Glacier Country News

Mark Hebblewhite, a professor of ungulate habitat ecology at the University of Montana, reflects on 30 years since the reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone National Park. In 1995, Hebblewhite was tracking gray wolves in Canada's Banff National Park using radio collars. At the same time, 14 Canadian wolves were being relocated to Yellowstone as part of a federal initiative approved by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Hebblewhite's research focuses on wolf pack dynamics and their impact on prey populations. He notes that Yellowstone's wolves have developed large extended families due to protection from hunting within park boundaries. "It’s like an extended family dinner," he said. "There’s grandparents and cousins and aunts and uncles and step-siblings."

The presence of older wolves is crucial for hunting success, especially against larger prey like bison. Elk remain the primary prey species in Yellowstone, with their numbers halved since the reintroduction of wolves. "Thirty years out, it’s impossible to conclude anything but that wolves have had an impact on elk numbers," Hebblewhite stated.

Hebblewhite compares predator-prey dynamics in Yellowstone with other locations such as Banff and Isle Royale National Park. He emphasizes the complexity of Yellowstone's ecosystem: "Because there are multiple predators and multiple prey, the impacts of any one predator on the whole system are going to be weaker than if it were just an island with wolves and elk."

The long-term study by the Yellowstone Wolf Project provides unique insights into wolf populations. Hebblewhite highlights UM's history in wolf research dating back to 1982 when Professor Bob Ream initiated studies in northwest Montana.

Jeremy SunderRaj, a former student of Hebblewhite now working with the Yellowstone Wolf Project, underscores the importance of public education about wolves: "Education is one of the most important things we do with the project because we have a platform."

As they celebrate 30 years since reintroduction, Hebblewhite and SunderRaj plan new research on elk calf survival rates in Yellowstone's Northern Range. This study aims to assess changes over decades amid stabilized predator populations.

"There’s a lot of really exciting projects coming along with the Yellowstone Wolf Project," SunderRaj remarked.