MYTH: Wolves from Canada were used for reintroduction to central Idaho and Yellowstone so they aren't native.
REALITY: The wolves that currently inhabit Canada once historically inhabited the central and western United States, live in similar habitat and rely on the same food source. Since wolves were exterminated in the western region of the lower 48, capturing animals from Canada as a source population was actually
the ideal match.
.DETAILS: Reintroduced wolves are often incorrectly called "Canadian" wolves however, biological and genetic research provides evidence of only two subspecies of wolves inhabiting the central and western portions of the United States, both of which moved freely across the Canadian border. Other taxonomists reject the subspecies theory, believing that the same wolf species lived in both the western U.S. and Canada. When selecting wolves for release into central Idaho and Yellowstone, biologists chose wolves in Canada that were already preying on elk and living in habitat similar to that of Idaho and Wyoming. A few wolves have even made the trip on their own. In 1991, a GPS collared wolf traveled from Banff National Park, Alberta to British Columbia, down to Browning, Montana then southwest past Coeur d'Alene, Idaho into Washington state and back to her home territory traveling an area of about 40,000 square miles in less than three years. While this is an extreme example, several wolves have dispersed hundreds of miles in just a few weeks. Source: Lukens, Jim. Idaho, eleven years with wolves what we've learned. News release, Idaho Department of Fish and Game, April 25, 2006. Mech, L.D. and L. Boitani, editors. 2003. Wolves: behavior, ecology and conservation. University of Chicago Press. Wandering Wolf Inspires Project, 5/23/2006 New York Times.
MYTH: Idahoans don't want wolves in the state.
REALITY: According to a statewide poll conducted by Boise State
University in 2003, slightly more Idahoans support having wolves in the
backcountry than are opposed to them.
DETAILS: 42% of Idaho residents said that we should have wolves in the
wilderness and roadless areas in the state while 39% disagreed. Source:
