"wolves will go where the bison are" - Chief Jimmy St. Goddard (Ee-Suk-Yah)

Humans, being lazy by nature, tend to think that given the choice between cows and bison, wolves would favor the slow, dumb ones.  But we've never given them that choice.  Since wolves co-evolved with bison, I tend to think Chief Jimmy knows what he is talking about.

The wolf management issue de jour tends to be viewed in isolation from its ecology.  There are some who believe restoring bison to Montana's landscape is not only the right thing to do, but will also go a long way toward resolving conflicts between wolves and livestock and elk since bison and wolves co-evolved, and bison were one of the wolves primary protein sources.

Last year, WWP's Montana office premiered "Lords of Nature" in Montana, a film documenting the importance of top predators like wolves to healthy ecosystems.

This year, two films are being presented with a panel discussion Oct 25th:

1.  "Facing the Storm" the new documentary from High Plains Films that will be premiering nationally on PBS at a later date.  According to the filmmakers, the film shows that the American bison is not just an icon of a lost world, but may very well show us the path to the future."

sidenote:  DNA Tests Indicate Yellowstone National Park Elk, Not Bison, Most Likely to Spread Brucellosis    source

2.  "The Wolf That Changed America" A remarkable story about a wolf bounty hunter named Ernest Seton's transformation at the hands of Lobo, the wolf he was hired to track and kill in New Mexico in 1893. Seton was so changed by the ordeal that he became a global advocate for wolves and helped spearhead America's wilderness movement.  To view and dowload a Nature comic book version for yourself click here. 

source: The Wildlife News