April 3, 2012
Isle Royale Wolf- Moose Study shows unfortunate series of events NICOLE IUTZI Lode Writer In northwestern Lake Superior lies Isle Royale, and about 400 surrounding islands. Isle Royale was authorized by the U.S Congress in 1931. Land stretching 45 miles long and nine miles wide at the broadest point makes up the park, and 99% of that land is designated wilderness. For over 50 years, wolfmoose research has been conducted on the island. Durward Allen first began the research in 1958. Today, Michigan Tech ecologist John Vucetich leads the project with the help of retired professor Rolf Peterson who spends a great deal of time on the island. Leah Vucetich leads an internship program there in the spring. Other members of the project include Carolyn Peterson who has worked four
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decades on the project, Michael Nelson, an environmental philosopher from Michigan Technological University, Marcy Erickson, a research associate and George Desort, a pilot for the winter studies. First scientists studied the flux in moose population and the large number of moose inhabiting the
island. Wolves were then introduced to cut the numbers of moose, but wolves had already migrated to Isle Royale. An ice bridge 24 kilometers long connected the island to the mainland, allowing a mating pair of wolves to cross. The wolves flourished on the island and kept the moose population down.
Humans began to take a toll on the wolves and moose of the island. Due to climate change the ice bridge, which allowed for passage to the mainland, happened only once from 1998-2011. This hinders an already unlikely event from taking place. Also because of climate warming, winter ticks harm the moose. The moose had
lost nearly 75% of their hair at the end of the 2007 winter. This affects the wolves of Isle Royale as well. Disease was introduced to the island through humans as well. Canine Parvovirus (CPV) caused the wolf population to crash in the early 1980’s. Another disease, adenovirus, a respiratory disContinued on page 2
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