Is science in danger of sanctifying the wolf?

Biological Conservation

Volumn 150, Issue 1, 2012, Pages 143-149

  David Mech, L ^a  

^a U S GEOLOGICAL SURVEY   (United States)

Author keywords

Banff; Canis lupus; Elk; National parks; Predation; Trophic cascades; Wolf; Yellowstone

Indexed keywords

ANTHROPOGENIC EFFECT; BEHAVIORAL RESPONSE; BROWSING; CANID; DECIDUOUS TREE; DEER; ECOSYSTEM DYNAMICS; EXTINCTION; FOOD WEB; HYDROLOGICAL CHANGE; MOVEMENT; NATIONAL PARK; POPULATION DECLINE; PREDATION; PREDATOR-PREY INTERACTION; RANGE SIZE; REGROWTH; REINTRODUCTION; RODENT; SONGBIRD; SPECIES CONSERVATION; TROPHIC CASCADE; VEGETATION DYNAMICS;

ALBERTA; BANFF; CANADA; MIDWEST; ROCKY MOUNTAINS; UNITED STATES; YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK;

ANIMALIA; CANIDAE; CANIS FAMILIARIS; CANIS LUPUS; CASTOR CANADENSIS; CASTORIDAE; CERVUS ELAPHUS; PASSERI; POPULUS; SALIX;

EID: 84860509178     PISSN: 00063207     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2012.03.003     Document Type: Article

References (92)

1. Abrams P.A. Foraging time optimization and interactions in food webs. Am. Nat. 1984, 124:80-96.
2. Ballard W.B., Carbyn L.N., Smith D.W. Wolf interactions with non-prey. Wolves: Behavior, Ecology and Conservation 2003, 259-271. University of Chicago Press. L.D. Mech, L. Boitani (Eds.).
3. Barber-Meyer S.M., Mech L.D., White P.J. Elk calf survival and mortality following wolf restoration to Yellowstone National Park. Wildl. Monogr. 2008, 169:1-30.
4. Beschta R.L. Cottonwood, elk, and wolves in the Lamar Valley of Yellowstone National Park. Ecol. Appl. 2003, 13:1295-1309.
5. Beschta R.L., Ripple W.J. Large predators and trophic cascades in terrestrial ecosystems of the western United States. Biol. Conserv. 2009, 142:2401-2414.
6. Beschta R.L., Ripple W.J. Mexican wolves, elk, and aspen in Arizona: is there a trophic cascade?. Forest Ecol. Manage. 2010, 260:915-922.
7. Beyer H.L., Merrill E.H., Varley N., Boyce M.S. Willow on Yellowstone's Northern Range: evidence for a trophic cascade?. Ecol. Appl. 2007, 17:1563-1571.
8. Bilyeu D.M., Cooper D.J., Hobbs N.T. Water tables constrain height recovery of willow on Yellowstone's Northern Range. Ecol. Appl. 2008, 18:80-92.
9. Boitani, L, 2003. Wolf conservation and recovery. In: Mech, L.D., Boitani, L. (Eds.). Wolves: Behavior, Ecology, and Conservation. Univ. of Chicago Press, pp. 317-340.
10. Brown J.S., Laundre J.W., Gurung M. The ecology of fear: optimal foraging, game theory, and trophic interactions. J. Mammal. 1999, 80:385-399.
11. Buskirk S.W. Mesocarnivores of Yellowstone. Carnivores in Ecosystems: the Yellowstone Experience 1999, 165-188. Yale Univ Press, New Haven, Connecticut. T.W. Clark, A.P. Curlee, S.P. Minta, P.M. Kareiva (Eds.).
12. Carpenter S.R., Kitchell J.M., Hodgson J.R. Cascading trophic interactions and lake productivity. Bioscience 1985, 35:634-639.
13. Chadwick D. Wolf wars. Nat. Geo. Mag. 2010, (March).
14. Crabtree R.L., Sheldon J. The ecological role of coyotes on Yellowstone's Northern Range. Yellowstone Sci. 1999, 7:15-23.
15. Creel S., Christianson D. Wolf presence and increased willow consumption by Yellowstone elk: implications for trophic cascades. Ecology 2009, 90:2454-2466.
16. Creel S., Winnie J., Maxwell B., Hamlin K., Creel M. Elk alter habitat selection as an antipredator response to wolves. Ecology 2005, 86:3387-3397.
17. Dambrine E., Dupouey J.L., Laut L., Humbert L., Thinon M., Beaufils T., Richard H. Present forest biodiversity patterns in France related to former Roman agriculture. Ecology 2007, 88:1430-1439.
18. Despain, D., 2005. Alternative hypothesis for willow growth. In: Proceedings of the 8th biennial scientific conference on the greater Yellowstone ecosystem. Yellowstone Nat. Park, Wyoming.
19. Donlan C.J., Berger J., Bock C.E., Bock J.H., Burney D.A., Estes J.A., Forman D., Martin P.S., Roemer G.W., Smith F.A., Soule M.E., Greene H.W. Pleistocene rewilding: an optimistic agenda for twenty-first century conservation. Am. Nat. 2006, 168:660-681.
20. Eberhardt L.L., White P.J., Garrott R.A., Houston D.B. A seventy-year history of trends in Yellowstone's Northern elk herd. J. Wildl. Manage. 2007, 71:594-602.
21. Eisenberg C. The Wolf's Tooth: Keystone Predators, Trophic Cascades, and Biodiversity 2010, Island Press, Washington, DC.
22. Estes J.A., Duggins D.O. Sea otters and kelp forests in Alaska: generality and variation in a community ecological paradigm. Ecol. Monogr. 1995, 65:75-100.
23. Estes J.A., et al. Trophic downgrading of planet Earth. Science 2011, 333:301-306.
24. Foley J.A., et al. Global consequences of land use. Science 2005, 309:570-574.
25. Fortin D., Beyer H., Boyce M.S., Smith D.W., Duchesne T., Mao J.A. Wolves influence elk movements: behavior shapes a trophic cascade in Yellowstone National Park. Ecology 2005, 86:1320-1330.
26. Fritts, S.H., Stephenson, R.O., Hayes, R.D., Boitani, L., 2003. Wolves and humans. In: Mech, L.D., Boitani, L. (Eds.), Wolves: Behavior, Ecology, and Conservation. Univ. of Chicago Press, pp. 289-316.
27. Garrott R.A., Gude J.A., Bergman E.J., Gower C., White P.J., Hamlin K.L. Generalizing wolf effects across the Greater Yellowstone Area: a cautionary note. Wildl. Soc. Bull. 2005, 33:1245-1255.
28. Garrott R.A., White P.J., Rotella J.J. The Madison headwaters elk herd: transitioning from bottom-up regulation to top-down limitation. The Ecology of Large Mammals in Central Yellowstone - 16Years of Integrated Field Studies 2009, 489-517. Elsevier Acad. Press, New York. R.A. Garrott, P.J. White, F.G.R. Watson (Eds.).
29. Gude J.A., Garrott R.A., Borkowski J.J., King F. Prey risk allocation in a grazing ecosystem. Ecol. Appl. 2006, 16:285-298.
30. Hairston N.G., Smith F.E., Slobodkin L.B. Community structure, population control, and competition. Am. Nat. 1960, 94:421-425.
31. Hebblewhite M. Predation interacts with the Northern Pacific Oscillation (NPO) to influence western North American elk population dynamics. J. Anim. Ecol. 2005, 74:226-233.
32. Hebblewhite, M., Smith, D.W., 2010. Wolf community ecology: ecosystem effects of recovering wolves in Banff and Yellowstone National Park. In: Musiani, M., L. Boitani, L., Paquet, P.C. (Eds.), The world of wolves: new perspectives on ecology, behaviour and management. Univ. of Calgary Press, Calgary, Alberta, pp. 69-120.
33. Hebblewhite M., White C.A., Nietvelt C.G., McKenzie J.A., Hurd T.E., Fryxell J.M., Bayley S.E., Paquet P.C. Human activity mediates a trophic cascade caused by wolves. Ecology 2005, 86:2135-2144.
34. Johnston, D. B., Cooper, D.J., Thompson Hobbs, N., 2011. Relationship between groundwater use, water table, and recovery of willow on Yellowstone's Northern Range. Ecosphere 2(2)cart20. doi: 10.1890/ES10-00150.1.
35. Kauffman M.J., Brodie J.F., Jules E.S. Are wolves saving Yellowstone's aspen? A landscape-level test of a behaviorally mediated trophic cascade. Ecology 2010, 91:2742-2755.
36. Kay, C.E. 2001. Long-term aspen enclosures in the Yellowstone ecosystem. In: Shepperd, W.D., Binkley, D., Bartos, D.L., Stohlgren, T.J., Eskew, L.G., (Compilers), Sustaining aspen in western landscapes: symposium proceedings. Proceeding RMRS-P-18, USDA Forest Serv. Rocky Mountain Forest and Range Exp. Sta., Fort Collins, Colorado, pp. 225-240.
37. Klein, D.R., 1995. The introduction, increase, and demise of wolves on Coronation Island, Alaska. Page 275-280. In Carbyn, L.N., Fritts, S.H., Seip, D.R. (Eds.), Ecology and conservation of wolves in a changing world. Canadian Circumpolar Institute, Edmonton, Alberta, pp. 275-280.
38. Laundre J., Hernandez W.L., Altendorf K.B. Wolves, elk, and bison: re-establishing the " landscape of fear" in Yellowstone National Park. USA Can. J. Zool. 2001, 792:1401-1409.
39. Leopold A., Sowls L.K., Spencer D.L. A survey of over-populated deer ranges in the United States. J. Wildl. Manage. 1947, 11:162-183.
40. Liley S., Creel S. What best explains vigilance in elk: characteristics of prey, predators, or the environment?. Behav. Ecol. 2007, 19:245-254.
41. Lung M.A., Childress M.J. The influence of conspecifics and predation risk on the vigilance of elk (Cervus elaphus) in Yellowstone National Park. Behav. Ecol. 2007, 18:12-20.
42. McLaren B.E., Peterson R.O. Wolves, moose, and tree rings on Isle Royale. Science 1994, 266:1555-1558.
43. Mech, L.D., 1966. The wolves of Isle Royale. Nat. Parks Fauna Ser. No. 7. US Govt. Print. Office.
44. Mech L.D. The Wolf: The Ecology and Behavior of an Endangered Species 1970, Natural History Press. Doubleday Publ. Co., New York.
45. Mech L.D. The challenge and opportunity of recovering wolf populations. Conserv. Biol. 1995, 9:270-278.
46. Mech, L.D., 2002. Aldo Leopold: conservationist and hunter. In: Knight, R., Riedel, S. (Eds.), Aldo Leopold and the Ecological Conscience, Oxford University Press, pp. 150-157.
47. Mech, L.D., Boitani, L., 2003. Wolves: Behavior, Ecology, and Conservation. University of Chicago Press.
48. Mech, L.D., Karns, P.D., 1977. Role of the wolf in a deer decline in the Superior National Forest. USDA Forest Serv. Research Rept. NC-148, North Central Forest Experiment Sta., St. Paul, Minnesota.
49. Mech L.D., Peterson R.O. Wolf-prey relations. Wolves: Behavior, Ecology, and Conservation 2003, 131-160. Univ Chicago Press. L.D. Mech, L. Boitani (Eds.).
50. Mech, L.D., Frenzel, L.D., Jr., Karns, P.D., 1971. The effect of snow conditions on the ability of wolves to capture deer. In: Mech, L.D., Frenzel, L.D., Jr. (Eds.), Ecological studies of the timber wolf in northeastern Minnesota, USDA Forest Service Res. Paper NC-52. North Central Forest Experiment Sta., St. Paul, Minnesota, pp. 51-59.
51. Melis C., et al. Predation has a greater impact in less productive environments: variation in roe deer, Capreolus capreolus, population density across Europe. Global Ecol. Biogeo. 2009, 18:724-734.
52. Morrell V. Aspens return to Yellowstone with help from some wolves. Science 2007, 317:438-439.
53. Muhly, T.B., 2010. Direct, indirect, and predator-mediated effects of humans on a terrestrial food web: implications for conservation. Ph.D. Dissert. Univ. of Calgary, Alberta.
54. Naiman R.J., Melillo J.M., Hobbie J.E. Ecosystem alteration of boreal forest streams by beaver (Castor canadensis). Ecology 1986, 67:1254-1269.
55. NRC [National Research Council], Ecological dynamics on Yellowstone's Northern Range 2002, Nat. Acad. Press, Washington, DC.
56. NRS [National Research Council] Wolves, Bears, and their Prey in Alaska: Biological and Social Challenges in Wildlife Management 1997, Nat. Acad. Press, Washington, DC.
57. Oakleaf J.K., Mack C., Murray D.L. Effects of wolves on livestock calf survival and movements in Central Idaho. J. Wildl. Manage. 2003, 67:299-306.
58. Peterson R.O., Allen D.L. Snow conditions as a parameter in moose-wolf relationships. Nat. Can. 1974, 101:481-492.
59. Peterson R.O., Ciucci P. The wolf as a carnivore. Wolves: Behavior, Ecology, and Conservation 2003, 104-130. Univ Chicago Press. L.D. Mech, L. Boitani (Eds.).
60. Peterson R.O., Thomas N.J., Thurber J.M., Vucetich J.A., Waite T.A. Population limitation and the wolves of Isle Royale. J. Mammal. 1998, 79:828-841.
61. Ray J.C., Redford K.H., Berger J., Steneck R. Is large carnivore conservation equivalent to biodiversity conservation and how can we achieve both?. Large Carnivores and the Conservation of Biodiversity 2005, 400-427. Island Press, Washington, DC. J.S. Ray, K.H. Redford, R.S. Steneck, J. Berger (Eds.).
62. Ripple W.J., Beschta R.L. Wolves and the ecology of fear: can predation risk structure ecosystems?. Bioscience 2004, 54:755-766.
63. Ripple W.J., Beschta R.L. Linking wolves to willow via risk-sensitive foraging by ungulates in the Northern Yellowstone ecosystem. Forest Ecol. Manage. 2006, 230:96-106.
64. Ripple W.J., Beschta R.L. Restoring Yellowstone's aspen with wolves. Biol. Conserv. 2007, 138:514-519.
65. Ripple W.J., Beschta R.L. Trophic cascades in Yellowstone: the first 15 years after wolf reintroduction. Biol. Conserv. 2012, 145:205-213. 10.1016/j.biocon.2011.11.005.
66. Ripple W.J., Larsen E.J., Renkin R.A., Smith D.W. Trophic cascades among wolves, elk and aspen on Yellowstone National Park's Northern Range. Biol. Conserv. 2001, 102:227-234.
67. Robbins J. Lessons from the wolf. Sci. Am. 2004, 29:84-91.
68. Schwartz C.C., Haroldson M.A., White G.C., Harris R.B., Cherry S., Keating R.A., Moody D., Servheen C. Temporal, spatial, and environmental influences on the demographics of grizzly bears in the greater Yellowstone ecosystem. Wildl. Monogr. 2006, 161:1-68.
69. Sikes D.S. Influence of ungulate carcasses on coleopteran communities in Yellowstone National Park 1994, Montana State Univ, Master of Science thesis.
70. Singer, F.J. 1996 (Ed). Effects of grazing by wild ungulates in Yellowstone National Park. Technical Report NPS/NRYELL/NRTR/96-01. USDI NPS Natural Resource Program Center, Denver, Colorado.
71. Singer F.J., Harting A., Symonds K.K., Coughenour M.B. Density dependence, compensation, and environmental effects on elk calf mortality in Yellowstone National Park. J. Wildl. Manage. 1997, 61:12-25.
72. Smith C.C., Reichman O.J. The evolution of food caching by birds and mammals. Ann. Rev. Ecol. System. 1984, 15:329-351.
73. Smith D.W., Tyers D.B. The beavers of Yellowstone. Yellowstone. Science 2008, 16:4-15.
74. Smith D.W., Peterson R.O., Houston D.B. Yellowstone after wolves. BioScience 2003, 53:330-340.
75. Soule M.E., Estes J.A., Berger J., Martinez del Rio C. Ecological effectiveness: conservation goals for interactive species. Conserv. Biol. 2003, 17:1238-1250.
76. Soule M.E., Estes J.A., Miller B., Honnold D.L. Strongly interacting species: conservation policy, management and ethics. Bioscience 2005, 55:168-176.
77. Terborgh J., Estes J.A. Trophic Cascades: Predators, Prey, and the Changing Dynamics of Nature 2010, Island Press, Washington, DC.
78. Terborgh J., Winter B. Some causes of extinction. Conservation Biology: an Evolutionary-Ecological Perspective 1980, 119-133. Sinauer Associates, Sunderland, Massachusetts. M.E. Soule, B.A. Wilcox (Eds.).
79. Tyers D.B. Moose population history on the Northern Yellowstone winter range. Alces 2006, 42:133-149.
80. US Fish and Wildlife Service Endangered and threatened wildlife and plants; reissuance of final rule to identify the Northern rocky mountain population of gray wolf as a distinct population segment and to revise the list of endangered and threatened wildlife. Fed. Reg. 2011, 76(87):25590-25592.
81. US Fish and Wildlife Service Endangered and threatened wildlife and plants; proposed rule to revise the list of endangered and threatened wildlife for the gray wolf (Canis lupus) in the Eastern United States, Initiation of status reviews for the Gray Wolf and for the Eastern Wolf (Canis lycaon). Fed. Reg. 2011, 76(87):26086-26145.
82. Varley N., Boyce M.S. Adaptive management for reintroductions: updating a wolf recovery model for Yellowstone national park. Ecol. Model. 2006, 193:315-339.
83. Vitousek P.M., Mooney H.A., Lubchenco J., Meillo J.M. Human domination of Earth's ecosystems. Science 1997, 277:494-499.
84. Vitousek P.M., Aber J.D., Howarth R.W., Likens G.E., Matson P.A., Schindler D.W., Schlesinger W.H., Tilman T.G. Human alteration of the global nitrogen cycle: sources and consequences. Ecol. Appl. 1997, 7:737-750.
85. Vucetich J.A., Peterson R.O. The influence of top-down, bottom-up and abiotic factors on the moose (Alces alces) population of Isle Royale. Proc. Roy. Soc. London B 2004, 271:183-189.
86. Vucetich J.A., Smith D.W., Stahler D.R. Influence of harvest, climate, and wolf predation on Yellowstone elk, 1961-2004. Oikos 2005, 111:259-270.
87. Vucetich J.A., Hebblewhite M., Smith D.W., Peterson R.O. Predicting prey population dynamics from kill rate, predation rate and predator-prey ratios in three wolf-ungulate systems. J. Anim. Ecol. 2011, 10.1111/j.1365-2656.2011.01855.x.
88. White P.J., Garrott R.A. Yellowstone's ungulates after wolves - expectations, realizations, and predictions. Biol. Conserv. 2005, 125:141-152.
89. Williams C.K., Ericsson G., Heberlein T.A. A quantitative summary of attitudes toward wolves and their reintroduction. Wildl. Soc. Bull. 2002, 30:575-584.
90. Wilmers C.C., Getz W.M. Gray wolves as climate change buffers. PLoS Biol. 2005, 3:e92.
91. Wilmers C.C., Crabtree R.L., Smith D.W., Murphy K.M., Getz W.M. Trophic facilitation by introduced top predators: grey wolf subsidies to scavengers in Yellowstone National Park. J. Anim. Ecol. 2003, 72:909-916.
92. Young S.P., Goldman E.A. The Wolves of North America 1944, Amer. Wildl. Instit, Washington, DC.