Wolf Wars
Wolf Wars
Packs are making a comeback. That’s a thrill for wildlife lovers. But wolves are still wolves, killing cattle and elk. Many Westerners are angry. And so, the age-old fight over land and food has begun anew.
Photograph by Jeff Vanuga
Wolves, when you get down to it, are a lot like us.
They are powerful, aggressive, territorial, and predatory.
They are smart, curious, cooperative, loyal, and adaptable.
They exert a profound influence on the ecosystems they inhabit.
Nevertheless, we have problems with wolves, no doubt about it. Maybe we can't wrap our minds around both the big bad wolf and the close relative with the adoring gaze that follows us around the house. Or maybe it's because gray wolves are the planet's most widespread large land mammals after humans and their livestock and—in the Northern Hemisphere—have long been our most direct competitors for meat. READ MORE HERE
I believe it is important for us to recognize the other side of the value of nature and environmental health. Douglas Chadwick originally came into my world with his Mountain Goat work. One passage sticks in my mind " .... the liquid black eyes, floating in a sea of white [paraphrased I'm sure]". I enjoyed all manner of his writing. And this month's National Geographic has his story of wolves.
The reality is the wolves have propagated well beyond the expectations of the land managers, and the conflict between land use priorities is exacerbated. Ranchers, cattle or sheep are losing increasingly more of their stock to wolves.
As a biologist the reparations to the ecosystem are a good thing - of course I like that aspect. The loss of income and assets on the business of ranching is certainly noteworthy. But I dare say, raising animals has a whole host of risks (I raised horses for almost 20 years), that upon undertaking the business we measure and assess, and likely should "hedge" to some degree. Or if not, then by not hedging, one is accepting the increased risk to the operations - a downside risk, identified, assessed and integrated into a management plan makes for a more robust plan.
Easy for me to say right? But in terms of a balance, to have the expectation that wolves will not take advantage of free food is unrealistic. And in my view, a landscape without wolves is equally unrealistic. So therein lies the conflict. As the Wolves of Minong clearly illustrated, nature will balance itself, in a manner not all that different from the current re-balancing of the world's geopolitical and economic state. Once the food supply is limited by their own consumption, then they will either migrate or die, Adapt of Perish (General Patton). For me it is all about the energy flow, and energy and material in equals the energy and materials out - its all a matter of form and function.
They are powerful, aggressive, territorial, and predatory.
They are smart, curious, cooperative, loyal, and adaptable.
They exert a profound influence on the ecosystems they inhabit.
Nevertheless, we have problems with wolves, no doubt about it. Maybe we can't wrap our minds around both the big bad wolf and the close relative with the adoring gaze that follows us around the house. Or maybe it's because gray wolves are the planet's most widespread large land mammals after humans and their livestock and—in the Northern Hemisphere—have long been our most direct competitors for meat. READ MORE HERE
The reality is the wolves have propagated well beyond the expectations of the land managers, and the conflict between land use priorities is exacerbated. Ranchers, cattle or sheep are losing increasingly more of their stock to wolves.
Easy for me to say right? But in terms of a balance, to have the expectation that wolves will not take advantage of free food is unrealistic. And in my view, a landscape without wolves is equally unrealistic. So therein lies the conflict. As the Wolves of Minong clearly illustrated, nature will balance itself, in a manner not all that different from the current re-balancing of the world's geopolitical and economic state. Once the food supply is limited by their own consumption, then they will either migrate or die, Adapt of Perish (General Patton). For me it is all about the energy flow, and energy and material in equals the energy and materials out - its all a matter of form and function.
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