Final Paper

Wolves in Yellowstone

     Flashes of red bob through the trees as the little girl in the deep red cape skips through the woods. On the way to her grandmother’s house she feels a presence; round eyes glow yellow and bloody fangs smile at the little girl—the wolf has chosen his next meal. These are the images we conjure up when we think of wolves. They have been labeled as demons of the forests. In fairy tales, myths and legends, wolves are seen only as glowing eyes and sharp fangs. They’ve been  known to devour travelers in stories such as “Little Red Riding Hood” and “The Three Little Pigs.” This fear, coupled with the misunderstanding of wolves, has encouraged their hunting, the placement of bounties on their pelts and the ordering of their extermination (which nearly succeeded). Theodore Roosevelt, one of the United States’ most environmentally conscious presidents, “labeled wolves ‘the beast[s] of waste and destruction.’ Thereafter, the United States government launched a full-scale campaign aimed at the total elimination of the wolf in the United States” (Brown 426). After the grey wolves (Canis lupus) were pushed to the edge of extinction, the species was reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park in January, 1995. Since the reintroduction of the grey wolf into the greater Yellowstone ecosystem, there have been positive outcomes on the plant and animal life in the park, as well as a greater understanding of the grey wolf.

     Since Medieval times the wolf has been under persecution. Through folk tales and fables, they have been portrayed as beasts of deceit, trickery and ferocity. As the Europeans began to explore, they brought their fear and myths of the creatures with them to the New World. This brought about the trapping and killing of the wolves in Eastern America, soon making its way to the West. As people began making parks and petting zoos in Yellowstone, the local people began to see the grey wolves as a nuisance, a nuisance they wanted gone. As a competitor for the land and for the game in the surrounding areas, wolves were ordered to be exterminated as an “honorable policy goal”. The people didn’t understand that they were the real nuisance, and it was them who invaded the grey wolves’ homes and habitats, not the other way around. The people saw the grey wolf as an enemy, and the grey wolf probably felt the same way about humans. As the two grew further into a conflict, the grey wolf became even more misunderstood. These “noxious species” were now being watched and patrolled along the borders of Yellowstone. Local wardens would watch the borders with guns and traps for resident wolf packs. Not only did the Government allow the killing of the grey wolf, they encouraged it. The wardens were motivated to trap and kill the grey wolf for they were rewarded by being able to keep and trade the pelts of the exterminated animals. In the 1900s, the federal Bureau of Biological Survey gave orders to “flush out” the rest of the grey wolves remaining in Yellowstone National Park and other US national parks (Jones 340). By the early 1920s nearly all the wolves had disappeared from the Yellowstone ecosystem.

     After the grey wolves were gone from Yellowstone National Park, people soon became fully aware of the extent of the situation. They began to realize that the grey wolf was not just a carnivorous, blood thirsty animal, but an important predator to the ecological balance of Yellowstone. One of the major changes in the Yellowstone ecosystem was the increase in the elk population which resulted in an under vegetation issue caused by over-grazing. Previously, the wolf had helped keep the elk population in check by killing the weak or younger elk; however, since the extermination in the 1920s, the elk population nearly doubled in size. Local residents found the elk overeating the vegetation and grazing on farm lands and other surrounding locations. Not only did the grey wolf help regulate the elk population they in turn helped the residents by keeping the elk from grazing on farm land. Despite this obvious change in the ecosystem of Yellowstone, the killing of the grey wolf still continued. It wasn’t until 1925 that the killing of the grey wolf finally wound down; others were starting to see the importance of the grey wolf. Luckily, before the wolves were completely exterminated, the National Park Service, and other organizations, claimed the grey wolf to be of “scientific, educational, recreational, and economic value to society” (Jones 38). 

     But there were, and still are, some who believe grey wolves to be an infectious animal. Despite seeing the positive effects grey wolves have on the ecosystem in Yellowstone National Park, the wolves were still executed and killed by farmers, towns people and wardens. It wasn’t until 1959 that the hunting came to a stop, but by that time, the damage had already been done. The wolves were pushed to extinction by the ignorant people, who were unwilling to change and to understand this animal. The grey wolves were eventually put under the Endangered Species Act in 1973 in an attempt to bring the presence of Canis lupus back into Yellowstone National Park. There were some groups who believed the grey wolf needed to be preserved and able to roam the land that was previously theirs. The grey wolf was then able to roam Yellowstone National Park without having to worry about the previous laws. In 1995, nearly seventy years since wolves had been free to roam Yellowstone National Park, 31 wolves were captured from the Canadian Rockies and released back in to Yellowstone to begin the reestablishing of wolves in the park. Today, more than “150 wolves, from eight packs, now roam Yellowstone's forests and river valleys” (Jones 38). People slowly began to understand the importance of this majestic animal and key role they play in Yellowstone National Park and other surrounding ecosystems. 

     Since the grey wolves’ reintroduction to Yellowstone, there has been a tremendous amount of controversy surrounding the wolves’ role in the decrease of certain herds, specifically elk. Before, there was an abundance, but years later the elk population has shrunk in numbers due to the amount of grey wolves in the park. To completely understand the situation it is important to know the predation of the elk before and after restoring the wolves in Yellowstone. Since the total removal of wolves from the ecosystem in the 1920s (as previously stated) there has been a larger than average elk herd population. On the other hand, when the grey wolf was reintroduced, the elk numbers decreased. The School of Forest Resources & Environmental Science in Missoula, Montana, through various studies, monitored elk and wolf populations from 1961–1995 and again from 1995–2004, to observe how the wolves may have contributed to the elk decline. Since the reintroduction of the grey wolves, the elk population declined 10 percent in 1961 and 30 percent in 1995. They concluded that the decline in the elk population may very well be attributed to the predatory wolves in the area (Vucetich 260). Although the researchers attribute the elk population decreasing to the wolves, they go on to say that it may only be some of the reason. Previously, the elk were able to roam free without almost no predators, besides from coyotes. This may sound like a bad thing to have happen, that the grey wolves are to blame. But looking at the larger picture, the Yellowstone region has merely returned to the way it was before the humans disrupted it. Now that the wolves have been reintroduced, the ecosystem has regained a keystone species to help restore the natural balance.

     Not only have the elk been regulated, but the vegetation has thrived in the areas where the grey wolves have been established. Researchers have noticed an abundance of new vegetation growth likely due to the thinning of the elk population by the grey wolves. As fewer elk graze on young saplings a greater variety of plants are able to grow. Although it is too early to tell how much the grey wolves are impacting the vegetation, there are several species of plants that have seen significant growth in population sizes. Willow and aspen are a few of the plants that are thriving now that the elk population has been redistributed around Yellowstone National Park. These specific plants are “important for many bird species, small mammals, beaver and moose” along with the wolves (Smith 338). To see the many great ways the grey wolves have helped balance and serve this new thriving ecosystem, its hard to believe they could be anything but interesting and innocent animals. But there are still some today who aren’t so keen on the grey wolves in Yellowstone.

     Despite the positive effects of the grey wolf in Yellowstone National Park, ranchers and herders still fear of the Canis Lupus. Their land borders where the grey wolf habitats, and every once and a while livestock is attacked by the wolves. In Montana, grey wolves account for the killing of roughly 111 livestock every year. In 2009, 120 sheep were killed by three wolves near Dillon, Montana. Although it is usually highly unlikely for grey wolves to be this vicious and kill such a large number of sheep at one time, the incident made the farmers more concerned for their livestock's safety. Farmers in Montana are given over $150,000 in compensation for livestock killed by grey wolves. Despite this, farmers are still afraid that the population of grey wolves is getting out of hand. Terms were debated on how many grey wolves are actually needed to keep the population stable. Recently, in Idaho and Montana, the grey wolf was taken off the Endangered Species Act list. Since then, the grey wolf has been allowed to be hunted, “Idaho will allow 265 wolves to be taken by hunters...Montana will allow 75 wolves to be taken” (Byron, 1). Although the hunting has been allowed in Montana and Idaho, Wyoming grey wolves still remain protected under the Endangered Species Act. Farmers are now allowed to hunt a certain amount of grey wolves but some farmer’s believe that this could cause negative effects for their livestock. “‘If the adults are shot, then the young ones are dispersed too early,’ Stone said. ‘Young pups on their own might turn to livestock to survive, and that's not a good situation for anybody.’” (Byron 1). Visibly there are a few negative effects the grey wolf has on their surroundings, but in a whole the grey wolf is a positive addition.

     Although there are many who still want the grey wolf population controlled, such as farmers and hunters, cultures existed who considered the wolves as their brothers or kin. The Blackfeet Native American tribe believed the wolves were “an influential spirit and a cherished social guide,” and that, “their nation descended from four wolves that survived a great flood, before shedding their skins to become human” (Jones 39). Instead of disregarding the wolves as an unknown enemy like the early European settlers, the Native Americans tried to understand the wolves and find the similarities between them and the wolves. Just like wolves, the Native Americans considered themselves a ‘pack.’ They also admired the wolf’s hunting skills and intelligence, and adopted some the grey wolves hunting techniques. Just as the Native Americans did then, we too have now come to understand the wolf by helping reestablish their species into the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem and protecting them as a valuable species. Slowly but surely, we gain a greater understanding of the amazing species, Canis lupus. So the little girl with the red cape safely makes her journey to Granny’s house, and the wolf has retreated back into the woods, where they can both live happily ever after.

Work Cited

Brown, Elizabeth Cowan. "THE "WHOLLY SEPARATE" TRUTH: DID THE YELLOWSTONE WOLF REINTRODUCTION VIOLATE SECTION 10 (J) OF THE ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT?." Boston College Environmental Affairs Law Review 27.3 (2000): 425. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 31 Oct. 2010.

Jones, Karen. "From Big Bad Wolf to Ecological Hero: Canis Lupus and the Culture(s) of Nature in the American-Canadian West." 338-350. Routledge, 2010. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 21 Nov. 2010.

Jones, Karen. "FIGHTING OUTLAWS, RETURNING WOLVES." History Today 52.3 (2002): 38. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 3 Nov. 2010.

Vucetich, John A., Douglas W. Smith, and Daniel R. Stahler. "Influence of harvest, climate and wolf predation on Yellowstone elk, 1961-2004." Oikos 111.2 (2005): 259-270. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 28 Oct. 2010.

Smith, Douglas W., Rolf O. Peterson, and Douglas B. Houston. "Yellowstone after Wolves. (Cover story)." Bioscience 53.4 (2003): 330. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 29 Oct. 2010.

Byron, Eve. "Wolves kill 120 sheep at ranch near Dillon." Missoulian News (2009): n. pag. Web. 3 Dec 2010. <http://missoulian.com/news/local/article_5ff01772-938f-11de-9aca-001cc4c03286.html>.

Source Analysis

Yellowstone after Wolves

Summary: The ecosystem in Yellowstone national park has been restored and again supports the local large carnivores was again.The article considers the possible ecological implications of wolf restoration in the context of another nation park, Isle Royale, where wolves once restored themselves. It goes on to talk about how the wolves completely eliminated the coyotes in Isle Royale, which has implications for forest growth and composition. Its predicted that wolf restoration may have a similar effect in Yellowstone.

-What is the purpose?
To inform people of the change wolves have made in Yellowstone.

-Who is the audience?
Ecological people, wolf people, scientists, people interested in the environment

-Who is the author of my text?
Smith, Douglas W., Rolf O. Peterson, and Douglas B. Houston.

-What is the background of my text?
informative

-Which rhetorical appeals are used in my text?


-How does the language and style contribute to the purpose?
Its Scientific and informative



FIGHTING OUTLAWS, RETURNING WOLVES.

Summary: This article talk about the history of the wolf. How people used to demonize them and how we still do. It talks about the Native Americans and the way they viewed wolves.


-What is the purpose?
to inform of the history of wolves



-Who is the audience?
people interested in wolves, history and Native Americans



-Who is the author of my text?
Jones, Karen



-What is the background of my text?
wolf reintroduction history and info



-Which rhetorical appeals are used in my text?



-How does the language and style contribute to the purpose?
more of a story but informative, keeps you interested




Influence of harvest, climate and wolf predation on Yellowstone elk, 1961-2004

Summary: The extent of this article is about the wolf reintroduction in 1995, the wolves have majorly contributed  to the decrease in the elk population in the Northern Range Yellowstone National Park. Using data such as elk migration, wolf predictions and weather data.

-What is the purpose?
to inform people of the wolf reintroduction to Yellowstone



-Who is the audience?
Environmentalists, people interested in wolves and Yellowstone.



-Who is the author of my text?
Vucetich, John A., Douglas W. Smith, and Daniel R. Stahler


-What is the background of my text?
wolf info, knowledge on wolves and Yellowstone



-Which rhetorical appeals are used in my text?

-How does the language and style contribute to the purpose?
Its informative

Wolves In Yellowstone: Rough Draft

Throughout history wolves have been labeled as demons in the forests. Even in fairy tales, myths and legends wolves are seen only as glowing eyes and bloody fangs. They’ve been  known to devour travellers, in such stories as “Little Red Riding Hood” and “The Three Little Pigs”. This fear coupled with the misunderstanding of wolves has encouraged their hunting, the placement of bounties on them and the ordering of their extermination; which nearly succeeded. Theodore Roosevelt, one of the United States most environmentally conscious  Presidents, “labeled wolves ‘the beast[s] of waste and destruction.’ Thereafter, the United States government launched a full-scale campaign aimed at the total elimination of the wolf in the United States...” (Brown, Elizabeth Cowan, 426). After the gray wolves (Canis Lupus) were pushed to the edge of extinction the species were reintroduced into Yellowstone National Park (YNP), in January 1995. By introducing the wolves back into the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem, dramatic consequences and impacts on the ecosystem as a whole have been observed.

Since Medieval times the wolf, or Canis Lupus, has been under persecution. Through folk tales and fables, they have been portrayed as beasts of deceit, trickery and ferocity. As the Europeans began to explore they brought their fear and myths of the creatures with them to the New World. This brought about the trapping and killing of the wolves in Eastern America, soon making its way to the West. By the early 1920’s nearly all the wolves had disappeared from the Yellowstone ecosystem. Although there were many who wanted the wolves out, cultures existed who considered the wolves as their brothers or kin. The Blackfeeet Native American tribe believed the wolves were “an influential spirit and a cherished social guide,” and that, “their nation descended from four wolves that survived a great flood, before shedding their skins to become human.” (Jones, Karen, 39). Instead of disregarding the wolves as an unknown enemy like the early European settlers, the Native Americans tried to understand the wolves and find the similarities between them and the wolves. Just like wolves the Native Americans considered themselves a ‘pack’. They also admired the wolf’s hunting aspects and their intelligence. Just as the Native Americans did then, we now too have come to understand the wolf, helping to reestablish them into the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem.

In 1995, nearly seventy years since wolves had been free to roam YNP, 31 wolves were captured from the Canadian Rockies and released into YNP to begin the reestablishing of wolves Yellowstone. Now more than “150 wolves, from eight packs, now roam Yellowstone's forests and river valleys.” (Jones, Karen, 38).

Since Canis Lupus’s reintroduction into YNP, there has been tremendous controversy  surrounding the wolves role in the decrease of certain herds, specifically elk. It is important to understand the predation before and after restoring the wolves in Yellowstone National Park. Since the wolves total removal from the ecosystem in 1920’s, there has existed a larger than average elk herd population.

The School of Forest Resources & Environmental Science in Missoula, Montana, through various studies, monitored the elk and wolves through 1961-1995 and after 1995-2004 to observe how the wolves may have attributed to the elk decline. Since the reintroduction of the wolves, the elk have declined approximately 10-30 percent during those years. They concluded that the decline in elk population may very well be attributed to the predatory wolves in the area (Vucetich, John A., 260). Although the researchers attribute the elk population decreasing to the wolves, they go on to say that it may only be some of the reason. Previously the elk were able to roam free without much threat, besides from coyotes. Now that the wolves have been reintroduced the ecosystem has regained a keystone species, helping to restore the natural balance. In turn the vegetation has thrived, in the areas where the wolves have been established. Researchers have noticed an abundance of new growth vegetation likely due to the thinning of the elk population by the wolves. As fewer elk graze on young saplings a greater variety of plants are able to grow.

Although it is too early to tell how much the wolves are impacting the vegetation, there are several species of plants that have seen significant growth in population sizes. Willow and aspen are a few of the plants that are thriving now that the elk population has been redistributed around Yellowstone National Park. These specific plants are “important for many bird species, small mammals, beaver and moose.”, along with the wolves (Smith, Douglas W. 338).

Student Choice 2&3

2. Bringing back the wolf = bringing back the habitat

Binkly, Gail. "Info Bringing back the wolf = bringing back the habitat." High Country News for people who care about the west 30 May 2005. Web. 7 Nov 2010. <http://www.hcn.org/issues/299/15556>.

Summary: This article is about how by bringing back the wolves we brought back certain plants and other animals that are able to survive because of the wolf reintroduction. 

Conclusion: This helps because it reinstates a lot of the other information I have gotten. I'm still not sure if I will be using this in my paper but I might.

3. Yellowstone wolves are here to stay

Odell, Rachel. "Info Yellowstone wolves are here to stay." High Country News for people who care about the west 21 January 2000: n. pag. Web. 7 Nov 2010. <http://www.hcn.org/issues/171/5520>.

Summary: This article talks about how Yellowstone wolves are staying in the nation park. It talks about the different fines and regulations that come with the act.

Reflection: This was very interesting and informational. Things I will for surely put in my paper, good statistics and information.


Other Information:

From Big Bad Wolf to Ecological Hero: Canis Lupus and the Culture(s) of Nature in the American-Canadian West.

Jones, Karen. "From Big Bad Wolf to Ecological Hero: Canis Lupus and the Culture(s) of Nature in the American-Canadian West." 338-350. Routledge, 2010. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 21 Nov. 2010.

4. Wolves kill 120 sheep at ranch near Dillon

Byron, Eve. "Wolves kill 120 sheep at ranch near Dillon." Missoulian News (2009): n. pag. Web. 3 Dec 2010. <http://missoulian.com/news/local/article_5ff01772-938f-11de-9aca-001cc4c03286.html>. 

Annotated Bibliography Entries 4&5, Student Choice 1

4. The Northern Rocky Mountain Gray Wolf Is Not Yet Recovered.

Bergstrom, Bradley J., et al. "The Northern Rocky Mountain Gray Wolf Is Not Yet Recovered." BioscienceAcademic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 3 Nov. 2010. 59.11 (2009): 991-999.

Summary: Its a history of the wolf population and reestablishment, as well as the new laws put out during the Bush Administration and how the wolf activists are replying and the laws that have been passed.


Reflection: There are deffinitally some very good information I will be able to use for my paper. Paragraphs: A brief history of the restoration and delisting of the NRM gray wolf, Politics trumps science in arbitrary definition of DP, Nascent success of wolf restoration may be stalled to placate grazing interests and Nascent success of wolf restoration may be stalled to placate grazing interests, will be most helpful information

5. FIGHTING OUTLAWS, RETURNING WOLVES.


Jones, Karen. "FIGHTING OUTLAWS, RETURNING WOLVES." History Today 52.3 (2002): 38. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 3 Nov. 2010.


Summary: This article talk about the history of the wolf. How people used to demonize them and how we still do. It talks about the Native Americans and the way they viewed wolves.

Reflection: I am going to use a lot of this information for a part of my paper. I found it so interesting. Notes for myself: The wolves were extinct by the 1920's after people shot, trapped and poisoned out of their own land. Wolf reintroduction took twenty years to implement and generated massive public debate. Yet, on January 12, 1995, wolves made their historic return to the American Rockies.(paragraph 13, more info there)

Other helpful articles:
Defining Recovery Goals and Strategies for Endangered Species: The Wolf as a Case Study.
DECADE ON THE WOLF: RETURNING THE WILD TO YELLOWSTONE.


Student Choice


1. Yellowstone Wolf Project, Annual Report 2007


Smith, D.W., D.R. Stahler, D.S. Guernsey, M. Metz, E. Albers, L. Williamson, N. Legere, E. Almberg, and R. McIntyre. 2008. Yellowstone Wolf Project: Annual Report, 2007. National Park Service, Yellowstone Center for Resources, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, YCR-2008-01.


Summary: Summary of 2007 wolf packs, territory maps, wolf capturing and collaring, wolf predation, wolf management and program objectives for Yellowstone wolf project.


Reflection: This is going to be very helpful. Its specifically about the organization that helped reestablish them. From nps.gov website

Annotated Bibliography Entries 1-3

1. Influence of harvest, climate and wolf predation on Yellowstone elk, 1961-2004.

Vucetich, John A., Douglas W. Smith, and Daniel R. Stahler. "Influence of harvest, climate and wolf predation on Yellowstone elk, 1961-2004." Oikos 111.2 (2005): 259-270. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 28 Oct. 2010.

Summary: The extent of this article is about the wolf reintroduction in 1995, the wolves have majorly contributed  to the decrease in the elk population in the Northern Range Yellowstone National Park. Using data such as elk migration, wolf predictions and weather data.

Reflection: I think this was interesting. It talked about the different factors they took into account when gathering the data such as rain fall, snow fall, and the annual harvests. I think this will help well with my paper and lead to more information about the elk decrease and how it's keeping the elk population down by having the wolves maintaining a balance. 

2. Yellowstone after Wolves

Smith, Douglas W., Rolf O. Peterson, and Douglas B. Houston. "Yellowstone after Wolves. (Cover story)." Bioscience 53.4 (2003): 330. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 29 Oct. 2010.

Summary: The ecosystem in Yellowstone national park has been restored and again supports the local large carnivores was again.The article considers the possible ecological implications of wolf restoration in the context of another nation park, Isle Royale, where wolves once restored themselves. It goes on to talk about how the wolves completely eliminated the coyotes in Isle Royale, which has implications for forest growth and composition. Its predicted that wolf restoration may have a similar effect in Yellowstone.

Reflection: I am very excited to be able to use this research for my paper. Its so interesting and is full of information I will be able to use throughout my research and learning process of this paper.This article talks about the benefits of restoring the wolf population in Yellowstone, it will help with my paper a lot.

3. THE "WHOLLY SEPARATE" TRUTH: DID THE YELLOWSTONE WOLF REINTRODUCTION VIOLATE SECTION 10 (J) OF THE ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT?


Brown, Elizabeth Cowan. "THE "WHOLLY SEPARATE" TRUTH: DID THE YELLOWSTONE WOLF REINTRODUCTION VIOLATE SECTION 10 (J) OF THE ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT?." Boston College Environmental Affairs Law Review 27.3 (2000): 425. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 31 Oct. 2010.

Summary: This article focuses on the reintroduction of the gray wolf into Yellowstone National Park and central Idaho. Description of a typical wolf pack; Details on the 1973 Endangered Species Act; Overview of the Northern Rocky Mountain Recovery Plan; Lawsuits which have interpreted the legality of the gray wolf reintroduction program.

Reflection: This article goes into detail about the history of the Acts of reestablishing the wolves and also the different lawsuits and factors that have gone on. Will work very well with my paper.