Fourteen Wolves

Reviewed By  Janet Mawdesley       June 13, 2021

 

Author  Catherine Barr, Artwork Jenni Desmond.

Distributor:      Bloomsbury Children's Books
ISBN:                 9781526628589
Publisher:         Bloomsbury Children's Books
Release Date:   May 2021  

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A Rewilding Story

Fourteen Wolves details the extremely successful regeneration of the world famous Yellowstone Park, a park which had an ecosystem that was slowly being destroyed by the enormous herds of Elk that had bred for many years without any predators to help cull their numbers.

Destruction of grounds, trees and the grasslands of the plains saw many of the species traditionally found within the Park slowly disappear, the rivers meandering without any form or shape and the bears left starving, which created another raft of issues for the Park rangers.

The Wolves, natural predators of the Elk had been culled to extinction seventy years before, but it was not until a desperate effort was mounted to reintroduce the Wolves, things began to change. In 1995 the first of the wolves was re-introduced to the Park and the rest is environmental history still in the making.

Canadian wolves were captured, then carefully transported to their new home of Yellowstone Park with all the care and attention of a very precious cargo, which they were. Kept in pens until they relearned the smells and earth feeling of their new homes before being introduced to the wild, gave them time to sort out their pack order, to bond and to begin to understand their new landscape.

After ten weeks they were set free, but it took time for them to leave the safety of their enclosure and venture forth into their new world. More than seventy years after the last wolf disappeared they were again walking on the snow covered grounds of Yellowstone Park. There was some resistance from farmers, hunters and hikers who used the area, but as time has gone on and more and more birds, animals, badgers and bears have returned to the Park, as the natural environment of the Park is rebalanced, so too has the resistance dwindled.

Feared for their intelligence, bravery and blood chilling howl on a dark night, these beautiful, intelligent creatures have shown everyone that by letting nature alone, regeneration can occur and with it comes the natural beauty and balance of the area.

At the end of the book is a biography of the fourteen wolves that were essential to the first programme of reintroduction, which is lovely to read as it details the life of each of these pioneering wolves.

Beautifully illustrated and explained in easy to read language that will appeal to a wide reading audience, the only issue is the text is particularly small, which makes reading the book a little challenging.

Fourteen Wolves – a rewilding story from Catherine Barr and Jenni Desmond is a lovely introduction to the importance of the environment, and how every species plays their part in maintaining a healthy, beautifully diverse world for future generations.