About Mike Lynch

Mike Lynch is a multimedia reporter for the Adirondack Explorer. He can be reached at mike@adirondackexplorer.org. Sign up for Mike’s newsletter

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Comments

  1. Rob Bick says

    I have property at Lake Ozonia, northern Adirondacks and have seen wolves in the vicinity in the winter for decades. I do a lot of remote snowmobiling and cross country skiing and I have been in the woods my whole life and there is a marked difference between a coyote and a wolf. That difference is obvious, not speculative. Everyone up there knows there are wolves around the region. There are also Coyotes, so the comparisons in visual spotting and tracks clearly indicate the two are present.

  2. Alan G West says

    We already have a large predator in the eastern coyote, we do not need wolves. They were killed off with good reason. Some think the Yellowstone reintroduction was a success, but ask any neighboring rancher about the negative affects! Wolves are a bad idea.

    • Gail Clark says

      Isn’t it about time we stop allowing the ranching community to dictate wildlife “management” actions? “Predator friendly” ranching and farming practices work well for those willing to implement them.
      The animal in question wasn’t relocated here, they (or he) migrated to NY because clearly Nature has provided a niche for them here. Biodiversity is key to healthy ecosystems.

  3. Jon Way says

    Unfortunately this article fails to discuss that the eastern coyote isn’t just a “coyote”. It is a hybrid that is approximately 60-65% coyote, 25-30% wolf and ~10% dog. It is a hybrid, thus it is virtually impossible for a hunter at low light to know if they are killing a wolf or a coywolf. The only way for wolves to come back is to better protect the existing wild canid hybrid already living here.

    http://www.easterncoyoteresearch.com/coywolfbook/

    • M Leybra says

      You’re absolutely right, the only way to protect wolves is to stop killing for fun every animal that is in the wolf, coyote ‘family.’ When black duck populations became threatened, State authorities called a moratorium on killing them but duck hunters, unable to distinguish black ducks from any other ducks they were blasting out of the sky, killed hundreds plus of black ducks.

    • M Leybra says

      My reply comment to Jon Way, for some reason is printed @ the bottom of this page if it passes ‘moderation.’

  4. Steve says

    Curious what the sex of the animal was and if female determine was it of breeding age. Also was the animal a loner or with other similar sized animals? I used to hunt but no more. I have to wonder why folks shoot coyotes? Pelts?? Meat? To have a functional landscape top predators must be able to thrive. The success of Yellowstone’s reintroduction program IS an example of healthy ecosystem that is now contributing to a healthy trout fishery. Nay sayers need to evolve with the emerging science.

  5. John M. Glowa, Sr. says

    We are pleased to hear that NYSDEC will also be having the animal analyzed by Princeton University. We are having it analyzed there as well. We are 100% confident in Trent University’s results and we fully expect that Princeton will confirm that the animal was a wolf. NYSDEC has totally ignored the size of the animal because they also know that there is no such thing as an 85 pound coyote. There is no doubt that wolves are present in the northeast U.S. and it’s way past time for the state and federal governments to give wolves the protection to which they are legally entitled. NYSDEC should be educating the hunters and trappers about the presence of wolves, not burying their collective heads in the sand. DNA confirmed that the animal was a male. The commenter who stated that “we do not need wolves” apparently doesn’t get the fact that wolves are already here and they are protected by state and federal law for good reason.

  6. Mark Stephen says

    Alan West’s comments are a good example of why the DEC needs to do a better job of not only educating hunters but the public as well.

  7. hilary says

    this a dangerous and a stupid idea to have an animal so dangerous to be loose among the year around tourists and local residents..

  8. Patrick Gallagher says

    much has been written about wolves, coyotes,dogs, hybrids..a good start is ‘of Wolves and Men’, by Barry Lopez

  9. M Leybra says

    You’re absolutely right, the only way to protect wolves is to stop killing for fun every animal that is in the wolf, coyote ‘family.’ When black duck populations became threatened, State authorities called a moratorium on killing them but duck hunters, unable to distinguish black ducks from any other ducks they were blasting out of the sky, killed hundreds plus of black ducks.

  10. Robert Melford Nickerson says

    wolves here for good reason , ? what is the reason ……to kill my chickens or deer ,or what ever no thanks !!

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