Wolves could stem explosion of Isle Royale moose herd, says Michigan professor

A new federal report out of Michigan says managers are leaning towards relocating a large number wolves to Isle Royale.

The draft report, released last week, includes four options for stopping the rapid decline of wolves on the remote Lake Superior island.

Rolf Peterson, a researchprofessor with Michigan TechnologicalUniversity, has studied the predator-prey relationship on Isle Royale for decades.

Peterson said the moose numbers are exploding on the island, while there may beas few as two wolves left.

He said the reportspreferred option would make the largest impact on the eco-system in the shortest period of time.

Bring wolves to the island, then 'back off and letit roll'

"Their preferred alternative is to introduce a bunch of wolves, quite a few wolves, as quickly as possible," Peterson said, "and then back off and let it roll."

The report - that leans towards relocating up to 30 wolves on the island over three years -is good news,Peterson said, but not a guarantee it will happen.

And even if the preferred plan gets the go ahead, it will still be a couple years before any wolves are reintroduced to the island, he said.

Peterson said in the mean time, without predation from wolves, the moose population could double.

He said this could create a situationwhere the moose don't have enough available food.

"(the moose) will be well up in to the low thousands," saidPeterson."Where things get pretty dicey in terms of moose survivaland food supply. "

Peterson said a final decision on what to do will be made after a 90-day public comment period.

"It's a good plan from the standpoint that they seem committed to doing something and getting on with it expeditiously," Peterson said, "but it's still just a plan. What counts is paws on the ground, really."

Isle Royale is a National Park, and no hunting of mooseis permitted.