The gray wolf was present in Yellowstone when the park was established in 1872. Today, it is difficult for many people to understand why early park managers would have participated in the extermination of wolves. After all, the Yellowstone National Park Act of 1872 stated that the Secretary of the Interior shall provide against the wanton destruction of the fish and game found within said Park. But this was an era before people, including many biologists, understood the concepts of ecosystem and the interconnectedness of species. At the time, the wolves habit of killing prey species was considered wanton destruction of the animals. Between 1914 and 1926, at least 136 wolves were killed in the park; by the 1940s, wolf packs were rarely reported. By the mid-1900s, wolves had been almost entirely eliminated from the 48 states. The last wild wolves in the Park were killed in 1924 near Soda Butte In NE corner of the Park Having looked at the history information I found 1924 and 1926 to be the last date for wild wolves in the Park. The 20 year mark of the return of wolves to the Park will be in January 2015.
Posted on: Sat, 27 Dec 2014 14:26:52 +0000
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