A Nation of Wolves

Ever since the unfortunate killing of Echo, the first wolf to been seen in the Grand Canyon, my inbox has been bombarded with emails asking for my support to “save the wolves.” Don't get me wrong, I would love to see wolves return to the US. They can be a driving force of change within an ecosystem. But there needs to be a serious discussion about the problems they cause.

 It’s assumed that when reintroduced, wolves will primarily hunt the other natural wildlife. I'm sure they would take rabbit or deer if they got the chance, but there’s a reason that the wolves numbers are the way they are.

Humans have worked long and hard to ensure there are as few predators as possible that pose a significant threat to livestock. Because of that quite a few people are left scratching their heads as to why we should reintroduce wolves. Suppose we effectively eliminated mosquitoes, what kind of resistance would their reintroduction face? It's really hard to see the positive effects when the downsides are so immediately apparent.

Most issue surrounds livestock. Wolves taking livestock is certainly the biggest hurdle anyways. Wolves do pose a threat to humans but in general they avoid us as much as possible. I won’t claim that they are a non-issue, but unless they are starving it’s unlikely they would attack an adult. But livestock are a different matter. They're the biggest reason why wolves were hunted to the numbers they are at now.

I can understand why most farmers don't want an active wolf population in their backyards. To farmers, reintroducing wolves means introducing a predator that could potentially kill their livestock. Each animal in the herd represents a significant investment of time and money. Losing one of those animals can be a massive loss. It's only natural that farmers would want to protect their investment.

For a reintroduction to be successful, wolf deterrent methods have to involve the farmers in a positive way. When over hunting threatened deer and other favored wildlife, hunters were the ones called upon to support the conservation efforts. Now the license fees they pay comprise the largest chunk of funds.

Electronic deterrent systems, such as lights and even sirens, can be effective. Some of these can even activate when they detect a signal from a wolf's radio collar. If it has a radio collar. Fencing can help stave off wolves, but that alone won't keep wolves from livestock.

The best methods are the ones that have been in place for thousands of years. Shepherds used to watch over their flocks night and day in order to protect them. Large dogs are also a good deterrent. Using these with other deterrents increases the chances that wolves will avoid livestock. These methods are highly effective for both livestock and wolves if defenders.org is to be believed.

But I’m a realist when it comes to getting farmers to agree. Each one of these methods requires an increase in a farmer’s time, money, and effort against a predator that right now does not exist in most places. If wolves are going to be reestablished in the US, farmers will have to help. Or at least see some benefits.

So what good can wolves bring? They would hunt weak and sick animals which creates a healthier ecosystem. With wolves culling those animals there would be less of a risk of disease spreading to livestock like sheep and cattle. And whether you believe that the benefits in this video are real or not, wolves do have at least some effect on the grazing behaviors of deer and elk.

            I would like to see wolves return for all those reasons, but most of all because it would be putting things right. There’s something alluring about that. It’s the same kind of thinking that led to the creation of our national parks. But we have a long way to go before the wolves’ future is certain.