Public support sought for protection of wolves
Published Sunday, 10/6/02:
WILDLIFE
Public support sought for protection of wolves
Wolf activists Leo and Dorothy Keeler are trying to bring public pressure
on the Alaska Board of Game to continue and expand a wolf protection zone
in and around Denali National Park and Preserve. The couple claims more
than 1,000 signatures on a Toklat wolf petition they plan to take to the
Alaska Board of Game on Thursday. They aim to protect the Toklat and
Margaret wolf families when they leave the safety of the park. Scientists
who have studied Denali Park wolves say there are no Toklat or Margaret
wolf families,” but packs of wolves living in those areas with genetic
links to wolves all over the state. Those scientists say genetic studies
show the wolves of the Toklat and Margaret are not unique. But they agree
the wolves there appear to be habituated to people, making them tamer than
wild wolves and more easily approached by photographers and observers. The
Keelers have photographed wolves in the Toklat area since 1989. they
created a Web site ( www.savetoklatwolf.com) encouraging the Board of Game
to expand wolf protection. This petition is different, requiring signers
to answer personal questions aimed at determining what the Denali wolves
mean to them,” according to the advocacy group Wolfsong of Alaska. “Denali
Park wolves . . . often allow humans to watch them from a few feet or
yards away. Tourists who ride the bus into the park have about a 12
percent chance of seeing wolves, which is incredibly high when it comes to
seeing wolves,” claims Wolf Song. “The wolves often walk on the park road
or hunt in full sight of visitors. For information, call Wolf Song at
688-9653 or 274-9653.
Published Tuesday, 10/8/02:
Corrections
(Published: October 8, 2002)
An item on Page H-2 of Sunday’s Outdoors section incorrectly associated
Wolf Song of Alaska with a petition to further expand protection for
wolves venturing out of Denali National Park and Preserve. Wolf Song is a
nonpartisan educational organization that takes no position on such
petitions. http://www.adn.com/corrections/