By Tanda Gmiter
A female wolf died Thursday, shortly after being captured in Minnesota as part of the National Park Service’s effort to relocate a large number of wolves to Michigan’s remote Isle Royale.
The NPS and partner agencies began the relocation effort earlier this week, with the goal of replenishing the island’s dwindling wolf population so it can act as a true predator for the more than 1,600 moose now living on Isle Royale.
The female wolf came out of her crate right away. The male waited until after dark to explore his new home.
Two wolves – a male and a female – were successfully captured on the Grand Portage Indian Reservation in northeastern Minnesota. They were flown to the island and released onto the island on Tuesday. Two other wolves captured there that day were released back onto tribal land after biologists determined they were too young to be relocated.
But the project suffered its first casualty on Thursday when another female wolf was captured and judged to be fit for relocation, according to on-site wildlife biologists, the NPS said Friday.
“Per protocol, the wolf was sedated and transported to the holding facility for further medical examination. In the holding facility its condition deteriorated and it succumbed, despite the best efforts of the attending veterinarians,” the park service said.
“The wolf was transported to the University of Minnesota Veterinary Diagnostic Lab for necropsy and diagnostic evaluation today.
“Per the implementation plan, the team and partners immediately reviewed protocols. Adjustments were made to the protocols including the length of time a captured wolf is kept in the field prior to transport, and the sedation procedures used to lower stress during transportation.
“The NPS and partners associated with this effort take every capture very seriously and put the safety and health of the wolves as a top priority.”
The goal is to relocate up to 30 gray wolves from Minnesota, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and Ontario, Canada to Isle Royale over the next few years. The National Park Service looked at several alternatives before deciding to press forward with bringing in new wolves.
A final decision on the national park’s wolf question is expected soon.
Before this week, the island’s existing wolf pack had fallen to just two wolves. Because they are closely related, it’s unlikely they would produce any healthy offspring, researchers have said.
Without healthy wolf packs, the NPS is concerned the moose could overbrowse the island wilderness.
The island’s wolf and moose populations have been the focus of a decades-long study by researchers at Michigan Tech University.
Isle Royale sits in the northwest portion of Lake Superior. It’s about 15 miles from the Canadian border, and 56 miles from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula mainland.
Wolves crossed over to the island on ice bridges in the 1940s, researches said. But any wolves that may have come over when ice bridges have formed in recent years have not stayed.
Accidents, disease and inbreeding caused a sharp decline in the wolf population in the last decade.