ISLE ROYALE NATIONAL PARK-- An Upper Peninsula wolf has joined 14 others on Isle Royale National Park.
The 70-pound, three-year-old male was captured on the mainland last week and flown by sea plane to the moose-laden island. It marks the second year of the National Park Service’s efforts to restore predation to Isle Royale after wolf numbers decreased to only two. Since last September 12 other wolves were brought from Ontario, Canada, Minnesota, and a Canadian island.
Officials say the goal this fall is to relocate four to six wolves from the U.P. to Isle Royale. They hope to ultimately bring as many as 30 new wolves to the island to balance out the 2,000 moose that are munching their way through the park.
The NPS and researchers from Michigan Technological University and State University of New York are tracking the movements of the wolves around the island. They say after just a few short months the new wolves are starting to travel and hunt together.
