Wolf could be spared
By Jessica Frank
NEWPORT The wolf that has been spotted in the town of Newport may get a new lease on life after a wolf conservation group bombarded the state with e-mails.
Adrian Wydeven, a mammalian ecologist with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, said because of the outcry of support for the lone wolf the DNR now has plans to capture it, tranquilize the animal and send it to the Wildlife Science Center in Minnesota. The center contacted the DNR when it heard about the wolf, Wydeven said.
Wydeven said while there are at least two dozen traps around Newport to capture the wolf, the DNR has not ruled out killing the animal.
The animal, believed to be a wolf or a wolf/dog mix, has been causing problems for some residents in the rural areas east of Wisconsin Dells. In recent weeks the wolf is believed to have attacked a calf and a dog on a farm in the town of Newport.
Frank Wendland, one of the co-founders of Wolves Offered Life and Friendship in Colorado, is the man behind the e-mail campaign to save the Wisconsin Dells wolf. He e-mailed supporters of W.O.L.F. and asked them to pass the story along to their own personal e-mail groups, Wendland said. Because of his efforts, thousands of e-mails from across the country, and even internationally, have inundated media sources and state agencies in Wisconsin.
“With free-ranging wolves, a lot of media exposure is not wanted (by state officials),” Wendland said.
Wendland said wolves provide for a balanced eco-system, often attacking and eating diseased animals such as deer. He said if wolves were more prevalent in the area, “we wouldn’t have disease like (Chronic Wasting Disease).”
In one of his e-mails to his supporters, Wendland writes, “Please don’t believe we have won this battle, yet! If we slack off at this point, there is no assurance that the wolf’s life will be spared. We must keep up the pressure and let the authorities know that we are still watching. It is also important that this animal not be used for research or be exploited in any way.”
Wendland said he is concerned about what will happen to the wolf if it is taken to the research facility in Minnesota.
“We have a call into the Executive Director of this facility,” Wendland said in his e-mail to supporters. “We are excited that this being considered as an option, but are somewhat concerned about the fact that this is a ‘research facility.’ We want to know what type of plans they have for this animal, if it is sent there.”
Many of the e-mails media sources have received talk about sending the wolf to Wendland’s sanctuary in Colorado. Wendland himself has said he carries a $2 million insurance policy and would take the wolf if the DNR would let him.
However, according to the W.O.L.F. Web site (http://www.wolfsanctuary.net) Wendland does not have the room for one more animal.
“Unfortunately, the problem has become so overwhelming, and funding sources so rare, that W.O.L.F. can not accept any additional animals at this time,” it reads. Wendland said this information is incorrect and the Web site needs to be updated.
Earlier this month, a public meeting was held in Wausau on the recent announcement by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that it intends on delisting the wolf on the federal endangered species list in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan and parts of surrounding states.
Wydeven said only 40 people came to talk about the issue at that meeting.
The wolf has not been spotted recently, Wydeven said. The search will go on for a few more weeks, and if the wolf still is not seen, the DNR will re-evaluate the situation.