Rare Alaska wolf may get Endangered Species Act protection
Rare Alaska wolf may get Endangered Species Act protection
By Louis Sahagun
6:21 p.m. CDT, March 28, 2014
Federal authorities announced Friday that the geographically isolated Alexander Archipelago wolf of southeast Alaska’s Tongass National Forest may need protection under the Endangered Species Act to survive the impact of logging, hunting and trapping in its old-growth habitat.
Populations of the rare subspecies of gray wolf are in steep decline in portions of the heavily logged region, where they den in the root systems of western hemlock and Sitka spruce and hunt black-tailed deer, which also rely on the ancient trees to shield them from harsh winters.
The wolf, which scientists know as Canis lupus ligoni, relies on the deer for 90% of its diet during the winter months.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is expected to determine within a year whether protecting the wolf as endangered or threatened is warranted.
More:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/health/la-sci-sn-alaska-wolf-protection-20140328,0,2664089.story
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