Wildlife Refuge Promotes Reintroduction of Wolf

         

This year the Adirondack Wildlife Refuge and Rehabilitation Center held their 8^th Adirondack Habitat Awareness Day. The Refuge Center is located in Wilmington, New York, just downstream from Whiteface Mountain and serves as a resource to educate the public about endangered species living within the park. The Wolf Activist Workshop focuses on the restoration of wolves to the environment. The proposed agenda for the day includes a general introduction to wolf ecology and behavior, why the wolves of the northeast are unique, information on the Stand for Wolves campaign, and guidelines and tips for promoting advocacy for their reintroduction. This last portion of the day serves as the most important part of Adirondack Habitat Awareness day. The workshops not only work to inform people about the history and reasons behind reintroducing the wolf to the Adirondacks, it encourages the visitors to take their own actions to make a difference. Through these workshops, people are able to learn what makes a campaign successful, guidelines to meet with elected officials, how to write Letter to the Editor, and how to use social media for advocacy. The event helps to provide the necessary materials and knowledge needed to motivate and prepare the visitors for effective action.

         Wolves live short lives in the wild, usually no longer than 5 years. The cause of their death is often due to starvation, and one bad season of hunting can be detrimental to their chances of survival. In an effort to increase their populations of prey, they work to eliminate other competing predators such as coyotes and foxes. There is the common misconception that wolves would be harmful to the environment, terrorizing the local towns in the Adirondacks. However, wolves do not attack people. In the half-century up to 2002, there are only eight known fatal attacks by wolves in all of Europe, Russia, and North America. Wolves are actually beneficial to the environments they live in. They are often referred to as keystone species because their impact in a given ecosystem will have ramifications far beyond the animals they prey on. After wolves were reintroduced to Yellowstone Park, elk populations declined considerably, possibly contributing to the recovery of creek side vegetation, and higher growth of trees in the area. This helped to provide nesting sights for birds and food and building materials for beavers. Overall, the reintroduction of the wolf helped to control plant and animal populations and restore balance to the ecosystem.   

In general, the Wolf Activists are fighting for the return of wolves to the Adirondacks for several reasons. Highlighting the economic incentives of their reintroduction, the wolves would attract more tourism (an industry that accounts for 12.4% of local employment), drive revenue, and help create hospitality and infrastructure to support jobs. Using the return of the Grey Wolf to Yellowstone as an example, conservationists claim that the wolves would also serve to control the populations of their prey and restore balance to the ecosystem.

            In addition, every day of the week except Tuesdays and Wednesdays, employees Steve and Alex lead the “Wolf Walk”. Visitors can watch as the two interact with the wolves and listen to a narrative about the history of the wolves and facts about their reintroduction to the park. Visitors can take pictures of the wolves up close or go for a walk along the Wolf Walk Trail, where they can also see other extraordinary Adirondack species such as the bobcat, lynx, and bald eagle. There is no fee to visit this Refuge Center, which is non-profit, but donations are very much encouraged.

Sources:

http://www.adirondackwildlife.org/ADK-Habitat-Awareness-Day-poster-2015

http://www.adirondackwildlife.org/Wolf_Frolic_April_2010.html

http://www.adirondackalmanack.com/2014/12/the-economic-potential-of-rewilding-the-adirondacks.html