Scientific Webinar Library

DIRE WOLVES: THE LAST OF AN ANCIENT NEW WORLD CANID LINEAGE

The Wolf Conservation Center hosted Dr. Angela Perri on February 25, 2021 at 2:30 PM EST for a discussion about about the evolution of dire wolves and their potential New World origins, in contrast to the evolution of gray wolf ancestors in Eurasia.

Dire wolves are one of the most common and widespread large carnivores in Pleistocene America, yet relatively little is known about their evolution or extinction. New results indicate that although they were similar morphologically to the extant grey wolf, dire wolves were a highly divergent lineage that split from living canids around 5.7 million years ago.

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RED WOLVES: A CROSS-SECTION OF CONSERVATION CHALLENGES & RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE WOLF CONSERVATION CENTER

On September 14, 2021 at 6 pm ET, the Wolf Conservation Center's Senior Research Scientist Dr. Joseph W. Hinton hosted a webinar discussing past and present research on red wolves to illustrate how research at the WCC can be used to resolve key threats to wolves and promote recovery throughout their historical range.

Dr. Hinton summarized his past and present research on red wolves to illustrate how research at the Wolf Conservation Center can be used to resolve key threats to wolves and promote recovery throughout their historical range. Understanding and predicting how red wolves will respond to modern landscapes requires coordinated research to investigate needs of direct relevance to recovery efforts. Such research will reduce our uncertainties about wild red wolf populations, thereby improving our conservation and management of the species.

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AN HISTORICAL VIEW: A LOOK BACK AT THE RED WOLF IN LOUISIANA AND TEXAS

The Wolf Conservation Center hosted Amy Shutt of The Canid Project on September 23, 2021 at 6 pm ET for a discussion about the history of red wolves in North America.

When and why did the Red Wolf disappear from Louisiana and Texas, the last strongholds of this endemic North American species? By tracking down archival reports of the Red Wolf in Louisiana and Texas, including previously overlooked newspaper accounts and unpublished correspondence, and by compiling an atlas of all known specimens by location and date, a timeline is constructed of the disappearance of this small wolf.

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UNRAVELING THE EVOLUTIONARY HISTORY OF WOLVES IN SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA

Lauren Hennelly joined the Wolf Conservation Center on November 3, 2021 to present recent findings on the evolutionary history of wolves in South and Central Asia.

These wolves live in some of the world's highest mountains and hottest deserts. New research has now revealed that some of these wolf populations are also the most evolutionarily distinct lineages. These findings have significant conservation implications, especially regarding the Indian wolf, which represents one of the world's most endangered and oldest wolf lineages.

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THE USE OF SCENT MARKING TO FOSTER COEXISTENCE 

As wolves expand beyond the boundaries of Yellowstone National Park into the ranching landscapes of Montana, humans must adapt to their presence and learn to coexist. In an attempt to foster good attitudes and increased coexistence, Dr. Andrew Stein of the CLAWS Conservancy is exploring the use of scent marking as a deterrent for wolves in high conflict areas. By using their natural system of territorial communication, he hopes to reduce the potential for conflict and keep wolves out of harms way.
On February 13, 2020 the Wolf Conservation Center hosted Dr. Stein for a webinar about bioboundaries and nonlethal methods of coexistence.
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HOW DO WOLVES AMBUSH BEAVERS?

Beavers are important prey for wolves throughout the boreal ecosystem…but how on earth do wolves catch these semi-aquatic rodents that spend very little time on land? People have assumed that beavers must be easy prey for wolves to kill but that is almost certainly not true. For the past 5 years, the Voyageurs Wolf Project (VWP) has been studying how wolves actually hunt and kill beavers. The VWP quickly learned in 2015 that wolves mainly hunt beavers by ambushing them.
On February 26, 2020 the Wolf Conservation Center hosted Tom Gable of VWP for a webinar about the hunting patterns of Minnesota's wolves.
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RED, GRAY, AND ISOLATED: NEW DISCOVERIES OF TWO EMBLEMATIC WOLF POPULATIONS

On April 2, 2020, the Wolf Conservation Center offered a free webinar with Dr. Kristin Brzeski to introduce the history, insights, and exciting new developments surrounding two island wolf populations. Dr. Brzeski discussed the recent arrival of several gray wolves to Isle Royale National Park, her search for red wolf ancestry on Galveston Island in Texas, and how these two projects can provide new lessons from endangered canid populations found in isolated and island systems.
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NON-LETHAL WOLF AND LIVESTOCK COEXISTENCE WITH THE WOOD RIVER WOLF PROJECT

On April 30, 2020, the Wolf Conservation Center hosted Suzanne Asha Stone, cofounder of the Wood River Wolf Project - a non-lethal demonstration project with a 12 year record of minimizing wolf and livestock losses in central Idaho's "sheep superhighway" - for an informative webinar about non-lethal wolf and livestock coexistence.
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RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE GUT BIOME AND GASTROINTESTINAL HEALTH IN CAPTIVE RED WOLVES

On May 28, 2020, the Wolf Conservation Center hosted Morgan Bragg to learn how diet impacts the gut bacteria community in red wolves, and why it is important to keep the captive red wolf gut as “wild” as possible.
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WILD CRIMES: THE EXPLOITATION OF OUR WORLD'S MOST VULNERABLE ANIMALS

On June 11, 2020, the Wolf Conservation Center hosted Dr. Kim Spanjol for an exploration beyond typical notions of wildlife crime, including broader considerations of interconnected social harms that impact wildlife.
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HISTORY, IMMORTALITY, POWER, AND WILDLIFE TRADE

On July 30, 2020, the Wolf Conservation Center hosted Professor Mary Ting for a visual historical overview of the Chinese market for wildlife products. Her talk includes the relationship of wildlife trade to zoonotic diseases, illegal /legal products, role of marketing, how we got to this current point, positive changes, future concerns, and a path forward.
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WOLVES ALTER WETLAND CREATION BY KILLING BEAVERS

On November 12, 2020, the Wolf Conservation Center hosted Dr. Tom Gable of the Voyageurs Wolf Project for a look at how wolves are connected to wetland creation but, more importantly, how wolves are connected to all of the valuable ecological processes that occur from beaver-created wetlands (e.g., nutrient cycling, water storage, habitat for wildlife).
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WOLF RESTORATION IN ISLE ROYALE NATIONAL PARK

The Wolf Conservation Center hosted Dr. Rolf Peterson on November 19, 2020 at 6 PM EST for a discussion about the wolves of Isle Royale National Park.

Isle Royale is a remote wilderness island in Lake Superior and home to populations of wolves and moose that are known worldwide. These animals are the focus of the longest-running study of a predator-prey system in the wild, and Dr. Rolf Peterson, an internationally recognized wildlife ecologist at Michigan Technical University, has been at the helm of the project for over four decades.

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THE EVOLUTION AND ECOLOGY OF RED WOLVES

On January 30, 2019, in an effort to synthesize available information on red wolf evolution and ecology, and to stimulate discussion on new avenues of research and management of red wolf populations, the Wolf Conservation Center hosted Joseph Hinton, Ph.D. to present an informative webinar, "The Evolution and Ecology of Red Wolves".
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THE ROLE OF REPRODUCTIVE MANAGEMENT IN MEXICAN GRAY WOLF RECOVERY WITH CHERYL ASA, PHD

Critically endangered Mexican gray wolves roam the wilds of New Mexico, Arizona and Mexico. They also live in captivity - in conservation organizations like the Wolf Conservation Center and zoos as well. But their future may be "on ice" in cryogenic vaults where some of the most precious genes of the species are being held for future reproductive use. On March 27, 2019, Reproductive Specialist for the Mexican Gray Wolf Recovery Program Dr. Cheryl Asa offered insight into the complex, and critically important, world of Mexican gray wolf reproductive management.
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THE IMPORTANCE OF WOLVES IN ISLE ROYALE WITH DR. ROLF O. PETERSON

Isle Royale is a remote wilderness island in Lake Superior and home to populations of wolves and moose that are known worldwide. These animals are the focus of the longest-running study of a predator-prey system in the wild, and Dr. Rolf Peterson, an internationally recognized wildlife ecologist at Michigan Technical University, has been at the helm of the project for over four decades.
 On April 24, 2019, the Wolf Conservation Center offered a free webinar, "The Importance of Wolves in Isle Royale," with Dr. Rolf O. Peterson.
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RED WOLVES REDISCOVERED: RED WOLF ANCESTRY ALONG THE GULF COAST WITH DR KRISTIN BRZESKI

Only 24 wild red wolves are known to exist, but canids with red wolf genetics were recently found along the American Gulf Coast. What does this mean for future conservation actions?
On May 15, 2019, the Wolf Conservation Center offered a free webinar with Dr. Kristin Brzeski on the history of red wolf conservation and what a recent discovery of red wolf ancestry along the Gulf Coast means for future conservation actions.
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UNDERSTANDING POLICY: HOW WE PROTECT OUR MOST AT-RISK SPECIES

Have you wondered how the government makes management decisions for wolves and other wildlife? Do you want to stay on top of new environmental legislation but don’t know where to look? Perhaps you’ve heard of the Endangered Species Act, but aren’t sure how it works.
On April 3, 2019, the Wolf Conservation Center hosted Nadya Hall, MS, to offer a free webinar, "Understanding Policy: How We Protect Our Most At-Risk Species," to discuss how wildlife policy is developed, implemented, and amended by lawmakers and citizen advocates alike.
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GENETICS OF URBAN COYOTES IN LOS ANGELES

Coyotes are found in highly urban, suburban, rural, and undeveloped habitats. In the Los Angeles Metropolitan Area (LAMA), coyotes cluster into four significantly different genetic populations, thus providing an answer to the question "do urban coyotes differ genetically from coyotes in more rural environments?"
On July 9, 2019 Wolf Conservation Center hosted Dr. Javier Monzón to offer a free webinar about the genetic diversity of coyotes in urban areas compared to those in more forested environments.
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THE SECRET LIVES OF WOLVES IN VOYAGEURS NATIONAL PARK

The Voyageurs Wolf Project has been able to get an unprecedented look at the summer ecology of wolves in the Greater Voyageurs Ecosystem in Northern Minnesota. This research has revealed new aspects of wolf hunting behavior and shown just how variable wolf diets during the summer are.
The Wolf Conservation Center hosted Tom Gable, PhD candidate, on September 5, 2019 for a discussion about the lives of Minnesota's most elusive wolves.
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TAXONOMY, ECOLOGY, AND MANAGEMENT OF EASTERN COYOTES

During the 20th-century, coyotes (Canis latrans) colonized eastern North America and then formed 2 distinct variant populations in the northeastern and southeastern regions that are morphologically and genetically different from western populations. In the past 15 years, we have expanded our knowledge of eastern coyotes in the areas of ecology, morphology, genetics, hybridization, and efficacy of control strategies.
The Wolf Conservation Center hosted Joseph Hinton, Ph.D. on November 20, 2019 to cover our current knowledge of eastern coyotes and discuss key research and management priorities for the future.
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HIMALAYAN WOLVES: TAXONOMY, ECOLOGY, AND CONSEQUENCES FOR CONSERVATION

The Himalayan wolf is an evolutionarily distinct wolf lineage found in the high-altitude habitats of the Himalayas and Tibetan Plateau in Asia.  Learn about the Himalayan Wolf's evolutionary history, foraging ecology, unique adaptations to high-altitude living, and why researchers say there is strong evidence to reclassify the wolf as a new subspecies of gray wolf, if not an entirely distinct species altogether.
The Wolf Conservation Center hosted Geraldine Werhahn on December 12, 2019 to discuss the Himalayan wolf - the evolutionarily unique canid adapted to life on the world's tallest mountain range!
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ECOLOGY, MANAGEMENT, AND RECOVERY OF RED WOLVES IN EASTERN NORTH CAROLINA WITH JOSEPH HINTON, PHD

In an effort to broaden awareness and understanding for the red wolf recovery effort in North Carolina and the implications of a federal rule proposed in June 2018 that sought to significantly change the size, scope, and management of the current red wolf recovery program in the state, the Wolf Conservation Center extended this webinar with Joseph Hinton, Ph.D. (Recorded on July 18, 2018)

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HYBRIDIZATION DYNAMICS BETWEEN WOLVES AND COYOTES IN CENTRAL ONTARIO WITH JOHN F BENSON, PHD.

Eastern wolves (Canis lycaon) have hybridized extensively with coyotes (C. latrans) and gray wolves (C. lupus) in Ontario but little is known about the mechanisms underlying Canis hybridization. On September 5, 2018, the Wolf Conservation Center hosted a webinar with wildlife research biologist John F. Benson to discuss hybridization dynamics between eastern wolves and coyotes. Benson discussed his intensive field study in Algonquin Provincial Park (APP) and the adjacent unprotected landscape where he investigated Ontario canids, hybrid zone dynamics, wolf ecology, and canid predation.

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THE RED WOLF: DISEASE, GENETICS, AND THE FUTURE WITH KRISTEN BRZESKI, PHD

On October 23, 2018, the Wolf Conservation Center hosted a webinar with wildlife ecologist Kristin Brzeski, PhD to discuss the history, controversies, and ecology of red wolves. Brzeski presented her research evaluating disease interactions between red wolves and coyotes, discussed the importance of genetic variation, and explained how a relatively unimportant debate regarding red wolf evolutionary origins has overwhelmed conservation efforts. Given current policy initiatives and a taxonomic review, Kristin also discussed future opportunities and hurdles facing red wolf restoration.

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BEST AVAILABLE PREDATOR SCIENCE AND THE LAW WITH DR. ADRIAN TREVES

On December 18, 2018, the Wolf Conservation Center hosted Dr Adrian Treves for a special webinar, "Best Available Predator Science and the Law." Predator conservation in North America is split along several fault lines that make it difficult to restore many large carnivores to native habitats. One of the fault lines is the legal basis for U.S. predator preservation. In the webinar, Dr. Treves summarizes two views of the U.S. public trust doctrine, and compares how differently proponents of those views might make decisions with a case study of Wisconsin's gray wolves
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