Due to a prolonged period of abnormally high temperatures, government authorities have put a halt to the yearly wolf and moose population survey at Isle Royale National Park. This is the first time this has happened in over sixty years.

Isle Royale is an island spanning 134,000 acres (54,200 hectares) located in the western region of Lake Superior, between Grand Marais, Minnesota and Thunder Bay, Canada. The island serves as a haven for wildlife biologists, providing a unique chance to observe wolves and moose in their natural habitat without any human interference. Since 1958, researchers have conducted an annual survey of the wolf and moose population in the park. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the survey was canceled in 2021.

On January 19th, researchers from Michigan Tech University revisited the island to conduct an aerial survey of the wolf and moose populations. The project is headed by Sarah Hoy, a research assistant professor, along with forestry professor John Vucetich and retired ecology professor Rolf Peterson from Michigan Tech University.

Today, it was reported that the National Park Services put a stop to the survey and instructed all individuals to leave the island. The reason given was that the warm weather has caused the ice surrounding the island to become perilous for the scientists’ ski-planes to touch down on.

Hoy stated that the ice in the harbor was beginning to weaken, causing a decrease in depth and the emergence of holes and cracks. As a result, everyone had to evacuate, leaving the island to be inhabited by wolves, moose, and other animals. The team expressed immense disappointment at being unable to carry on with their work.

The National Weather Service reported that the temperatures in the area have remained above freezing since January 24th, which is about 20 degrees higher than the average. On Wednesday, the temperature reached 47 degrees Fahrenheit (8 degrees Celsius) in the region.

According to Hoy, helicopters are not a feasible choice due to their high rental cost and disruptive noise levels that could affect the local wildlife. She mentioned that the team may reconsider returning to the park if the temperature decreases and the ice becomes solid enough to support ski-planes once more. She also stated that the distance from the mainland to the island is too great to fly back and forth for surveying purposes.

According to Hoy, the team might use a boat to return to the park in the spring. However, conducting the survey during that time will be challenging. Hoy explained that the snow and lack of foliage in winter make it easier to track animals, but once the trees start blooming, it will be harder to spot wolves and moose.

According to the results of the 2022-23 study conducted by the scientist, the population of wolves on the island has increased to 31 from 28 in the previous year. However, the number of moose has decreased by 28%, from 1,346 to 967. The team determined that this decline is due to lower survival rates of calves, as well as instances of starvation and predation by wolves. The scientists approximated that a single wolf was responsible for killing 0.52 moose every month in the past year.

Source: wral.com