky Mountains from Canada. Genetic studies show all three strains are present today, reintroduced wolves, native wolves and migratory wolves from Canada.

Re-colonization is a very well known inherent trait of wolves, all too commonly acknowledged among scientists who study wolf packs.

http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=088...2.0.CO%3B2-%23

Genetic Structure and Migration in Native and Reintroduced Rocky Mountain Wolf Populations
Stephen H. Forbes, Diane K. Boyd

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[Vancefish]

On the subject of the Yellowstone wolves.

If any predator is released into an area where predation had ceased for generations. The population of pray increases exponentially. The early population of predator species will grow very quickly as long as the pray is abundent. Once the food source diminishes (in this case the new packs need new territory) The population either moves on to better hunting, finds a new source of food or dies. Ranchers around Yellowstone are already killing wolves that pray on cattle, While the wolves inside the park breed like rabbits, eating Dear, Moose, Bison, Elk, Rabbits...... These animals had no preditors and population was out of control. Disease was becoming an issue and hunting was illegal. I believe that the wolves on the fringe of the park are new packs that were forced to move. They find peoples cattle easy pray. Again, What could they have expected, other then the outcome we have now. One day the pray animals will reach normal levels. Then we can begin to discuss the long term effects of the experiment. For now they want to introduce them to Estes Park, Colo. Because the elk poputation is ill with some waisting disease.

[redwolfzach]

huntimg wolves should be band they only do what comes natrual to them dont get me wrong there is nothing wrong with hunting for deer or other types of food type animals but hunting wolves is pointless and stupid and about the whole killing dogs thing go to a humaniterian shelter excuse mis spells

[nmuko]

Anybody that get attack by a wolf without rabies deserve it. We in they area. Wolves start genocideing human because all of suddenly they become smarter than us don't say nothing.