DNR looks for timber wolves in Northeast Michigan
The next time you hear howling in the woods in Northeast Michigan, don’t automatically dismiss it as a dog.
It could be a timber wolf.
One was caught in a trap in northern Montmorency County last October. Wolf tracks were confirmed in December.
Right now, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources is scouting the woods of Presque Isle and Montmorency counties to see if there are more than just a few lone wolves in the Lower Peninsula.
They may be spreading south, but we hear no cries of warning.
Instead, most people appear interested and unafraid.
That’s a huge switch from the initial fear that drove people to exterminate wolves in Michigan. By the 1960s, there weren’t any left.
In 1974, biologists transplanted four wolves from Minnesota to Marquette County. They were killed in just a few months.
People weren’t ready for the big, bad wolf’s return.
But, after several decades of education from wildlife experts, the time is ripe for the wolf to resume much of its former range in the Lower Peninsula.
Left alone, these animals thrive.
In fact, Michigan and the federal government removed the state’s wolves from the endangered species list several years ago after they migrated into the Upper Peninsula and multiplied.
Now, they may be heading south.
And instead of harboring superstitious, Old World fears, we are fascinated.
The big dog is back.