When was isle royale made a national park

Roger Poe Deschampe Jr. Check out one of the newest arrivals stepping foot on the island and visit the Park Service website for regular photos, videos and other updates about the wolf relocations. View our interactive map to learn more about efforts to restore wolves and bring balance back to Isle Royale National Park.

The Park Service and its partners continue to monitor the wolf population to determine evidence of social organization, reproduction and predation.

The annual winter study conducted by researchers with Michigan Technological University continues, with the most recent study results released in September Research has documented other signs of progress as well.

Using collar data, researchers found the remains of 60 prey, which included moose, beavers and snowshoe hares, but in a positive sign, over half of the prey were moose. This confirms what scientists predicted, and what we hoped for — these new wolves are adjusting well, feeding on the overly abundant moose.

Additional research confirmed that the introduced wolves are feeding, traveling, sleeping close to one another and forming groups. This has also led to wolf-on-wolf aggression that resulted in the deaths of two wolves, including one of original pair. These events are not uncommon as wolves defend and establish their territories and social hierarchy. As the wolves adjust to their new home and the study continues to track their numbers, we are hopeful that Isle Royale will once again have a thriving wolf population.

Want national parks in your inbox? Sign up for NPCA email updates to receive news, features, and opportunities to make a difference! You can unsubscribe at any time. Explore This Park. Isle Royale National Park Michigan. Info Alerts Maps Calendar Reserve.

Alerts In Effect Dismiss. Dismiss View all alerts. Foundation Documentation. A foundation document defines the purpose of a park's designation and existence and articulates park significance. A foundation document also identifies the park's fundamental resources and values, specifies interpretive themes, and describes special mandates and legal and policy requirements. The foundation is not a decision-making plan, but it provides the underlying groundwork for future management decisions.

Purpose of the Park. The purpose of Isle Royale National Park is to set apart a remote island archipelago and surrounding waters in Lake Superior as a national park for the benefit and enjoyment of the public and to preserve and protect its wilderness character, cultural and natural resources, scenery, and ecological processes. Additionally, as a unit of the national park system, Isle Royale National Park provides opportunities for recreation, education and interpretation, and scientific study.

About a decade after its establishment, persistent rumors of wolves were finally confirmed. Apparently, one winter day in , a wolf pack of unknown size crossed the ice of Lake Superior from the Canadian shore, only 15 miles distant and made themselves at home on the isles.

What a home they found, along with a few others critters like beavers, foxes, snowshoe hares, rodents, and even some moose had found their way across in the previous century somehow. The wolves and the moose were seemingly made for each other, and soon scientists were taking notice of the drama being played out here. For half a century now, wolf and moose populations have been on a fascinating roller-coaster ride of growth and decline, boom and bust.

This island has become one of the most significant study sites for understanding predator-prey interactions. In the process, the wolves of Isle Royale have become, like the Serengeti lions, the Chinese pandas, and the Yellowstone bears, among the most famous wild animals in the world.

Isle Royale and its smaller isles and islets are more than 15 miles from the nearest point on the mainland, and seaplane or boating in is the only way to access the island. Be certain to allow for extra time to arrive and depart the island and take this into account when booking reservations and making travel plans. The center of the hiking action is mostly around the Greenstone Ridge area, which sits high in the center of Isle Royale proper.

The longest hiking trails in the park include the Greenstone Ridge Trail, a mile trek that traverses the entire island end to end. This is typically taken on in four or five-day hike, and a boat shuttle takes hikers back to their starting points each day.