Wildlife Weekly Wrap-Up

By Melanie Gade with contributions from Haley McKey

A Note To Our Readers: Our wolf weekly wrap-up is expanding! Now in addition to wolf updates, we’ll be sharing news about a host of different wildlife species and issues. We hope you enjoy!
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Wandering Wolf OR-7 Fathers Pups Two Years in A Row! Wildlife biologists watching OR-7 — made famous for being the first wolf to reenter northern California in 2011—and his black female companion, were right in their suspicions that the couple would soon mate! Last year OR-7 was part of the first wolf pair to successfully breed west of the Cascades in Oregon in over 100 years as he and his mate sired three wolf pups, two of which survived the winter. This week, Oregon Fish and Wildlife biologists found pup scat in the area where OR-7’s family is living, proving the couple has new pups again this year! We’re thrilled to see the OR-7’s family – which has been named the “Rogue Pack” – expand again this year! These wolves are bringing hope to advocates everywhere by showing that if given the opportunity, wolves can and will begin to reclaiming the vast historic, suitable habitat in western Oregon! We’ll be keeping our eyes on you, OR-7! Psst – Check out a short time-lapse video of OR-7’s yearlings playing in the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest … cute!

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New National Poll Finds 90 Percent of American Voters Support the Endangered Species Act: A robust majority of Americans support the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and are more likely to vote for a member of Congress who votes to uphold environmental safeguards, according to a new national poll we released this week. We know you’re not surprised by these findings, but we are hoping it gets the attention of members of Congress who continue to proposed amendments that undermine endangered species conservation and weaken the Endangered Species Act. It sure should, because this poll also found nearly two-thirds (68%) of registered voters are more likely to vote for a member of Congress who supports environmental laws. Unfortunately, members of Congress seem more interested in pleasing polluters and special interests who want to roll back environmental protections, instead of the listening to the majority of the American public.

Authorities Crack Down on Illegal Ivory Trade in Mozambique: This week, authorities destroyed over 5,000 pounds of ivory in Mozambique, the latest in a global effort to curb elephant poaching in the region. President Obama announced an aggressive plan for taking on ivory trafficking in the United States in February, 2013 but a recent amendment to the House Interior spending bill makes it even harder for the underfunded U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to crack down on the trade. We’re asking President Obama to take further steps to stop the slaughter of elephants once and for all, and you can help us by asking President Obama to crack down on the illegal trade and sale of ivory within the United States.

Public Support is High for Grizzly Reintroduction in Washington — Last fall, federal officials announced the beginning of a multi-year process to assess reintroducing grizzly bears into the North Cascades of Washington State. The current population of bears in the region is dwindling fast – researchers estimate fewer than 20 – and is considered the most threatened population of bears in the U.S. Without assistance, they are likely to die out. The North Cascades grizzly bear recovery area, one of the largest blocks of wild federal land in the lower 48 states, includes 10,000 square miles from I-90 north to the Canadian border and includes North Cascades National Park, three national forests, and seven wilderness areas. In short, it’s one of the best wild areas for grizzles left in the U.S. Defenders is strongly supportive of the Department of Interior bringing grizzlies back to the North Cascades, and so far, it looks like the public is too! In June, the National Park Service released all public comments that had been submitted to the agency about returning grizzlies to the North Cascades. Of all comments submitted, 1,474 were supportive of grizzly restoration; only 285 expressed opposition. While there is still long road ahead – a draft of proposed alternatives for restoring grizzlies to the North Cascades isn’t expected until next year – rest assured, this issue is a top priority for Defenders’ Northwest team, and we will continue to work on moving this process forward!

Defenders Advocates for Sharks and Rays in Ecuador: Defenders international conservation fellow, Rosa Indenbaum, represented Defenders of Wildlife at the 89th Meeting of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) in Guayaquil, Ecuador last week. At this year’s meeting we advocated for 5 conservation proposals for sharks and rays, and the one for the mobulid rays passed! This proposal will prohibit fisherman from keeping imperiled mobulid rays onboard fishing vessels and mandates the safe release of these species when they are caught. The other four proposals we advocated for — on hammerhead sharks, silky sharks, fins-attached requirement, and shark data gathering mechanisms — gained a lot of support at this year’s meeting, and over the next year we will continue endorsing those proposals and encouraging members of the IATTC to approve them in 2016.