By CHELSI MOY of the Missoulian
The University of Montana will soon study how wolf deaths affect pack stability and population growth.
UM’s Montana Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit just received a three-year, $150,000 grant from the Regina Bauer Frankenberg Foundation to study wolf populations in northern Idaho, the Canadian province of Alberta and Yellowstone National Park.
Wolf mortality varies greatly in the three areas, primarily because of management practices. Wolves are protected in the park, but are hunted in the other two areas, said David Ausband, UM research associate.
Researchers anticipate finding differences in the composition and stability of wolf packs in each area, and Ausband expects to find the most stable packs in Yellowstone.
“In Idaho and Montana, wolves have gone from endangered species to a hunted game animal pretty much overnight, and understanding how death will affect pack stability is pretty important,” he said.
Over the past five years, Ausband has found new techniques for tracking wolves. Tracking wolves with collars is expensive, and now that that the states have assumed management responsibilities, there are fewer federal dollars to pay for tracking, he said.
Instead, Ausband has found ways to track wolves using DNA samples taken from wolf scat and hair. Field researchers make “rub stations” by pouring a smelly, sticky substance on the ground. That draws wolves, which leave hair samples as they move about in the rub, Ausband said.
Researchers are also using what’s known as a “howl box,” a small computer with a speaker and microphone. It broadcasts wolf howls and records the responses. Wolves in packs howl on slightly different frequencies, so researchers can get an idea of the minimum pack size, he said.
Ausband is confident his team of researchers can use both DNA and howl information to track wolf populations in the Rocky Mountain region.
Although Montana has plenty of wolves to study, Ausband concentrated part of the study in Idaho because of familiarity with packs he’s been already been studying since 2007.
The field research will begin this summer, he said. Wolf movement is constrained during the summer because wolves are busy taking care of pups. That should make it easier to count pack size.
“My highest hope is that we find something useful for the management agencies,” Ausband said.
The UM Foundation discovered the grant opportunity and worked with the Montana Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit to apply. The foundation will report back to the Regina Bauer Frankenberg Foundation about how the money was spent and what the research uncovered.
The Montana Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit is a collaborative relationship between states, universities, the federal government and nonprofit organizations. The various units conduct research on renewable natural resource questions and help educate graduate students, resource professionals and others with an interest in natural resource issues.