The High Cost of Wandering for Wolves at Banff National Park

According to an article on the Rocky Mountain Outlook website, wolves might be built for the wild, but crossing the invisible line out of Banff National Park is where things get dicey. Earlier this year, at least three wolves from the Bow Valley pack—one of them wearing a GPS collar—were killed in legal traplines just outside the park near the Elbow River. This isn’t a surprise to researchers. A long-term study found that wolves are over six times more likely to die once they leave park boundaries due to unregulated trapping and hunting seasons in Alberta. Wildlife ecologist Mark Hebblewhite says this kind of loss keeps Banff’s wolf packs from growing into the large, multi-generational powerhouses you see in places like Yellowstone. The takeaway is that, basically without buffer zones to protect animals once they step off park property, conservation efforts hit a wall—and the wolves pay the price. However, is this a bad thing? Many believe it is….pretty sure it depends on where you stand when it comes to wolves.

Read the full article on Rocky Mountain Outlook here.