The Incredible Wolf Story of Isle Royale with Rolf Peterson

I sit down with legendary wildlife ecologist Rolf Peterson, who has spent over half a century studying the wolves and moose of Isle Royale National Park — the world’s longest-running predator-prey study. We talk about how he got his start in the 1970s, what life is like on a frozen island in Lake Superior, and what decades of data reveal about the delicate balance between wolves, moose, and forests. Rolf shares stories of flying winter surveys, tracking wolves through snowstorms, and witnessing one of nature’s most fascinating population cycles unfold before his eyes. Rolf O. Peterson: https://www.mtu.edu/forest/about/facu... More info: https://www.Wolf.org Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Rolf Peterson and Isle Royale 01:47 The Origins of the Wolf-Moose Study 05:13 Research Methodologies and Findings 10:40 Field Surveys: Aerial Techniques 17:24 Challenges of Field Work on Isle Royale 23:23 Summer Research and Volunteer Involvement 28:37 Dealing with Bugs and Outdoor Survival Tips 32:25 Unique Fauna of Isle Royale 34:41 Historical Context of Moose on Isle Royale 50:36 Dynamics of Moose and Wolf Populations 01:06:03 The Decision to Reintroduce Wolves 01:09:08 The Decline of Wolves on Isle Royale 01:12:38 Reestablishing the Wolf Population 01:16:01 Genetic Diversity and Future Concerns 01:23:17 Evolving Perspectives on Wolves 01:30:42 Research Opportunities and Future Directions Articles Mentioned in the Discussion Mooi et al. 2011: https://bioone.org/journals/copeia/vo... Vucetich 2024, Restoring Balance: https://www.press.jhu.edu/books/title... Hoy et al. 2019 Wolf Report: chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://www.michiganpublic.org/sites/... #WolvesOfIsleRoyale, #RolfPeterson, #WolfResearch, #MooseVsWolves, #PredatorPrey, #WildlifeEcology, #NationalParks, #GreatLakes, #LakeSuperior, #SciencePodcast, #NatureDocumentary, #EcologyEducation, #ConservationStories, #FieldResearch, #Wolves, #Moose, #Isleroyale, #NationalParks, #MichiganTech, #Keweenaw