Positive YouTube videos of wolves linked to..

[GoldenWolf]

Positive YouTube videos of wolves linked to greater tolerance

A new study from North Carolina State University suggests that people have more tolerance for wolves after seeing positive videos about them, which could make YouTube an important wolf conservation tool.

"One of the cool things about these results is that positive messaging was effective for changing people's views. People had more positive attitudes, greater willingness to accept wolves, and were more likely to take action to help their conservation—no matter their political identity or their age—after watching positive videos," said Nils Peterson, senior author of the study and a professor in NC State's Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources.

https://phys.org/news/2020-06-positive-youtube-videos-wolves-linked.html

[Wistman]

We need wolf reintroduction here in the Catskills.  Coyotes and human hunters simply can't control the overpopulation of white tailed deer.

I love the deer, they're my neighbors and friends, but the environment is unbalanced and needs to be fixed.  Wolves are the natural balancing measure needed.  Problem is, property and livestock owners (including pet owners) resist the reintroduction while acknowledging the problem.

It's the only way really.

[quiXilver]

Reintroducing Wolves to Yellowstone had a monumental, unforcasted cascade effect on all other species in a unilaterally beneficial manner, including Hawks, Eagles, Owls, Salmon, Trout, Elk, Deer... it also changed the courses of the local rivers.

 

Without the presence of wolves, the deer and elk could range freely along the banks of local rivers, spending as much time as they desired feeding on the tiny, fresh plants and grasses in the shallows.  This resulted in overfeeding on the edges of the banks of rivers, which had a cascade effect of negative impact.  Erosion of the banks due to the lack of rooted grasses to hold them fast, and a diminishment of the protective regions where tiny fish dwell in relative safety as they grow to maturity.

 

This diminished the presence of small fish, which negatively impacted all those who feed on fish, including the larger fish like Salmon and Trout, along with many other fish dependent species i.e. Owls, Eagles, Hawks, Bears...

 

Reintroducing Wolves altered the course of the rivers in Yellowstone in just a few years and resulted in a cascading beneficial effect across the entire region.

 

When humans allow nature to process itself, the natural balancing process emerges in clarity and effectiveness.

 

Short five minute video of the process here:

How Wolves Change Rivers

I've been a devoted advocate of Wolves and an avid supporter of their reintroduction to North American Forests for over three decades, since my college days.  My family are lifetime members of the International Wolf Center in Ely Minnesota (near where I grew up).  They do incredible work. 

Edited August 15, 2020 by quiXilver
added the last bit

[Wepwawet]

The presence of wolves is also beneficial to ravens, with whom they have an almost symbiotic relationship.

[darkmoonlady]

Oregon has a lot of cattle ranchers b****ing about wolf kills right now. Lightning kills more cattle than wolves three times over. Bring back the wolves. 

[quiXilver]

Wolverines spotted near Mount Rainier.  link to CNN article

 

This is particularly good news as they were not reintroduced by a human project but surprised Rangers with their presence.

 

Very good sign for the state of that forest...