Wolf Management Research Articles

Development of a microhaplotype panel to inform management of gray wolves

Development of a microhaplotype panel to inform management of gray wolves

Human‐caused mortality triggers pack instability in gray wolves

Transboundary movement of wildlife results in some of the most complicated and unresolved wildlife management issues across the globe. Depending on the location and managing agency, gray wolf (Canis lupus) management in the US ranges from preservation to limited hunting to population reduction. Most wildlife studies focus on population size and growth rate to inform management, but relatively few examine species biological processes at scales aside from that of the population. This is especially important for group‐living species such as the gray wolf, for which the breeding unit is the social group. We analyzed data for gray wolf packs living primarily within several US National Park Service units (years of data): Denali National Park and Preserve (33 years), Grand Teton National Park (23 years), Voyageurs National Park (12 years), Yellowstone National Park (27 years), and Yukon‐Charley Rivers National Preserve (23 years). We identified two gray wolf biological processes that differed from population size – namely, pack persistence and reproduction – and determined that while human‐caused mortality had negative effects on both, pack size had a moderating effect on the impacts of mortality.

The effect of wolves on the exit and voicing exit of Swiss mountain farmers

Wolves are perceived as a threat by small ruminant farmers in Switzerland. In this study, we examined whether there is an association between exit from small ruminant farming and wolf prevalence. We drew on Hirshman's “exit, voice, and loyalty” theory to shed light on (1) farmers' exit strategies in the past and (2) famers' voice on future intentions of exiting (“voicing exit”), when dealing with wolves. Using farm panel data from Swiss small ruminant farmers (13,954 regular farms and 3758 Alpine summer farms), we first applied a mixed-effect logistic regression model to estimate famers' exit rate from small ruminant farming. We then conducted a survey among farmers (n = 928) to show correlations between the farmers' burden caused by wolves and intention of how long to continue farming and keeping small ruminants. We differentiated between regular “all-year” farms and Alpine summer farms. We were able to show that wolves, among other important factors, played a small but significant role in the exit from small ruminant farming, mainly on farms with small herds. The survey results also revealed that farmers exposed to greater wolf pressure were more likely to voice potential exit from small ruminant farming. In general, there is a real threat that farmers will exit small ruminant farming because of wolves. We highlight that farmers' exit from small ruminant farming should be seriously taken into account for further wolf management decisions.

A new era of wolf management demands better data and a more inclusive process

AbstractHunting and trapping of gray wolves (Canis lupus) has increased dramatically in the “lower 48” states of the United States. We assess the data used to justify the intense hunting pressure on wolves, and find an absence of accessible biological data. We find there is a clear need for more transparent reporting of livestock losses, wolf kills, and especially the numbers and types of nontarget species captured in traps set for wolves. Also lacking is a full accounting of benefits and costs of hunting wolves, with a noteworthy failure to incorporate the ecosystem functions served by wolves. As apex predators, wolves warrant multi‐objective management as opposed to management focused largely on livestock interests and concerns.

Integrating basic and applied research to estimate carnivore abundance.

A clear connection between basic research and applied management is often missing or difficult to discern. We present a case study of integration of basic research with applied management for estimating abundance of gray wolves (Canis lupus) in Montana, USA. Estimating wolf abundance is a key component of wolf management but is costly and time intensive as wolf populations continue to grow. We developed a multimodel approach using an occupancy model, mechanistic territory model, and empirical group size model to improve abundance estimates while reducing monitoring effort. Whereas field-based wolf counts generally rely on costly, difficult-to-collect monitoring data, especially for larger areas or population sizes, our approach efficiently uses readily available wolf observation data and introduces models focused on biological mechanisms underlying territorial and social behavior. In a three-part process, the occupancy model first estimates the extent of wolf distribution in Montana, based on environmental covariates and wolf observations. The spatially explicit mechanistic territory model predicts territory sizes using simple behavioral rules and data on prey resources, terrain ruggedness, and human density. Together, these models predict the number of packs. An empirical pack size model based on 14 years of data demonstrates that pack sizes are positively related to local densities of packs, and negatively related to terrain ruggedness, local mortalities, and intensity of harvest management. Total abundance estimates for given areas are derived by combining estimated numbers of packs and pack sizes. We estimated the Montana wolf population to be smallest in the first year of our study, with 91 packs and 654 wolves in 2007, followed by a population peak in 2011 with 1252 wolves. The population declined ~6% thereafter, coincident with implementation of legal harvest in Montana. Recent numbers have largely stabilized at an average of 191 packs and 1141 wolves from 2016 to 2020. This new approach accounts for biologically based, spatially explicit predictions of behavior to provide more accurate estimates of carnivore abundance at finer spatial scales. By integrating basic and applied research, our approach can therefore better inform decision-making and meet management needs.

Between Europeanisation and politicisation: wolf policy and politics in Germany

ABSTRACT The impact of Europeanisation on domestic policies is often associated with the alignment of European policies and discourses with national ones. The Habitats Directive mandating wolf protection entailed heated debates across the EU, suggesting diverging values and interests at various levels of policy-making. I present an analysis of wolf policy and politics in Germany, where wolves have returned after a long period of extinction. Tracing the dynamics of institutions involved in wolf management in 2000–2021, I identify key groups involved, their activities and positions as well as the impact of European rules and discourses. Unlike in some other Central in Eastern European countries, German wolf policy was strongly influenced by Europeanisation that helped to sustain the institutional path of wolf conservation, despite criticism from dominant land-use actors who politicised the issue to relax conservation rules. I suggest adding safeguarding of latent policies to the catalogue of outcomes of Europeanisation.

Working Together: Optimal Control of Wolf Management Across Multiple States

Working Together: Optimal Control of Wolf Management Across Multiple States

On the Multiple Identities of Stakeholders in Wolf Management in Minnesota, United States

Social identity theory offers a means to understand attitudes about wolves, with consequences for management support. Using data from a mail survey about wolves, we explored relationships among seven identities (i.e., wolf advocate, hunter, environmentalist, nature enthusiast, farmer, trapper, conservationist) using multidimensional scaling (MDS) and principal components analysis (PCA). We examined how identities correlated with political ideology, trust in a wildlife management agency, wildlife value orientations (WVOs) and attitudes about wolves, and we evaluated whether WVOs mediated the relationship between identities and attitudes. PCA suggested two factors in identifying relationships among stakeholders, while MDS and correlations found diversity among stakeholders beyond these factors. Hunter identity was most strongly associated with a domination WVO and conservative political ideology. Farmer identity was most strongly associated with agency distrust and negative wolf attitudes. Wolf advocate was most strongly associated with a mutualism WVO (i.e., beliefs that humans are meant to coexist in harmonious relationships with wildlife), agency trust, and positive wolf attitudes. Conservationist identity was positively correlated with all other identities. WVOs partially mediated the relationship between identities and attitudes.

Law Abiding Citizens

Conflicts over wolf management are a stable feature of Norwegian public debate. In some segments of the population, nature management, and especially predator management, have a very low legitimacy. A strong expression of these controversies is the illegal killing of wolves, a practice sufficiently extensive to impact wolf population size. In several studies, the killing of wolves is interpreted as politically motivated resistance/crime of dissent. This study contributes to the research field by examining the support for such illegal actions. We ask if the Norwegian public find such illegal actions to be acceptable or not. Analysis shows that acceptance joins a broader pattern of controversies, expressed by phenomena such as xenophobia, climate change denial, anti-elitism, and low confidence in institutions working to preserve nature.

Scientist perspectives toward the status and management of gray wolves in the western United States

AbstractTo inform conservation policy, we solicited scientist perspectives on a controversial conservation issue—the US Fish and Wildlife Service status review to relist gray wolves in the western United States on the Endangered Species Act. Our survey of authors of recent scientific publications on US wolves (n = 84; 26% response rate) indicated that about two‐thirds of respondents supported relisting. About 80% disapproved of Idaho and Montana wolf management plans and believed that they pose a threat to wolf populations in the western United States. Nearly half of respondents were unsure if population estimates of wolves in Idaho and Montana were accurate and reliable and about a fifth believed they were not. Both proponents and opponents of relisting primarily offered policy‐based arguments about state versus federal management, followed by biological arguments about threats to wolves, and social and ethical arguments about wolves and their management.

Development of an AI-based bioacoustic wolf monitoring system

Wolves are spreading in the Alpine region at an increasing rate, which leads to human--wolf conflicts. In order to reduce those and to perform an active wolf management, solid information about the presence of wolves is required. Getting this information is challenging since wolves are nocturnal, have sharp senses, and large territories. A monitoring method is to detect wolf howling, which can be heard over several kilometres and therefore simplifies finding them. Current acoustic methods, however, are very labour-intensive as a memory card has to be fetched from the device in the field and then the recordings have to be checked for howling manually. We present a novel approach to acoustic wolf monitoring using a convolutional neural network that runs on an embedded system in the wolf territory. Thus, we obtain accurate real-time information about the presence of wolves. On our data set, we achieve an F1-score of 0.61, thus outperforming previous systems by far. We develop prototypes and conduct two field test: first in a zoo, where we even achieve an F1-score of 0.8, and then in a wolf territory, where we successfully detect wolf howling.

Hair cortisol concentration reflects the life cycle and management of grey wolves across four European populations

The grey wolf (Canis lupus) persists in a variety of human-dominated landscapes and is subjected to various legal management regimes throughout Europe. Our aim was to assess the effects of intrinsic and methodological determinants on the hair cortisol concentration (HCC) of wolves from four European populations under different legal management. We determined HCC by an enzyme-linked immune assay in 259 hair samples of 133 wolves from the Iberian, Alpine, Dinaric-Balkan, and Scandinavian populations. The HCC showed significant differences between body regions. Mean HCC in lumbar guard hair was 11.6 ± 9.7 pg/mg (range 1.6–108.8 pg/mg). Wolves from the Dinaric-Balkan and Scandinavian populations showed significantly higher HCC than Iberian wolves, suggesting that harvest policies could reflected in the level of chronic stress. A significant negative relationship with body size was found. The seasonal, sex and age patterns are consistent with other studies, supporting HCC as a biomarker of chronic stress in wolves for a retrospective time frame of several weeks. Our results highlight the need for standardization of sampling and analytical techniques to ensure the value of HCC in informing management at a continental scale.

Mediating Human-Wolves Conflicts Through Dialogue, Joint Fact-Finding and Empowerment

Within a local and national context of escalating conflicts surrounding the management of immigrating wild wolves (Canis lupus) spreading from Germany into Denmark, we invited a group of citizens living in and nearby a Danish wolf territory to participate in an experiment called “The Wolf Dialogue Project”. The overall objective of the Wolf Dialogue Project was to explore the possibility of developing a productive alternative to the systematically distorted communication and “High conflict” that characterizes current wolf management, using a critical-utopian dialogue approach guided by Habermasian discourse ethic and a joint fact-finding process, that seeks to empower citizens to take on a shared responsibility for the commons. By purposefully not representing any strategic interests for or against wolves or the existing wolf management regime, the project offered a group of citizens the opportunity to formulate and communicate the problems and concerns they experienced, living in or nearby wolf territory. The project further offered the participating citizens the opportunity to develop counter measures and solutions to their experienced problems, through a facilitated process of social learning and empowerment. The duration of the dialogue project was two and a half years and included a demographic and political cross section of local citizens. Despite difficulties along the way, the outcome of the project was more profound than initially anticipated by the project team. Participants were initially very polarised, and some were opposed to the existing wolf management regime as well as governmental agencies, but they began taking on a collective responsibility guided by the common interest of their community, across individual differences. In addition, the process left a significant mark on the new wolf management plan recommended to the government by the Danish Wildlife Council in 2021. Far from all problems and conflicts were solved by the project, and new problems also emerged as a result of the project, but by bringing the commons of the participating citizens into focus, and applying a process of communicative rationality, joint fact-finding and the exploration of alternative futures, the project revealed the potential for social and environmental responsibility to emerge from sociopolitical empowerment.

Children’s engagement during collaborative learning and direct instruction through the lens of participant structure

The joint effects of instructional approach and participant structure on children’s engagement were investigated in 24 fifth-grade classrooms during a six-week unit on wolf management. 96 four-minute episodes sampled from the lesson videos were coded in 30-second intervals for individual students’ momentary cognitive-behavioral engagement, momentary emotional engagement, and current participant structure. Multilevel ordinal regression analyses showed that children were three times more likely to be cognitively and behaviorally engaged and one-and-a-half times more likely to be emotionally engaged during collaborative groups than direct instruction. Children’s cognitive-behavioral engagement depended upon participant structure: Children in collaborative groups were most engaged in lessons during peer interaction, whereas children receiving direct instruction were more engaged when interacting with the teacher. Children were more likely to be emotionally engaged when talking with peers, the teacher, or both peers and the teacher than when alone. The study contributes to new understanding of engagement as a function of the nature and conditions for participation in lessons.

Wolf Conservation and Management in Spain, An Open Debate

Wolf management in Spain is remarkably different at regional scales. South of Douro river, wolves are protected, north of Douro wolves can be hunted, and culling occurs on both sides. After a formal request to include wolves in the Spanish Red List of Threatened Species, wolves have been “listed,” but not as a vulnerable species. Recreational hunting will no longer be a wolf management option, while culling is still allowed. We describe the process to raise wolf protection at the state level, and the factors that should be relevant to guide apex-predator management. Restricting lethal control and favoring predator-prey interactions by reducing livestock depredation should be more feasible with an overarching policy that is binding over the whole range of the species in Spain.

Are wild wolves southpaws? Including potential conservation implications

Lateralization, or a left-right bias in behavior (e.g., handedness), was originally thought to exclusively exist in humans, but is now known to be widespread. Lateralization can exist at the individual or group level. In dogs (Canis lupus familiaris), tests of paw preference have produced inconsistent results. Because wolves (C. l.) differ genetically, morphologically, and behaviorally from dogs, I was interested in assessing them for lateralization. I examined lateralization (right versus left) of the foot captured (a step test analog) of wild wolves (n = 93) trapped for radiocollaring purposes in the Superior National Forest, Minnesota from 2011 – 2017 and 2019. No support was found for lateralization, and sex and age class were not significant predictors of which foot was captured. Because many mammals demonstrate lateralization, and because population-level lateralization is thought to convey increased social cohesion, it is surprising that wild wolves did not demonstrate population level lateralization. This step test analog may not have been an appropriate measure (as lateralization is task dependent) and / or wolf lateralization may exist at the individual level, but not the population level. Future work on wolf lateralization at both the individual and population levels examining pawedness via multiple tasks while accounting for potential confounding factors (such as different rearing conditions and methods) could provide clarification. Examining potential trade-offs between the costs and benefits of lateralization that these highly social animals may incur would be very interesting in terms of evolution and in comparison with dogs. Furthermore, because lateralization has been connected to emotional functioning and animal welfare, baseline lateralization data from wild wolves may inform captive wolf management and conservation, including the captive breeding programs for endangered Mexican wolves (C. l. baileyi) and red wolves (C. rufus) and other programs (e.g., educational facilities).

Wolf–Human coexistence in the Alps: the LIFE WolfAlps EU project

During the last 30 years, a natural return of wolves has been recorded at local, national and international levels over several mountain ranges in the Alps and, more recently, in both hilly areas and plains in Europe. Accepting the natural return of wolves in human-dominated landscapes is a major challenge, especially in places where memories and experience of coexistence have been lost. After the success of the LIFE WolfAlps project, which ended in May 2018, the European Commission has approved and co-financed LIFE WolfAlps EU (2019–2024), a new project to support wolf– human coexistence at European and pan-Alpine scales. As the expansion of the wolf population knows no administrative boundaries, the presence of the species requires actions effective at local level to improve its coexistence with humans on an international scale. The new, international project works to support local communities in the prevention of wolf attacks, and decision makers in the adoption of the best possible solutions to improve management of wolves, thus improving public acceptance of their expanding distribution and populations, notwithstanding the potential risks. Concrete actions are being implemented to involve all stakeholders interested in and affected by the wolf’s presence, in order to make human–wolf coexistence possible across borders, traditions and beliefs.

MANAGEMENT OF WOLF POPULATIONS IN THE CONDITIONS OF THE SOUTH PRIARALIE

The article discusses the basic principles of wolf management in the conditions of the Southern Priraralie. The management of wolf populations has its own characteristics. It is very important to know the spatial territorial structure of family-flocking areas. In addition, to have information about the number of indigenous areas occupied by him, the average fertility, mortality and the age structure of his populations. KEYWORDS: regulation, management, poaching, fertility, radio tracking, convention.

Genetic signature of immigrants and their effect on genetic diversity in the recently established Scandinavian wolf population

Transboundary connectivity is a key component when conserving and managing animal species that require large areas to maintain viable population sizes. Wolves Canis lupus recolonized the Scandinavian Peninsula in the early 1980s. The population is geographically isolated and relies on immigration to not lose genetic diversity and to maintain long term viability. In this study we address (1) to what extent the genetic diversity among Scandinavian wolves has recovered during 30 years since its foundation in relation to the source populations in Finland and Russia, (2) if immigration has occurred from both Finland and Russia, two countries with very different wolf management and legislative obligations to ensure long term viability of wolves, and (3) if immigrants can be assumed to be unrelated. Using 26 microsatellite loci we found that although the genetic diversity increased among Scandinavian wolves (n = 143), it has not reached the same levels found in Finland (n = 25) or in Russia (n = 19). Low genetic differentiation between Finnish and Russian wolves, complicated our ability to determine the origin of immigrant wolves (n = 20) with respect to nationality. Nevertheless, based on differences in allelic richness and private allelic richness between the two countries, results supported the occurrence of immigration from both countries. A priori assumptions that immigrants are unrelated is non-advisable, since 5.8% of the pair-wise analyzed immigrants were closely related. To maintain long term viability of wolves in Northern Europe, this study highlights the potential and need for management actions that facilitate transboundary dispersal.

Stimuli and barriers to innovation in wildlife policy – long-term institutional analysis of wolf management in Belarus

Following democratisation, many post-socialist countries in Central and Eastern Europe adjusted their wolf policies to accommodate a more positive discourse on the species and the need to sustain and expand its populations. However, Belarus continues an approach informed by a discourse on wolf as a dangerous pest that should be reduced to the most possible extent through unrestricted hunting. Based on data from desk research covering the last 150 years and from semi-structured interviews we explored the reasons for the long-term stability of the policy path and identified potential sources of policy innovations. We argue that the persistence of potentially unsustainable practices has been connected with a strong dominance of hunters in the policy field and the lack of actors representing alternative discourses and policy options. This has changed recently when wildlife biologists and environmental activists proposed policy adjustments modelled on the approaches used in the EU. However, these have not translated into meaningful changes because of hierarchical, top-down governance, dominance of the ministry responsible for hunting, and the lack of external stimuli for policy innovation. We propose activities to strengthen the co-ordination of wolf policy between Belarus and its EU neighbours and to ensure sustainable wolf management.