LONDON: Researchers from Michigan Technological University observed only three wolves during their annual Winter Study. The three lone wolves are in one group, while last winter nine wolves were observed.
The study is part of the University’s 57th year of observing wolves and moose on the Lake Superior Island.
This year, along with the three resident wolves, scientists estimated 1,250 moose on the island and observed two visiting wolves, which came and then left across an ice bridge to the mainland.
The small wolf group is most likely made up of two adults and one nine-month-old pup, possibly the adult pair’s offspring. But unlike its pack mates, the pup does not appear healthy.
Even if the pup were healthy, it would not necessarily be a promising sign. In the case of wolves, three is not a crowd. Such low numbers make the population’s natural recovery unlikely. The wolves’ numbers started plummeting in 2009, declining since then from 24 to 3 wolves.
