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From: Elizabeth Murdock, National Wildlife Federation
Category: What You Can Do For Endangered Species
Date: 4/23/99
Time: 2:21:52 PM
The population of grey wolves in the wild in the U.S. is doing very well right now. As of November 1998, there were approximately 303 wolves in the Northern Rockies area: 65 in northwestern Montana, 116 in the Yellowstone area, and 122 in central Idaho and southwestern Montana. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service set a goal to measure when wolves had "recovered": There must be at least 10 breeding pairs for three consecutive years in Yellowstone, Idaho, and Montana. The wolf population in central Idaho reached 10 pairs in 1998 — an excellent step toward recovery. There are also non-introduced wolves in Minnesota.
Humans can help all kinds endangered animals in the wild in many ways. Different species are threatened by different problems. Some, like wolves, disappear primarily because of exploitation (for example, hunting, poaching, or the illegal pet trade). Others are threatened by habitat loss or degradation. This means that the ecosystems where they live are damaged through activities like overgrazing, mining, timber cutting, damming water, introducing toxics or other pollutants, or even development that divides the habitat into sections that are too small to support the species. Some species are also threatened by exotic plants or animals that are introduced to their habitat, usually through human activity. These exotic plants might feed on species or compete with them for food and water sources.
Here are some things you can do to help:
Ø Join and support conservation organizations that help protect endangered species. Ø Help save species by saving local habitat. (You can even volunteer with local environmental and/or wildlife groups to help the endangered species near you.) Ø Never buy endangered species or products made from endangered species. Ø Spread the word to others about endangered species and their plight. Ø Become politically aware and active.
(You can learn more about saving endangered species, and even get information about helping specific species, at the Keep the Wild Alive website at www.nwf.org.)
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