r
Today we begin ou
new unit. We will
s
discuss all the way
that cattle are
destructive and
wolves are perfect.
Stud
e
me w nts, can
you
know hat you t
abou alrea ell
t cow dy
s?
Co w
s
kick Cows trample riverbanks and
wolv
eat sapling trees, destroying
vast swaths of riparian
They have
s in e habitats. They also smell bad. stinky
fa
methane
Whoa! Okay great
answers
everyone…Akela,
no more reading
ahead.
Long ago,
wolves roamed
nearly every
corner of this
continent
This is what’s
Our territory
left of us. The
spanned Artic
only reason
tundra and
we still have
scorching
territory in
deserts. We
Canada is
traversed
because it’s
forests and
very difficult
plains alike,
for humans
and life was
and cattle to
good.
live there.
About 500 years
ago, European
settlers brought
cattle to our
utopian home and
wolves have been
losing ground ever
since.
As humans
spread
westward, so
did their herds.
They introduced
millions of this
exotic species
into new
habitats with no
consideration of
the impact.
They considered
only their
bellies.
Boo
Ranchers cleared trees and brush
to make room for cattle. They
Cows
oo! rerouted creeks and streams to su c k !
!! make it easier to water the cows.
They taste
good,
ugh
That’s right, Akela.
There are places
Now it’s time for a
all across the
vocabulary word.
country that are
Has anyone heard
unrecognizable
of a Keystone
after the cattle and
Species?
the ranchers have
had their way.
The cascade effect of
introducing all these cows
is devastating to many
species. Riverbank
destabilization leads to
accelerated erosion which
clogs waterways and kills
salmon eggs. Ripping out
the riverbank evicts the
beavers, whose dams are
also refuge to many
species. The damage is
cumulative and very bad
for everyone.
Wolves are a keystone species. The
expirtation of wolves from
Wov Yellowstone is a perfect example of You’re
les the devastating effects that
removing a keystone species has talking
! on the environment.
about
us!
Akela, perhaps
ch
you’d like to tea
the class?
Human kind doesn’t
understand our elevated
place in the hierarchy of
nature. They called us
‘bad actors’ and vowed
to exterminate us! They
succeeded in removing
us from many of our
ancestral lands.
They think they
are protecting
their food source,
but they can’t
see the long-term
effects of this
type of
“protection”.
Overgrazing of the fields As Akela mentioned,
and riverbanks did the removal of wolves
damage similar to the from Yellowstone was
overabundance of cattle. a perfect example of
Erosion accelerated and what happens when
soil fouled waterways. wolves aren’t allowed
With no shade, water to do our job. With no
temperatures rose and one to cull the elk,
fish weren’t able to their populations
thrive. exploded and they ate
everything in sight!
The humans did
Humans were forced to
not realize it yet,
try and cull the elk
themselves. Elk were but everything
shuffled from one part of they were doing
the park to another and was just a
shipped off to other pathetic attempt
parks. They begged to do our jobs for
hunters to come help kill us!
the elk. None of this was
enough to fix the
problem.
Finally, the humans
were desperate
enough to try the
one thing they
never believed they
would do. They
Wolves were setting
brought in some
wolves! things right within 5
or 6 years. It’ll take
us a while to get
back to a healthy
balance, but all we
need is for people
to leave us alone.
Wolve The example of
Yellowstone should
Everything be a lesson for the
s
in this
humans. Wolves
world is inter-
are necessary to
dependent. Fish in
Cattle canmaintain
have a the health
theBalance
streams, and
of ecosystems all
place here, too. Beef
vegetation on the
Belong
moderation
is delicious, istoo
over
but theworld.
the
prairies,
way erosion
forward of
much beef for
is both
the soil.
wolvesAlland
of these
cattle.
unhealthy for humans
things are affected
and for the land. Too
when wolves are
!
many cows causes
exterminated.
irreparable damage,
as does too few
wolves.
Wol
ves
Belo Wolves Belong!! Wolves
ng Belong!!
! !
Johnson R, Ziebell C, Patton D, Ffolliott R H. 1985. Riparian Ecosystems And Their Management: Reconciling Conflicting uses. General
Technical Report RM-120. USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Forest and Range Experiment Station. DOI:
https://doi.org/10.2737/RM-GTR-120
Ripple W and Beschta R. 2012. Trophic Cascades in Yellowstone: The first 15 years after wolf reintroduction. Biological Conservation. Vol 145:
No1 pp 205-213 .
Hermans A, Lee A, Dixon L, Halke B. 2014. Reintroduction: Ecological Mangement and the Substitution Problem. Ecological Restoration: Vol
132: No3 pp 221-228.
Lichatowich JA. 2001. Chapter 4: The Industrial Economy Enters the Northwest. Pages 89-95 in Salmon Without Rivers: A History of the Pacific
Salmon Crisis. Island Press, Washington, D.C.
Mariomassone. 2018. “North American gray wolf subspecies distribution according to Goldman (1944) & MSW3 (2005).” [Internet] Wikipedia,
San Fransisco, CA, USA. Available from:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:North_American_gray_wolf_subspecies_distribution_according_to_Goldman_(1944)_%26_MSW3_(2005).pn
g
(updated nd; accessed May 2025).
Fleischhauer C. 1979. “Arriving at Hartscrabble Field”[Internet]. Library of Congress, Washington, DC. Available from:
https://www.loc.gov/resource/afc1991021.afc1991021_44182/?r=-0.093,-0.033,1.264,0.761,0 (updated nd; accessed May 2025).
Detroit Photographic Co. ca 1898. “Colorado. ‘Round up’ on the Cimmaron”. Library of Congress, Washington, DC. Available from:
https://www.loc.gov/resource/ppmsca.17998/ (updated nd; accessed May 2025).
Wolcott M P. 1941. Untitled photo. Library of Congress, Washington, DC. Available from: https://www.loc.gov/item/2017809112/ (updated nd;
accessed May 2025).
Rice G W. ca 1882. “Arctic wolf killed near Fort Conger”. Library of Congress, Washington, DC. Available from:https
://www.loc.gov/item/2009634166/ (updated nd; accessed May 2025).
Instructor Volfie poorly drawn and watercolored by Star Vogel
Powerpoint presentation also by Star Vogel
