A view of the wolves in southeast Michigan

One of the wolves at the Detroit Zoo.

It appears Royal Oak has as many wolves as Isle Royale does now.

My wife and I stopped in at the Detroit Zoo this afternoon, a place we've grown to love in recent years. We stopped in at feeding time near the gray wolves and wanted to share one of the few animals there at the zoo that are found natively here in Michigan.

Wolves have captured my emotions for many years, starting with my 2005 trip to Isle Royale. I still remember hearing the wolves howling in the distance during the night we spent at McCargoe Cove. I've watched with close eyes on developments surrounding Michigan's wolves, including the studies down on Isle Royale in relationship to the wolf/moose population, as well as the short-lived hunting season the state enacted several years ago.

These wolves were brought to the zoo almost 11 months ago and can be found in the very back near the kangaroos. It appears the white wolf is a eight-year-old female, and the darker-colored wolf is six-year-old male. They both share a larger, two-acre space in the zoo designed specifically for them and were brought in from a zoo in Minnesota. They are both native to Canada.

Nothing pales in seeing wildlife in its natural habitat, something I haven't completely experienced when it comes to wolves. But to just get a glimpse of their majestic walk is enough to keep my imagination moving, as was the case this afternoon. 

A collection of wolf photos taken April 17, 2016 from the Detroit Zoo.

A collection of stories on Michigan's wolf hunt

The total count of wolves harvested after three days
of the season.

As of the morning of Nov. 18, six wolves have been harvested in Michigan's Upper Peninsula as a part of the first-ever wolf hunt this state has seen. But the hunt has been widely criticized by many, saying the wolves don't need to be hunted because the case made for the hunt had been falsified by state leaders. Proponents of the hunt, including the director of Michigan's Department of Natural Resources, say the dangers wolves pose to humans and livestock are enough to push forward with the hunt.

The hunt allows for a small number of wolves to be harvested in three areas: near Ironwood in Gogebic County, a portion of land surrounding Houghton spanning four counties and another area spanning parts of Mackinac and Luce counties.

No more than 43 wolves can be taken during the season.

I've said it before: I'm not a hunter, nor do I live in the areas with wolves in the woods. I've had one indirect experience with wolves, hearing them howl on Isle Royale when I visited in 2005. My day-to-day life is not affected by this hunt or the decision to start the hunt. But the issue has sparked so much controversy in this state that it's worth sharing some of what's been written. I myself curated some content on the discussion for the wolf hunt this time last year as it was being debated.

MLive wrote a weeklong series on the wolf hunt, talking to U.P. residents nearby and examining some of the claims being made for the hunt. I have not had the chance to read it all yet, but the series looks at a wide range of topics. You can find most of them here.

Before the wolf hunt opened, a vigil was held in Mount Pleasant, my former home for four years while attending college. The vigil was put on by the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe, who believe the wolf is a "brother" and shares a history with the Native Americans that have resided in Michigan.

The outdoors editor for the Toledo Blade in Ohio penned a nice piece on the hunt, talking to several people regarding the hunt and providing a nice, out-of-state viewpoint.

One of the big names people will recognize in all this talk is southeast Michigan native and rocker Iggy Pop, who has written a letter to Gov. Rick Snyder asking him to halt the hunt.

And one of the more visual images comes in the form of this Detroit Free Press video, which talks to the man who harvested the first wolf (albeit off camera) and shows the wolf in the pickup truck. It's some very real imaging and worth a watch (Disclosure: I work for the same company that owns the Free Press).

I'm on the lookout for any inspiring pieces on this hunt. If you find any interesting stories, I'd love to see them.

Lansing State Journal profiles dwindling Isle Royale wolf population

Every few months, I stumble across a post on the wolf-moose relationship found on Isle Royale in Lake Superior. I've seen these pieces in publications such as The New York Times and typically take the time to read them throughout.

But one recently caught my eye that has exceeded the rest: This piece by the staff at the Lansing State Journal, entitled "Silence of the Wolves." This piece reads like an interactive magazine, complete with courtesy and staff photos, narrative storytelling and a video, which is well worth the nearly seven-minute watch:

 This is a great read and worth the time to spend on it (Disclosure: I work for Gannett, the same company that owns and operates LSJ). It details the struggles of the wolf population in recent years, which has dwindled because of a lack of mating and genetic diversity on the island located in Lake Superior. More information on the wolves relationship with moose on the island can be found on this page, Wolves and Moose of Isle Royale.

Isle Royale, as I've written before, holds a special place in my heart from the trip I took there in 2005. We ran into several moose on the island, but never a wolf. I can still remember, though, hearing the wolves howl one night while staying at McCargoe Cove on the island's north side. It's a sound tough to forget, and hopefully won't be one that goes extinct at the park.

Should we hunt wolves in Michigan?

Should people be able to hunt these creatures? Some Michigan lawmakers
are looking at that possibility.
(Flickr photo by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Midwest Region)

Have you ever seen a wolf?

I haven't, but I've heard their howls while up north on Isle Royale. They recently came off the endangered species list here in Michigan, and now some lawmakers are toying with the idea of opening a wolf hunting season.

With rifle season beginning today, most hunters are in their blinds this morning, waiting for 8-point bucks to come out. But soon, they could be looking for the elusive wolf, and I'm curious to see where most people stand on it.

Wolves in Michigan came off the endangered in January, allowing for more flexibility when dealing with wolves that threaten a human or livestock. While still listed as "protected," more wolves are beginning to flock and breed in the Upper Peninsula. Estimates place this number near 700 wolves.

With their recent removal and growth, a senator from Escanaba, Republican Tom Casperson, recently introduced legislation that would allow for some hunters to kill the wild dogs. The bills has cleared a Senate committee and currently faces the full Senate. State Rep. Matt Huuki, R-Atlantic Mine, introduced similar legislation in the state House.

If approved, the bill calls for resident licenses to hunt wolves to cost $100, and would place restrictions on how many wolves could be harvested.

But some folks aren't pleased with the move, notably several Native American tribes. From Michigan Radio:

Many of the Indian tribes in Michigan are opposed to this legislation right now, and that's primarily because they feel the wolf has a special status for them. It figures importantly in many of their creation stories. They consider the wolf to be a brother or part of their kin.

Wolf hunts have officially started for the first time in Minnesota earlier this month, and hunters have almost filled the state's designated quota. Almost 200 wolves have been harvested in Minnesota since it started Nov. 3, the quota for the first half of the season.

I am no hunter or a farmer, so I have little to offer in experience. Wolves don't seem to be the type of creatures I would hunt, most notably because they aren't something I (or several other people) would eat; the hunt is primarily for the sport and the fur.

Should this be something that gets looked at closer? And should we allow for wolf hunting in our state? 

UPDATE: The Michigan Senate approved the legislation allowing for gray wolves to be hunted today, Nov. 29, by a vote of 23-15.

Scientist blogging his experience studying wolves and moose on Isle Royale this winter

While perusing New York Times' science site, one would find some blog posts that speaks to the heart of most outdoors men in this state: Scientist John Vucetich writing about the environment and habitat of the wildlife on Isle Royale.

Michigan's most-prized outdoor gem, Isle Royale is an isolated ecosystem, being 54 miles from the Michigan shoreline and 6 miles from Canada, it has a unique blend of wolves and moose on the island.

The blog posts are an inside look at the island, the only national park not accessible to visitors during the winter. They read like journal entries, but still are informative.

I remember seeing several moose on the island when I was there in 2005. No wolves, but I do remember hearing them howl when we were camping at Chickenbone Lake. Incredible creatures. I don't have any photo albums from that trip in my apartment where I'm writing this, but I do plan to share some in the future (the photo up top was found via Flickr).

Meanwhile, take a look at the posts written by Vucetich here.