BEAUTIFUL ECOSYSTEM RENEWAL THANKS TO WOLVES

HOW WOLVES CHANGE RIVERS

Wolves are helping to save our planet! How is that possible? While humans have done a lot to damage planet Earth, and have wiped out major wolf populations, wolves are coming back and restoring ecosystems.

One place we are seeing a remarkable renewal is Yellowstone National Park, which straddles areas in Wyoming and Iowa. Wolves were once native here until hunting wiped them out.

When protections were put in place and grey wolf packs were reintroduced in the Lamar Valley, in 1995, the landscape and the wildlife became healthier. Wolves produced what is known as a "trophic cascade," as they rejoined the food chain.

Wolves keep the populations of elk and Wapiti deer in check, which, in turn, kept grazing in check, allowing native vegetation to reestablish in the park’s valleys and gorges.

Aspen and willow trees, previously heavily grazed by the elks, got suddenly a chance to grow.

And with the renewal of the grasses, shrubs, and trees, came a renewal of biodiversity, which provides food and shelter for an even larger variety of plants and wildlife.

With more trees, a variety of bird species came back to Yellowstone, as did beaver, previously extinct in the region. Beaver dams attracted otters, muskrats, and reptiles.

Wolves also checked the coyote populations, giving red fox, rabbit and mice populations a chance to revive. Ravens came back to scavenge.

Wolves also changed the rivers! The regrowth of vegetation kept riverbank erosion in check, keeping rivers more on course.

With less diverted flows, rivers deepened and formed small pools. And the microclimates along the river edges stabilized.

While wolves are given much of the credit for this ecosystem renewal, cougars and grizzlies share some of the credit.

Similar trophic cascades happen in Africa and Asia, when apex predators there are reintroduced to compromised habitats. Lions, tigers, bears, and even sharks, help to renew our world.

Check out this video, entitled "How Wolves Change Rivers," narrated by British writer George Monbiot. And check out Monbiot's full TED Talk on “rewilding.”

And keep all of this in mind when you consider environmental protection and conservation policies, which are themselves constantly under siege. Let your legislators know you care.

Read more about Beautiful Renewal in A Most Beautiful Place For Renewal Now.

And check out more beautiful things happening now in BN Arts/Design, Nature/Science, Food/Drink, Place/Time, Mind/Body, and Soul/Impact Daily Fix posts.

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IMAGE CREDITS:

1. Image: by Tambako The Jaguar. “Wolf Crossing The River.”
2. Image: by Jeremy Weber. “Brother and Sister.”
3. Image: by rwarrin. “Wolf in Lamar Valley.”
4. Image: by Katie Walters, U.S. Geological Survey. “Home on the Range.”
5. Image: by Philliz88. “Just Something Yellow in Yellowstone.”
6. Image: by Putneypics. Untitled.
7. Image: by Tambako The Jaguar. “Wolf About to Cross the River.”
8. Image: by F Delventhal. “Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.”
9. Image: by Art G. “Endangered Beauty.”
10. Image: by F Delventhal. “Firehole River.”
11. Image: by M.Ezzeddine. “Elk.”
12. Image: by Christian Collins. “Hayden Valley.”
13. Image: by BN App - Download now!
14. Image: by Tambako The Jaguar. “Wolf At The River, Again!”