The Wolves of Mount McKinley

by Adolph Murie

In the time of Lewis and Clark, wolves were abundant throughout North America from the Arctic regions to Mexico. But man declared war on this cunning and powerful animal when cattle replaced the buffalo on the western plains, reducing the wolf's range to those few areas in the Far North where economic necessity did not call for its extinction.

Between 1939 and 1941, Adolph Murie, one of North America's greatest naturalists, made a field study of the relationship between wolves and Dall sheep in Mount McKinley National Park (since renamed Denali National Park) which has come to be respected as a classic work of natural history. In this study Murie not only described the life cycle of Alaskan wolves in greater detail than has ever been done, but he discovered a great deal about the entire ecological network of predator and prey.

The issues surrounding the survival of the wolf and its prey are more important today than ever, and Murie helps us understand the careful balance that must be maintained to ensure that these magnificent animals prosper. Originally available only in government publications which are long out-of-print, this account of a much maligned animal is now available in its first popular edition.

Genres: Wolves, Nonfiction, Nature, Natural History, Biology, Outdoors, Environment

238 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1944

About the author

Adolph Murie, the first scientist to study wolves in their natural habitat, was a naturalist, author, and wildlife biologist who pioneered field research on wolves, bears, and other mammals and birds in Arctic and sub-Arctic Alaska. He was also instrumental in protecting wolves from eradication and in preserving the biological integrity of the Denali National Park and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

Reviews

[Mary Russell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the least boring naturalist book I’ve ever read! Okay, underwhelming phrase.. but in all honesty, this is not my area of expertise. I am not an upper-level educated naturalist and these types of books are not my go-to. My degree is in recreation, I am a hiking guide and I get to spend a lot of time in the home range the animals mentioned in this book. I read this book because I needed to beef up my knowledge of the animals. I AM SO GLAD I CHOSE ADOLPH MURIE. The book is so much more than just wolves. He includes individual chapters on each of the big 5 as well as some other small critters in the park to truly give you a sense of the sub-arctic ecosystem as a whole. He did an impressive amount of research in his short time in the park but understood the limitations of his information and chose to pull in more observations from outside sources (rangers, miners, pioneers, etc). He humbly explains that his theories on animal behavior are just that and in understanding something one year might completely change the following year when other variables are thrown in (which is probably one of the most exciting things about these diverse ecosystems). I still don’t have a full grasp on these incredible animals but I sure did learn a lot.

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Follow-up to "American Wolf" where this was referenced several times.

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book stands as a classic of field literature. Murie’s fieldwork continues to inform wolf biology to this day and his findings from his time spent in Denali National Park remain relevant 80 years later. This book explores not only the behaviors and life histories of wolves in the park, but the interrelatedness of those wolves with the other species that persist on that landscape. The details are often somewhat overwhelming and the reader may get lost in the weeds of dates and specific events but overall, typos and all, this is an interesting read that I would recommend to anyone interested in wolves, wolf biology, and the relationship we have with that species today especially considering the current political climate toward threatened species and the often bias influence that politics has in steering wildlife management alternatives.

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading this while also getting the news about P-22 in California was really interesting, how far we’ve come in figuring out how to live with predatory wildlife and how far we have yet to go. Especially as Murie’s advice to let the wolves be as they help keep the Dall sheep and caribou populations manageable was not followed and most of the wolves were later trapped and killed.

The data is a little dry in places and the edition I read was in newspaper column formatting which led to a lot of eye fatigue but definitely a must read for those interested in our National Parks and the wildlife therein.