1. Conservation Management:
Yellowstone Wolf Restoration
Program & Chinese Analogy
A Presentation by:
Bryan Kuek

2. Outline
• Yellowstone Wolf Restoration Program Overview
• Economic Analysis of Human-Wildlife Conflicts
Solutions
• Chinese Analogies
• Conclusions

3. Gray Wolf in Yellowstone
• Largest member of dog
family
• Live, travel and hunt in
packs of 4-7 wolves
• Packs consist of alpha male
or dominant pair and other
subordinate wolves
• Alpha male or female lead
packs

4. History of the Gray Wolf
• Before 1900’s, flourished in
western US
• Until early 1900’s, extirpated
due to conflicts with humans,
and habitat loss
• Migration of the pioneers and
development of western US,
depleted wolves’ primary prey,
causing them to attack livestock
• Wolves were viewed negatively
as vicious predators that
needed to be eradicated

5. Historical Range

6. Current Range

7. The Debate

8. Recovery and
Reintroduction
• 1966- Wolf reintroduction first proposed to Congress because of
increasing elk numbers in Yellowstone. Met opposition by many
ranchers.
• Early 1980’s- The Northern Rocky Mountain Wolf Recovery Team
was formed by the USFWS.
• 1987- Defenders of Wildlife offered “Wolf Compensation Fund” to
ranchers for lost livestock.
• 1995-1996- 66 Wolves from Canada were introduced into central
Idaho and Yellowstone

10. Reintroduction Outcome
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: http://www.fws.gov/mountain-prairie/
species/mammals/wolf/delist2007_ppt.pdf

11. How can we be civically engaged in the conservation
and management of gray wolf?

12. Human-Wildlife Conflict
(HWC)
• Catalysts: loss of human life,
livestock and crop
• Results: a negative outcome
for humans, wildlife or both
• Solutions: preventative &
mitigation measures: such as
financial compensation, law
enforcement, self-financed
insurance schemes

13. Economic Analysis

14. Economic Justification for Wolves
1. Overpopulation of elk
• Overgrazing by elk was harming other
ecosystems
2. Reintroducing wolves increases
biodiversity
• Park visitors would increase, thus
increasing revenue

15. Economic Problems with Wolves
1. Reduced elk and other large
ungulate (bison/deer) hunting
opportunities
2. Wolves would kill livestock of
nearby farmers
• Economic loss through
compensation

16. Methods Used to Make Decisions
1. Hunting elk, animal viewing, existence value for wolves are
non-market
2. Hence, surveys were conducted
3. Results of surveys: Wolves are the 2nd most favorite animal
to view by visitors. An estimated 105,424 visitors in 2005
would not have visited the park if it had 0 wolves.

17. Survey Details
1. 2 surveys: One for Yellowstone park visitors, and one for
regional and national households

18. Outcome 1: Increased Spending

19. Compensation: Verifying Damages
• Sometimes there is lack of evidence that an animal
was killed by a wolf: Under-compensation
• Sometimes the farmers make false claims or
overstate losses (the value of the lost sheep)

20. Compensation: Incentives
• Providing full insurance for losses may cause
farmers to reduce spending on protection like guard
dogs and fences
• Insurance can also encourage more people to
become farmers for unprofitable things, because
they are compensated well

21. Outcome 2: Compensation for Livestock

22. Outcome 3: Loss of Elk

23. Comparison

24. • Problem: grassland degradation
caused by hunting wolves
• Purpose: grassland restoration
• Measures: introduction of eastern wolf
• Result: the recovery of cottonwood
and water resources
Yellowstone National Park

25. Russian Leopard
• Problem: many subspecies of large
cats are endangered
• Purpose: facilitate a substantial
recovery and increase in the number
of individuals in the wild
• Measures: reintroduce program
• Result: the number of leopard
steady increases

26. Asian Elephant
• Problem: illegal hunting and the habitat
alteration and reduction, elephants
become aggressive toward humans
• Purpose: improve elephant’s habitat
• Measures: hunting ban, promote the
use of methane gas for fuel purposes,
Compensation
• Result: humans’ attitudes towards
elephant become more friendly, forests
increase

27. Economic Loss and Corresponding
Compensation Payment in China

28. Conclusions
• Human-wildlife conflict is a complex issue and there is no ‘one
size fits all’ solution
• Compensating farmers for damage caused by wildlife has been
tried as one effective solution around the world
• Key determinants of success for compensation method include
accurate verification of damage, incentive issues

29. Thank you for listening!