Will Wolves Recolonize the Northeast?
A Reader Response
Editor’s Note: We received numerous comments on the articles about wolves in our last issue, which began with my argument that if it is possible to protect wolves as they migrate naturally into agricultural Denmark, then we certainly should do the same in the wilder forested landscape of New England. The most vociferous note arrived from John Glowa of Maine, who strongly asserted that wolves are already arriving here. We invited him to explain, and we continue to seek perspectives from others around the country on their experience of living with wolves. - David Foster
It all began on a Maine summer day in 1993, when a so-called “mystery beast” (Bangor Daily News, September 23, 1993) was shot north of Moosehead Lake by a bear hunter from Pennsylvania. That animal was later identified as a young female gray wolf.
This 67-pound female, and nearly a dozen other wolves and wolf-sized canids ranging in weight from 67 to 107 pounds, are known to have been killed in the northeastern United States and eastern Canada south of the St. Lawrence River over the last 30 years. The actual number of wolves killed is probably much greater.
Wolves were effectively extirpated from the Northeast by the early twentieth century. Given the extent of documented wolf range in Canada just 60 miles from New York and 75 miles from Maine—and the ability of wolves to travel great distances during dispersal—they have likely been present at least occasionally ever since.
Meanwhile, the decline in wolf populations across their range allowed western coyotes to move from their native habitat in the central U.S. Northwest to the Pacific, Alaska, and eastward. The animals that dispersed to the east—now generally known as eastern coyotes—incorporate the DNA of western coyote, wolf, and dog, and they occur throughout eastern North America.
Wolf-like canid in northern Maine, from camera trap. Photo courtesy of Maine Wolf Coalition
The gray wolf (Canis lupus) occupies nearly all of Canada. The small (44–77-pound) eastern wolf (Canis sp. cf. lycaon) lives in a narrow band across central and southern Ontario and Quebec and can easily be mistaken for a large eastern coyote. The Canadian government considers the eastern wolf to be a separate species, while the United States treats it as a subspecies of the broadly distributed gray wolf. Given its estimated minimum wild population of just 350 mature animals, restricted range, and lack of a captive breeding program, the eastern wolf may be considered North America’s most endangered wolf species.
Map of Canada showing the highly restricted range of the eastern wolf. Photo courtesy of Nature Conservancy Canada
Because of the legally threatened status of the eastern wolf, the Canadian government is required to develop a formal plan for its recovery. In the United States, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is currently developing a National Gray Wolf Recovery Plan. It is not yet known if the northeastern United States will be included as an area where wolf recovery is legally mandated.
The northeastern United States and maritime Canada have tremendous potential for natural wolf recolonization, with tens of thousands of square miles of suitable wolf habitat and abundant prey species including moose, deer, and beaver. Many large animals cross the St. Lawrence River—moose, deer, lynx, fisher, and eastern coyotes—and there is growing evidence that wolves do as well.
Legal and illegal hunting and trapping continue to be the biggest threats to wolf recovery. In Canada, hunting and trapping of eastern wolves is prohibited only on federal lands; it is legal on private and provincial lands. In the United States, the wolf is protected under the Endangered Species Act. However, there are few, if any, restrictions on coyote hunting—which can and does result in the killing of wolves, whether intentional or not.
Wolf-like canid in northern Maine, from camera trap. Photo courtesy of Maine Wolf Coalition
Although natural wolf recolonization is usually a slow process that may take decades, the presence and death of numerous animals confirms that wolves are attempting to recolonize the northeastern United States. A Maine state government biologist recently publicly stated the belief that a wolf pack will be documented in the state within 10 years.
Since 1994, the Maine Wolf Coalition has been promoting natural wolf recovery in the Northeast through research, education, and protection. We continue to advocate for a bi-national Wolf Recovery Plan because Canada has the source wolf population, and the killing of wolves in Canada reduces the population and limits the number of animals dispersing into the United States. Though charged with protecting wolves, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has made little effort to assess the status of wolves in the Northeast or to protect them.
The wolf’s success in reclaiming a significant ecological role in the northeastern United States will probably require actions on both sides of the border. In Ontario and Quebec, larger areas should be closed to wolf and coyote hunting and trapping, to allow the wolf population to grow and to allow more dispersing wolves to cross the St. Lawrence River. In the United States, eastern coyotes must have greater protection, including limits on hunting and trapping. Both the United States and Canadian governments need to enforce laws already in place to allow wolf populations to recover.
Wolf-like canid in northern Maine, from camera trap. Photo courtesy of Maine Wolf Coalition
Significant research into the status of wolves in the Northeast is needed if wolves are going to receive the protection to which they are legally entitled. The Maine Wolf Coalition began a scat collection and trail camera citizen science research project in 2019. To date, we have captured many photos and videos of wolf-like canids in Maine. In 2019, DNA from these scat collections confirmed the first live eastern wolf in Maine. Due to their similarity in appearance to coyotes, it is likely that other eastern wolves have been killed and not reported.
Federal and state agencies must move beyond the stock statement “there is no evidence of a breeding population of wolves in the Northeast” and initiate the research and planning to ensure that this does occur.
Wolves are here—let’s allow them to live and to thrive.
John Glowa has a BS in economics and an MS in public administration. He worked for 30 years as an environmental specialist for the Maine Department of Environmental Protection. In 1994 he co-founded the Maine Wolf Coalition to support wolf recovery in Maine through research, education, and protection. He ran for the Maine legislature in 2016 and 2018 and for governor in 2022, and has championed the cause of allowing wolves to migrate into the United States.