MWC recently completed a successful first field season with its wolf trail cameras, despite the fact that our most expensive camera was stolen and we didn’t photograph any canids.  We did photograph numerous moose, several bears, a deer and two vultures.

Cameras were set up in three locations; a secret location in the western mountains (the owners do not want the location made known), Roxanne Quimby’s lands (the future national park) east of Baxter State Park, and The Nature Conservancy’s lands in the St. John River headwaters.  We want to thank all of the landowners for the generous use of their property for this purpose.  We hope that in the future, other landowners in Maine will come to recognize the importance of wolves and other predators in the ecosystem and will learn the truth that the presence of wolves will not negatively impact the use of their property.

Our first field season was very much a learning process.  We attempted to attract wolves at each of our three sites by putting up a scent post, spraying it with wolf urine, and applying a commercially available scent bait used by trappers to attract coyotes.  The thought behind the wolf urine was that it might attract other wolves and cause them to mark their scent.  It appears as though it may have acted as a wolf/coyote repellent as not a single canid was photographed.  In 2012, we will try again with and without wolf urine and we’ll also again try to secure one more carcasses of road killed deer to use as bait.

Our most expensive camera was set up on The Nature Conservancy land in an isolated location near Baker Lake.  I went up to retrieve the camera in September, after the first week of moose hunting.  As I was driving in to the location, I met two bird hunters who told me that a moose hunting party had the stayed in the area that week and had left the day before.  The camera was located on an overgrown tote road that someone would only find if they got out of their vehicle and walked up the road.  While we don’t know if the moose hunters took the camera, it appears likely given its isolated location and their presence in the immediate vicinity.  Next year, any of our cameras that are on lands open to moose hunting will be retrieved before the hunting season begins.

One of the most interesting experiences was having a bear chew and break off a portion of one of the signs that we affixed to the camera post.  The bear not only chewed the sign but twisted the post around so it was facing in the opposite direction, giving us several hundred photos of raspberry bushes.  The bear in these photos may have been photographed in the act.  This was the only bear photographed during the day.  All others were observed at night.

We are appealing to wolf advocates to make a donation to help replace the camera that was stolen.  The message that we want to send is that for every wolf camera that is stolen, we intend to replace one with two.  Stealing the cameras will do nothing to harm the wolves or wolf recovery and will only serve to increase our resolve to locate wolves in the Maine woods in order that they might get the protection to which they are legally entitled.  Stay tuned for 2012!

 26 September 2011

US Fish and Wildlife Service
4401 N. Fairfax Drive
MS 2042-PDM
Arlington, VA 22203

To Whom It May Concern:

Thank you for providing another opportunity to comment on the proposed rule regarding the gray wolf listing following the publication of vonHoldt et al’s 2011 article on wolf genetics.

Maine Audubon urges you to reject the proposed rule to revise the list of endangered and threatened wildlife for the gray wolf (Canis lupus) in the eastern United States and to initiate status reviews for the gray wolf and for the eastern wolf (Canis lycaon).  [Docket No. FWS-R3-ES-2011-0029; 92220-1113-111; ABC Code: C6]

Canis lycaon is not a separate species from Canis lupus so Canis lupus should not be removed from endangered species listing.

Delisting the gray wolf (Canis lupus) now while you study the status of the eastern wolf (Canis lycaon) presumes that Canis lycaon was the “historic” wolf in the east and is a different species than Canis lupus, therefore cannot be protected under endangered species listing for Canis lupus.

Recent genotyping of present and past wolves and coyotes from across the United States revealed that Canis lycaon is not a separate species but rather a wolf-coyote hybrid with more coyote genomes present than its western counterpart, most likely because eastern wolves were hunted to near extinction, and the few remaining wolves interbred with coyotes as they dispersed eastward (vonHoldt et al. 2011).

In addition, it seems likely that the wolf present in the early 1800s that was feeding primarily on moose and caribou must have been larger than the present day Canis lycaon, suggesting that the larger gray wolf (Canis lupus) inhabited the eastern U.S. before it was exterminated.

Because the gray wolf of the midwest, the eastern wolf of the northeast, and the red wolf of the southeast are all just genetic variants of Canis lupus, with more or less coyote genes mixed in (vonHoldt et al. 2011), they should all be treated as one species and protected as such under the Endangered Species Act.  This means that just because the population of wolves is healthy in Minnesota and Michigan, since that represents just a tiny fraction of its historic range in the eastern U.S., the gray wolf in this region cannot be considered recovered and should not be removed from endangered species listing.  The Minnesota and Michigan populations remain an important source for any further dispersal and colonization in the upper Midwest and even possible recovery in other eastern states.

Removing ESA protection for Canis lupus while studying the status of Canis lycaon leaves dispersing wolves with no protection.

If gray wolves are removed from listing under the Endangered Species Act for all or parts of 29 eastern states, then any wolf that disperses into the region from either Canada or the Midwest would be without any protection.  For Maine, this presents a real problem. At least seven wolves have dispersed from Canada into northeastern states during the past decade and several of these have been shot.  Dispersing wolves must be protected under the ESA to facilitate natural recovery.

Any status review of the eastern wolf and red wolf must only happen while maintaining current protections for all gray wolves under the ESA and should include a study not only of changes in genetics but changes in behaviors over time.

Eastern wolves and red wolves must not be removed from the endangered species list while a status review is conducted to better determine if they are separate species from the gray wolf.  Historical accounts of “eastern” and “red” wolves should be examined for a better understanding of how behaviors of wolves have changed over time – particularly in relation to available prey species – as a result of interbreeding with coyotes.  This may help shed additional light on whether or not to treat gray, eastern, and red wolves as different species, different subspecies, or all one species, and has implications for any future recovery efforts in the eastern U.S.  For example, it is highly likely that the Canadian eastern wolf of today is not the same as the eastern U.S. wolf of yesterday, either genetically or behaviorally, and that the Canadian eastern wolf would have a harder time competing with the eastern coyote than would the Great Lakes gray wolf, based purely on size.

Thank you for the opportunity to comment this proposed rule.

Sincerely,
Sally Stockwell
Director of Conservation

Citation:

Bridgett M. vonHoldt, John P. Pollinger, Dent A. Earl et al. A genome-wide perspective on the evolutionary history of enigmatic wolf-like canids.  Genome Research published online May 12, 2011.

Colby College student Angela Cross

From September 23-25, 2011, MWC again had a booth at the Common Ground Fair in Unity, Maine.  Some 60,000 people again visited the fair, hundreds of which visited MWC’s booth to learn about wolf recovery in the northeast.

I met many wonderful folks including Colby college student Angela Cross, an eighteen year old environmental studies major (see photo).  She and two other Colby college students interviewed me for school assignments.  A number of visitors related their stories of possible wolf sightings, the most interesting of which was a sighting in the White Mountains several years ago.  The observer documented the animal with photographs that he said he gave to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and were never returned.

We collected $120 in donations in our donation jar which more than paid the fee for having our booth at the fair.  Thank you everyone who donated and visited our booth.

Two young visitors who also donated to MWC at the fair

Maine Wolf Coalition Trail Cam

In 2010, The Maine Wolf Coalition reorganized from a membership-based organization to primarily an internet-based organization.  In doing so, we set up a PayPal account in hopes of generating the revenue needed to continue our work on behalf of wolf research, education, and protection.  We recently purchased three trail cameras (see photo) to set out in the north Maine woods to attempt to get photographic evidence of live wolves.  Our website is a powerful tool that enables us to get the latest word about wolves in the northeast out to wolf advocates worldwide.

All of this costs money and none of us gets paid a dime to do the work that needs doing.  Things like driving up into the woods to set up cameras, writing testimony opposing the delisting of wolves, drafting petitions, researching the best deals for cameras and wolf attractants, talking with the press, putting together MWC’s educational display and presenting it at various events, writing articles for the website, and going to public hearings are all things that we do not for any money, but for our love and appreciation of wolves.  All of the money we receive in donations (except for a very small handling fee charged by PayPal) goes directly to MWC’s work, whether that is paying for the website, purchasing cameras, or renting booth space at the Common Ground Fair.  In addition to the time we donate, a good percentage of the money spent e.g. camera batteries, photo memory chips, gasoline, postage, computer time, wolf display, etc. comes from our own pockets.

We are a very small, very committed organization and we need your financial help to keep going.  We have been in existence since 1994 so we’ve been at this awhile.  If you support wolves and their return to the northeast, if you believe that northeast wolves need an organization to advocate on their behalf, if you think that there needs to be a watchdog to hold the state and federal governments accountable for their actions/inactions regarding wolves, if you appreciate getting periodic updates with regard to northeast wolf recovery, or if you want to play a part in wolf recovery in the northeast, then the wolves need your financial support.  If you want to avoid the small fee charged by PayPal, you can donate by check to: The Maine Wolf Coalition, Inc., 30 Meadow Wood Drive, South China, ME 04358.  If you ever want to discuss northeast wolf recovery and what we do, we’d be happy talk via email at jglowa@roadrunner.com or via telephone at (207)445-2360.  The Maine Wolf Coalition, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) federal tax exempt non-profit corporation and all donations are tax deductible.  Only with your continued support will we able to continue this important work.  We and the wolves thank you.

Eastern wolf in/near Ontario’s Algonquin Park

On May 5, 2011, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service published a proposed rule that would eliminate federal protection for wolves in the northeast because the Service now says that the gray wolf is not native to all or parts of 29 states including all of the northeast U.S.  In its proposed rule, the USFWS provided no evidence to support its claim that gray wolves are not native to the northeast.  Instead, the USFWS is now recognizing the eastern wolf (Canis lycaon) as the wolf that is native to the northeast.  If enacted, the rule would eliminate federal protection for wolves throughout the central and eastern U.S.

In the proposed rule, the USFWS announced initiation of a status review for the eastern wolf throughout its range in the U.S. and Canada.  They are not at this time proposing to list the eastern wolf as endangered or threatened, but state that they will evaluate it “for possible protection under the Act in the near future.” Any such listing may be years away, if ever, given the huge backlog for listing other species.  The immediate effect of this rule will be to remove any protection for wolves in spite of the growing evidence that they are returning to the northeast.  The proposed rule contains no mention whatsoever of the documented wolves that have been killed in the northeast over the past several decades.  Likewise, it says nothing about wolf biology in the northeast including the fact that much of northern New England was a wolf/moose/caribou ecosystem well into the 19th century and that the lack of white-tailed deer in much of this region would have favored the gray wolf over the smaller eastern wolf.  While the eastern wolf has been physically documented to have been native to the northeast, the lack of physical evidence of gray wolves having lived here in the 19th century is not proof that they are not native here, as well.  In fact, based upon the biological evidence, it is likely that northern New England was an area where the range of both wolf species overlapped.

We urge and encourage you to comment on the proposed rule.   You can do so via the internet, in writing, or in person.  A public hearing on the rule will be held on June 8, 2011 at the Augusta Civic Center in Augusta, Maine.

UPDATE:

The State of New York Department of Environmental Conservation has submitted comments strongly critical of the USFWS proposed rule including their continuing efforts to remove protections for wolves in the northeast U.S.   See their letter and the comments from Dr. Roland Kays here.

SECOND UPDATE:

Maine Audubon testifies against wolf delisting

In a letter dated September 26, 2011  the Maine Audubon Society submitted written testimony urging rejection of the proposed rule.  In testimony submitted by Sally Stockwell, Maine Audubon opposes de-listing the gray wolf in the northeast U.S. for several reasons including: (1) the eastern wolf is not a separate species from the gray wolf; (2) de-listing the gray wolf now presumes that it was the “historic” wolf in the northeast and removes federal protection; (3) recent DNA evidence indicates that the eastern wolf is actually a wolf/coyote hybrid; and, (4) because the historic presence of moose and caribou in the northeast it is likely that the larger gray wolf (Canis lupus) was historically present here as well.

The Maine Wolf Coalition, Inc. thanks Maine Audubon for their testimony and for their support of wolf recovery in the northeast.

In March 2011, MWC received an email from an outdoor columnist which stated in part, “IFW trapped and radio-collared a female wolf near Mt. Katahdin several years ago.  When they released her they followed her for a week and stopped the monitoring when she crossed the Canadian border in Vermont.”  This was the first that MWC had heard of this animal, and while we do not know the veracity of this report, on March 13, 2011 we sent a letter to MDIFW Commissioner Chandler Woodcock http://www.maine.gov/IFW/ asking to see any information related to this animal.  We received no reply, so on April 27, 2011, we sent another request, this time via certified mail.

While we don’t know if, in fact, a female wolf was captured and radio-collared by MDIFW, if the report proves true, it would be additional evidence of the return of wolves to the northeast U.S.  Regardless of the accuracy of the report, MDIFW is required to respond to our Freedom of Access request by either allowing or denying it, and as of May 15, 2011, had failed to do so.  On March 16, 2011, we also submitted a Freedom of Information Act request regarding this alleged wolf to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and we are awaiting a reply.

UPDATE: We recently received written responses from both the USFWS and MDIFW stating that there are no records of this occurrence.

Legislative Update:
 
LD 101 which would have created a coyote snaring program was killed by unanimous vote in the legislative committee.  The bill was unanimously killed not because all committee members oppose coyote snaring, but because of a several years old consent agreement in which the State of Maine agreed not to allow coyote snaring unless the federal government issues an Incidental Take Permit for lynx.  That ITP has yet to be issued.

LD 927 would allow an expansion in night hunting for coyotes to year-round.  The committee voted Ought Not To Pass by a vote of 7-3.  The three legislators who supported the bill did so in spite of opposition from the Maine Dept. of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife due to concerns about the fact that it would make enforcement of deer night hunting laws unenforceable.  This bill will now go to the full legislature for a vote.  Because a majority of the committee voted ONTP, passage by the full legislature is unlikely.

UPDATE: LD 927 was amended and signed by the governor into law.  Instead of allowing nught hunting of coyotes year-round, it allows the MDIW Commissioner to “appoint agents to hunt for coyotes at night using artificial illumination from September 1st to December 15th.”  The concern expressed by the department during the committee dealt solely with the potential for hunting deer at night while claiming to be hunting coyotes.

LD 372 would request $200,000 from the state’s general fund for “coyote control”.  The bill was unanimously supported by the committee in spite of the fact that: (1) no amount of money will result in coyote control; and, (2) science has shown that the more coyotes are killed, the more they reproduce.  It appears doubtful that the legislature will authorize the full $200,000 due to other budget concerns.

2011 Maine Wildlife Appreciation Day

The Maine Wolf Coalition participated in the sixth annual Maine Wildlife Appreciation Day at the State House Hall of Flags on Tuesday, March 15.  MWAD had perhaps its biggest crowds ever as numerous legislators, schoolchildren and other members of the public looked at the various exhibits which included a live saw whet owl and an eastern box turtle.  It was an excellent opportunity to educate the public about the importance of living wildlife to Maine’s economy and ecosystem.  MWC’s Education and Outreach Coordinator Meredith Kellogg staffed our newly redesigned display.  The guest speaker for the event was Michael Good, president of Down East Nature Tours.

2011 Coyote Control Contest - 136 coyotes tagged

State Rep. L. Gary Knight (R) of Livermore Falls is sponsoring L.D. 1072, An Act to Establish a Coyote Bounty Permit.  The bill would establish a $40 permit making the permittee eligible to collect coyote bounties, establish coyote registration stations, and pay a $10 bounty for each coyote registered.  The bill does not state where the bounty money would come from or how much the program will cost.  It also does not state what impacts, if any, it will have on the coyote population or on Maine’s deer herd.  Anyone wishing to express their opinions to Rep. Knight can do so via email at LGary.Knight@usa.net or by home telephone at (207) 897-2489.

Legislative Update:

The legislative committee voted 8-3 Ought Not To Pass.  The bill will now go on to the full legislature.

MWC will participate in Wildlife Appreciation Day

Maine’s sixth annual Wildlife Appreciation Day will be held Tuesday, March 15, 2011 from 8 A.M. till 1 P.M. at the State House Hall of Flags in Augusta. MWAD is sponsored by the Wildlife Alliance of Maine. The Maine Wolf Coalition will again be in attendance with new education & outreach coordinator Meredith Kellogg on-hand to staff the booth and answer questions. Meredith is putting together a new booth for MWC so this year’s MWAD will be its inaugural event.

Other organizations participating in this year’s MWAD include: Friends of Merrymeeting Bay, RESTORE: The North Woods, Maine Friends of Animals, Humane Society of the United States, Endangered Species Coalition, Down East Nature Tours, Aerie East with Dr. Jim Parker, and WAM. Dr. Parker will bring a live raptor and Michael Good, President of Down East Nature Tours will give a presentation regarding the importance of living wildlife to Maine’s ecosystem and economy.

Governor Paul LePage has been asked to sign a proclamation officially making March 15, 2011 Maine Wildlife Appreciation Day and he has been asked to read it in the Hall of Flags. We are still waiting for the Governor’s response. Former Governor John Baldacci issued MWAD proclamations for 2006-1010. Given his advocacy for jobs in Maine, we are hopeful that Gov. LePage will recognize the importance of living wildlife and protection of wildlife habitat and the jobs that they support. We are also waiting to hear from the Maine Dept. Inland Fisheries and Wildlife and the Maine Dept. of Marine Resources regarding whether or not they will attend.

We urge every one to come to the State House in Augusta on March 15, to show their support for living wildlife and wildlife watching in Maine!