Assessing Gray Wolf Reintroduction Feasibility in the Adirondack Park, New York, USA

J. Henry Fair

Paul Paquet (right), Conservation Biology Institute, Canada.

Paul C. Paquet, Conservation Biology Institute, PO Box 150, Meacham, SK S0K 2V0, Canada

The US has identified Adirondack Park, NY as a gray wolf recovery site. However, suitability of the area to support wolves is unknown. Defenders of Wildlife recognized the need for a spatially explicit analysis of wolf habitat use and movements. A systematic approach for this kind of analysis was not available, so we constructed al GIS model using information from wolf ecology studies, the scientific literature, and expert opinion. The model is based on known relationships between wolf use and elevation, slope, aspect, water, cover, prey, and human influences. We used the model to identify favorable wolf habitat, assess habitat effectiveness, and identify travel linkages necessary to sustain wolf populations. Our research efforts were confounded because of recent genetic information suggesting wild canids that historically occupied the region were not gray wolves. We identified eighteen core security areas that, depending on size, could function independently or collectively as linked habitat patches. Though our analyses suggest that the AP comprises sufficient habitat to support a small population of gray wolves, regional conditions are not conducive to sustaining wolves over the long term (e.g., 100 years). Lacking an unambiguous commitment by governments to protect wolves in and outside the Adirondack Park, we doubt a reintroduction of gray wolves could be successful.