Wolf Conservation Center 

                                                          CC: Dina Wuest   

This past summer I had the privilege of being a summer intern at the Wolf Conservation Center in South Salem, New York, and it was one of the most incredible experiences of my life. The Center makes up 28 acres, and with 28 wolves on site it is one of the best places to learn about these amazing creatures. With 4 Wolves being Ambassador Wolves, these are the wolves who interact with people and would not be released back into the wild. The role of the Ambassador Wolves is to show people through all sorts of interactions and methods that wolves are nothing like the perception we have of them. When you see three wolves running around together playing, interacting with little campers, and showing one another affection it really is impossible not to look at them with awe and respect.

I think that is how we are going to get to the point we need to as a civilization when it comes to how we look at conservation. Human beings look down at other animals, or at least don't give them the respect and time that they deserve. Wolves are nearly perfectly adapted to their environment all over the world, varying from the Frozen Tundra to the Deserts of the American Southwest. They are social creatures like us, with a complicated system of hierarchy, and most importantly for their conservation I believe, they care about one another. There are cases all over of Wolves seemingly mourning for the lose of one their own, and it doesn't get much closer to how Humans react when we lose a loved one. I have seen a Red Wolf pack right after the lose of a pup, and their behavior is completely different. They seemed distraught, confused, and upset, and it was gut wrenching to watch. With great teamwork and compassion for one another Wolves are able to survive all sorts of challenges all over the world, but the constant pressure from humans could be the thing that drives them towards extinction. 

Wolves have reestablished a fraction of their former populations in Western United States thanks to the restoration programs that we believed in once upon a time. However, from constant hunting, urban sprawl, and still plagued by the misconception as blood thirsty killers, they need our help now more than ever. In Alaska we see Wolf hunts being authorized when over half the population of Wolves in the area has been killed in the previous years hunts. With methods like this, their fate seems to be doomed, but if we are able to move past the medieval notion that wolves are evil, maybe we could one day see Wolves roaming free back across the United States all across their once natural habitat that we pushed them out of. 

When we look back at ourselves in fifty years, what are we going to see? Are we going to see a primitive society that just killed off animals because they scared us or were an inconvenience to us? Or are we going to see a culture that showed the basic respect to an apex predator than all animals deserve. An apex predator that we need by the way, and without them we saw one of our national treasures change for the worst during their absence. Yellowstone National Park is healthier than it was without wolves, and it could be the same all across the United States if we just moved past this vendetta that humans have always had against wolves. Before it is too late, let's all do the simple act of just thinking about why we need Wolves, and if that isn't reason enough for you, think how we will be seen by the generations to come when they see what we did to our fellow beings.