National Wolfwatcher Coalition Quarterly Report

National Wolfwatcher Coalition Quarterly Report..Summer 2011

The Board and Officers of the National Wolfwatcher Coalition wish to thank all our followers for their continued  support. We also wish to positively acknowledge the following environmental groups for making a positive contribution to wolf conservation:

• Alliance for the Wild Rockies | NREPA  http://www.wildrockiesalliance.org/ ;  Friends of the Clearwater http://www.friendsoftheclearwater.org/  ; WildEarth Guardians http://www.wildearthguardians.org/    for filing an appeal of Judge Molloy’s decision in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.  We also acknowledge their bold action in filing for an emergency injunction to stop the imminent wolf hunts in Idaho and Montana.
• Center for Biological Diversity http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/  Western Watersheds Project http://www.westernwatersheds.org/  and Cascadia Wildlands http://www.cascwild.org/  for filing an appeal in 9th Circuit Court of Appeals and called for an expedited hearing to halt the wolf hunts in the Rockies.
• Friends of Animals http://friendsofanimals.org/   for hosting a wolf rally in Washington DC and its subsequent coverage on the Headline News Network (HLN), “Issues with Jane Velez Mitchell.”

Upcoming Plans:

1. Executive Director Dave Hornoff and Secretary Diane Bentivegna will be visiting the Wolf Conservation Center on Aug. 26th to update the status of their two newest ambassador wolf pups and to meet with Board member Maggie Howell and College Outreach Coordinator Adam Markey to discuss current wolf news and upcoming events.

3.     Executive Director Dave Hornoff  will heading out to Yellowstone in late September to speak with several wolf biologists, members of the National Park Service and others about wolf issues in the Northern Rockies.

They also plan to be “boots on the ground” to document the status of Yellowstone’s wolf packs during these stressful times as well as the impact of the proposed wolf hunt in Montana.  Since local and regional news sources tend to be unreliable when it comes to reporting the facts about wolves, Marc and Dave will be providing documentation from the field.

4.   Dave Hornoff and Board member and Managing Director of the Wolf Conservation Center, Maggie Howell, are planning on traveling to Las Cruces, New Mexico in December to explore the status of Mexican gray wolves in the Southwest.  Meetings have been arranged with Elke Duerr (documentary filmmaker, teacher and Mexican

gray wolf  and wildlife advocate), Maggie Dwire  (biologist for the US Fish and Wildlife Service working on the Mexican Wolf Recovery Program at the Mexican Wolf Release Center), Jean Ossorio (notable environmentalist and Mexican gray wolf advocate),  the representatives of Trap Free New Mexico:  Karen and Ray Hackey, and  with Wendy Keefover-Ring, Carnivore Protection Director from  WildEarth Guardians.

5.     Secretary Diane Bentivegna will be hosting an informational table at the Long Island Wolf Expo on Oct. 2nd to inform citizens about the challenges to wolf conservation and recovery in the nation.  In addition, several Lords of Nature seminars are in the planning stages for Long Island/NY area schools, libraries and nature clubs.

6.     Treasurer Cindy Overton, Dave Hornoff and Chris Cross are working on the final arrangements for a NWC store which will sell t-shirts and other items to support our efforts on behalf of wolf conservation.  So, please keep us in mind for back-to-school and holiday shopping.   Cindy is also accepting and managing donations to the organization.

7.     As our NWC outreach coordinator to universities and colleges, Adam Markey will be hosting a presentation by the Wolf Conservation Center and Atka, the ambassador wolf, at the University of Rhode Island’s Wildlife Society in the fall.  Adam will be engaging other students in universities and colleges across the nation to participate in educational forums that promote wolf awareness.

8.     NWC Board will continue to circulate the NWC Petition to encourage President Obama’s veto of HR 2584 (the Interior Dept.’s Appropriations bill). This bill contains dangerous environmental riders that will remove federal protections that ensure clean air, clean water, wild lands and wildlife. Two anti-wolf riders included in this bill propose to delist wolves in Wyoming, the Western Great Lakes, and the Southwest with “no judicial review.”

9.     NWC Board is finalizing arrangements for a strategic action plan to reach out to President Obama and representatives of Congress as the 2012 budget hearings continue which threaten cuts to wildlife conservation programs and public lands which affect wolf habitat.

As we look ahead:

• NWC’s  primary mission is to assist wolf conservation centers and environmental organizations in educating the general public about the value of the wolf as an apex predator and encouraging its support of wildlife conservation initiatives.   Arrangements are in the planning stages for hosting an upcoming event that will assist us in furthering this important objective.
• Although we appreciate and support the efforts of fellow wolf advocacy groups, our Board continues to assess the pros and cons of promoting an economic boycott of the three states – Montana, Idaho and Wyoming.  During these difficult times for wildlife, we feel it is important to encourage Americans to visit national parks to learn more about wolves so that they can truly appreciate the serious nature of what is at stake when it comes to pending delisting legislation and other threats to wolf recovery.   We also feel that members of the National Park Service, wildlife biologists and naturalists across the nation depend on our interest and our support to keep wild public lands and wildlife protected for future generations. We will continue to explore and assess the best practices that promote wolf advocacy as we move ahead.

•            The National Wolfwatcher Coalition also wishes to thank the excellent Advisory Board  members made up by Kristi Lloyd , , Daniel Sayre, Elke Duerr , Jim Mital, Karen Hackey, and Adam Markey for their important contributions.  We take pride in advocating for wolves first hand and in a timely manner, and the NWC Advisory Board greatly helps to make this happen.

 Advocate, Educate, Participate

The Board, National Wolfwatcher Coalition