For millions of people around the world, the image of wolves running free through Yellowstone National Park has become the ultimate symbol of the American wilderness. The release of thirty-one Canadian gray wolves in 1995 and 1996-arguably the most controversial feat of conservation in our nation's history-sparked a new-found passion for these remarkable animals and the unbound lands that sustain them.
Few were prepared for the outpouring of emotion sparked by the reintroduction of these wolves, and for the changes that came, both in the land and in the minds of men, with that experiment. For the first time, Douglas Smith and Gary Ferguson recount the first ten years of this historic endeavor. The journey of the wolves themselves and the people who faithfully followed them through the wilds of Yellowstone make for unforgettable reading.
Here are intimate details about the lives of these animals, including wonderful stories about survival and family dynamics. Smith and award-winning nature writer Gary Ferguson weave together never-before-published scientific discoveries with spell-binding tales of the wolves' behaviors. The wolves have not only survived, but completely changed the ecosystem, spilling a fresh measure of wild across the world's first national park. . DECADE OF THE WOLF serves to mark the end of the opening act of this inspired, often tumultuous tale of preservation.
Chapter 1. A Passion for Wolves
Chapter 3. A Paradise Called Yellowstone
Chapter 5. Filling the Wilds with Wolves
Chapter 6. The Coming of the Wolf Watchers
Chapter 8. This Feast of Science
Chapter 9. The View from Sixteen Years Out