ecology

ECS 110 - P

Lecture 07 - HUMAN- WILDLIFE CONFLICTS

SPRING 2019

 ReCAP of WOLF ECOLOGY

 OPPOSITION TO WOLVES

 END OF THE WILD possibilities

Species Description: Canis lupus

Length: 5.0-5.5 feet long (including 15-19 inch tail)

Height: 2.5 feet high

Weight: 50-100 pounds/average for adult males is 75 pounds, average for adult females is 60 pounds.

Domain: Eukarya

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Mammalia

Order: Carnivora

Suborder: Caniformia

Family: Canidae

G. Fischer de

Waldheim, 1817

Wolves delisted in 2009

Re-introduction

was successful,

and wolves were

moving out of

Yellowstone Park

Hunting permits

generate

revenue fot

states to support

wildlife

management

WOLVES CAME BACK AND ELK POPULATIONS

DECLINED, WHY?

 Could the introduction of wolves right before a

period of severe winters be contributing to the low

game counts?

 Can wolf hunting offset losses in revenue from the

elk hunting?

 Can the costs of elk feeding be reduced, and these

feeding sites eliminated?

 What is the wildlife carrying capacity for the area?

WILDNESS, WILDERNESS

Defined in US Wilderness Act of 1964 as

“ an area of the earth were natural

communities of life are untrammeled by

man, where man himself is a visitor who

does not remain – retaining its primeval

character and influence…

CAN WOLVES EXIST IN A FRAGMENTED

LANDSCAPE?

TWO SOURCES OF CONFLICT WITH

WOLVES

 Depredation on Cattle, particularly calves or

mothers giving birth

 Data show that bears are more often predators on

cows giving birth (and they also prey on bison calves

and mothers)

 Depredation on sheep, especially on groups of

sheep using summer pastures at high altitudes

 Fencing and dogs can help, but sheep must be brought

into shelters for lambing.

Western Wolf

Coalition offers

solutions to wolves

preying on

livestock.

Ranchers will get

paid for lost

livestock, but

predation by

wolves is

challenging to

prove

Wolves are changing the way that ranchers use public land,

and resulting in better range (grass) management.

Certain breeds of dog can be trained to protect

livestock and deter wolves

SIMPLE FLAG FENCING CAN BE USED IN SOME AREAS

TO DETER WOLVES

SO WE ARE AT THE END OF THE WILD IN THE

AMERICAN WEST, WHAT IS OUR OBLIGATION

TO PROTECT NATURE AND NATIVE SPECIES THAT

REMAIN…

• LAWS AND LEGISLATION

• SUSTAINABLE TOURISM INITIATIVES

• CLIMATE CHANGE AGREEMENTS

• CONFLICT RESOLUTION BETWEEN

STAKEHOLDERS

INNOVATIONS IN COMPATIBLE LAND USE

• RECYLCING REQUIRED, but some recycled

material still dumped in Wyoming

• REQUIREMENT for sustainable food sources and

local food sources by concessions

• GRAZING RIGHTS easements

• NON-LETHAL TOOLS for wolf management –

changing old ways – Western Wolf Coalition

 Increased human population

 Destruction/Fragmentation of Habitat

 Pollution

 Climate Change/Global Warming

Extinctions caused by humans are generally considered to be a recent phenomena …HOWEVER

Major fauna changes occurred in Australia and North America shortly after the arrival of humans

Top Human Causes of Extinction

END OF THE WILD?

 With the extinction rate at 3000 species a year and accelerating, we can now predict that as many as half of the Earth's species will disappear within the next 100 years. The species that survive will be the ones that are most compatible with us: the weedy species—from mosquitoes to coyotes— that thrive in continually disturbed human-dominated environments.

THE BIODIVSITY CRISIS IS OVER, and WE

HAVE LOST..

• We have not been able to save species

from extinction except in a few cases

• Conservation has been the luxury of wealthy

countries

• Weedy and invasive species have

irreversibly changed the ecology of the

planet

• Time for a reality check and there is still

value in moving forward….

YOU TUBE BREAK

END OF THE WILD – ARE WE DRIVING THE WORLD

OF DIVERSITY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awZMAnKXCGk

ESSAY #7 IS THIS THE END OF THE WILD?

Will the biodiversity and ecosystem functions of

the GYE persist for the next 200 years or

Are there too many conflicts for wildlife to

survive?