Wolf pups roaming Isle Royale

Michigan Tech researchers believe at least four new wolf pups have been born on Isle Royale. That should help bolster the recently introduced pack on the island, thought to be between 12 and 14 at last count.

The findings are exciting because they mean that balance is returning between the wolf and moose populations. The relationship has been studied for over 60 years, the longest study of its kind. Ice bridges that formed in some of the severe winters of the last decade allowed most of Isle Royale’s gray wolves to leave for the mainland. Inbreeding further crippled the pack’s effectiveness.

Without predators to keep them in check, the moose herd ballooned, and there was concern that they would graze until their food sources had disappeared from the island entirely. Some had already begun to starve.

The full release is below.

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Lead researchers from Michigan Technological University (MTU) shared important new findings in the effort to restore balance between the wolf and moose populations at Isle Royale National Park. Researchers believe the wolf population is on the rise, a promising sign of a healthier park ecosystem.

MTU’s research on the island’s wolf and moose is the longest running predator-prey study in the world. For 63 years, researchers have documented both species, noting in recent years a steady decline in the number of wolves at Isle Royale and the resulting rise of the park’s moose population.

This year is the first time in the study’s history that the researchers were unable to be in-person at Isle Royale to do their work. However, trail cams captured images of four wolf pups born on the island, a sign of a growing population. In 2018 and 2019, the National Park Service (NPS) brought new wolves to the park after the population plummeted down to just two. With so few wolves, the moose population soared, posing a threat to their survival as well as to native plants and trees crucial to the park’s ecosystem.

Last year’s studies estimate 12-14 wolves present in the park, but the new wolf pups seen on camera this year indicate those figures are higher. The Park Service will use the information collected by MTU researchers and analyses conducted using remote cameras to provide a formal wolf population estimate later this summer.

With wolf numbers on the rise, Isle Royale could be on the right path to stabilizing the local moose population – but according to this research, the moose face another problem. Overabundance of moose has led to a sharp decline in their food sources, leading to them to starve to death. Climate change is also impacting the health of the Isle Royale moose and their food sources because neither thrive in warmer weather.