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Wolf Facts

Wolves and humans can live side by side in general harmony. Read more		Elk are at all-time highs in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming in wolf habitat. Read more
Wolf reintroduction in the western U.S. was a national effort, and wolves belong to the American public. Read more		Wolves, like any top predator, play an enormously important role in ecosystems. Read more
Wolves generate millions each year to local communities. Read more		Wolves are responsible for less than 1 percent of all livestock losses. Read more

Wolves and Humans

Wolves and humans can live side by side in general harmony.

All wild animals can be dangerous to humans, especially those that frequently come into contact with humans and become "habituated," losing their natural fear. This often occurs when an animal associates people with food, causing the animal to become aggressive toward humans.

Habituation is thought to be the cause of the only probable human fatality attributed to non-rabid wolves in North America since 1900. This fatality occurred in November, 2005 in northern Saskatchewan. Subsequent investigation by provincial authorities and Paul Paquet, a University of Calgary wolf biologist, has determined that some wolves in the area had been attracted to a garbage dump, and had possibly been fed and regularly photographed at a nearby mining camp, causing the animals to become habituated.

Like dogs, wolves are curious animals, readily investigating something new in their environment. The vast majority of wolf-human encounters are simple curiosity on the part of the wolf. Wolves are, however, territorial and intolerant of the presence of other canines. Hikers with dogs have occasionally been followed, barked at, and growled at by resident wolves protecting their territory from a trespassing canine. Wolves have also been documented exhibiting these same behaviors when pups are present.

A person in wolf country has a greater chance of being hit by lightning, dying of a bee sting or being killed in a vehicle collision with a deer than being injured by a wolf.

Wolves and Elk

Elk are at all-time highs in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming in Wolf habitat.

There are close to 300,000 elk in this region, and only 1,300 wolves. All three states have a surplus of elk and are seeking help from hunters to reduce elk numbers.

As elk numbers have increased in the west, so have hunter success rates. Biologists have found that wolves tend to prey on elk that are vulnerable to high rates of mortality from other causes; e.g., illness, injury or old age. In contrast, human harvests take elk that are healthy or at prime reproductive age. Bears, coyotes and mountain lions also prey on elk; and seasonally, elk calves are important to grizzly, black bears and coyotes.

Factors such as drought, winters with deep snow, other predation, human hunting, and poor quality forest habitat impact elk herds more than wolves do. The USFWS has acknowledged that "wolves will never be the primary cause of ungulate impacts" and that "wolf predation is unlikely to impact ungulate population trends substantially unless other contributing factors are in operation, such as habitat quality and quantity".

Fluctuations in wildlife populations are normal; elk herds will experience ups and downs just like other ungulates and wildlife, including wolves.

State vs. Federal Rights

Wolf reintroduction in the western U.S. was a national effort, and wolves belong to the American public.

Wolves were exterminated in the west by the 1930’s after predator-control programs had targeted them for decades. Settlers moving west depleted most of wolves’ prey (bison, deer, elk, and moose), and wolves increasingly turned to sheep and cattle as replacement prey. To protect livestock, ranchers and government agencies began the wolf eradication campaign. Astonishingly, bounty programs initiated in the 19th century continued as late as 1965.

After an absence of more than 50 years, the national public demanded reintroduction, and the USFWS brought a total of 66 wild gray wolves from Canada to Yellowstone and to Idaho’s Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness Area.

Wolves in the west are now enjoyed by people from all over the country and world, residing largely on public lands. Wolves are “owned” by no one, but are a species of national trust and are to be enjoyed by all.

In order for the federal government to remove federal protections and turn wolf management over to the states (called "delisting"), wolves must be biologically recovered in the Northern Rockies, and the states of Montana, Idaho and Wyoming must submit management plans that ensure wolves’ health and long-term survival. The USFWS must approve these state plans. Unfortunately, being pressured by the Bush Administration to delist wolves, the USFWS has initially approved state plans that will allow the killing of hundreds of wolves. Biologists say we need 2,000-3,000 wolves in the region for biological recovery. These decisions should be made based on science, not politics.

The Wolf's Ecological Role In Nature

Wolves, like any top predator, play an enormously important role in ecosystems.

Wolves are apex predators and the predation pressure they create causes prey species to be wary, move around, and avoid landscapes they can’t easily escape from such as riparian zones (stream edges). In the Lamar Valley of Yellowstone National Park, it's been shown that willow and aspen trees are re-growing where elk had been over-browsing prior to the presence of wolves. This, in turn, also improves songbird habitat and provides trees and sticks for beaver dams, which create cool deep ponds for young fish which is beneficial to many terrestrial and avian species. In addition, wolves have reduced Yellowstone Park’s coyote population by as much as 50 percent in some areas, which led to increased populations of pronghorn antelope and red fox.

Elk herds benefit from wolf predation. While wolves prey on healthy elk as well, wolves naturally select as prey the animals easiest for them to hunt—the injured, sick or old. In removing these animals from herds, remaining healthier animals take advantage of food sources, making the herd more robust and healthier overall.

Wolves also mediate the impact of climate change on scavenging animals such as bears, coyotes, eagles, fox, and many others. As winters become milder and shorter over time, elk and deer have an easier time surviving. Animals that rely on winter-killed carcasses have had less to eat in recent springs. The reintroduction of wolves has reduced this negative impact of warming: wolf-killed carcasses provide food for scavengers in the spring.

In short, wolves play an important role in nature, and their presence enhances native biodiversity and healthy ecosystems.

The Economic Value of Wolves

Wolves generate millions each year to local communities.

Wolves have exceeded economic impact predictions. Visitors to Yellowstone hoping to glimpse a wolf spend around $35 million in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming, and those dollars turn over in local communities, pushing the regional economic impact to about $70 million a year. Five percent of Yellowstone visitors would not come to Yellowstone were it not for the presence of wolves; the possibility of seeing wolves is one reason 48% of visitors come to the area. Almost 3,000,000 people make recreational visits to Yellowstone each year. In the little town of Ely, Minnesota, wolf-related tourism provides $3 million to the area.

Overall, wildlife watching is growing as a major economic force, while hunting and fishing income is in decline.

Wolves and Livestock

Wolves are responsible for less than 1 percent of all livestock losses.

According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, wolves are responsible for less than one percent of all livestock losses in the northern Rockies. In fact, all predators combined are the lowest cause of sheep and cattle mortality.

In Wyoming in 2006, more heads of cattle were stolen and poisoned than were killed by wolves. Sheep losses caused by predators in Wyoming have been on a consistently downward trend since 1996.

The Idaho Department of Fish and Game and USFWS data show that 105,000 cows and calves died in Idaho in 2005 (not including those slaughtered at market). Only 20 of these cattle losses were wolf-related. Wolves are responsible for less than 0.2 percent of all cattle losses in Idaho. According to the state of Idaho, in 2006 wolves killed 173 sheep in the state of Idaho.

According to Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, confirmed sheep losses decreased significantly from 2005 to 2006 from 33 to four. There were 32 confirmed cattle deaths in Montana in 2006. While a total of only 36 sheep or cattle were killed by wolves, 53 wolves were killed to prevent further predation on livestock.

All three Northern Rockies states have acknowledged that livestock losses are not a significant issue overall and are borne by only a handful of ranchers -- most of who are compensated for their losses.