OKAFl I'lS AM'ENDIX 1 



base for wolves and other carnivores, requires that ungulates be carefully managed and their habitats protected, 

 which ultimately benefits entire plant and animal communities. 



Because wolves and other large carnivores have large home ranges, attention should be focused on the habitat values 

 of both public and private lands. Private lands, in particular have substantial value to wildlife because they 

 frequently occur at low elevations which moderate extreme weather conditions such as deep snow. Voluntary 

 habitat conservation efforts, such as land or vegetation management plans and conservation easements will 

 ultimately benefit many wildlife species. 



Social, Cultural, Aesthetic 



The social, cultural, and aesthetic values of wolves today grow out of a long and colorful history of interactions 

 between wolves and humans. Early Native American Indians shared the landscape with the gray wolf. The wolf 

 ultimately attained a cultural significance to many Native American tribes in Montana. For the Blackfeet, the wolf 

 is a powerful religious symbol and is known as a "medicine animal" (Vest 1988). 



In the days of European settlement and for decades thereafter, wolves were viewed unfavorably because they killed 

 livestock during a period of dramatic declines in native prey populations. Wolves were also perceived as a negative, 

 controlling influence on prey populations. However, public opinion about predators and wolves, in particular, 

 evolved through the 1960s and 1970s. The gray wolf came to symboUze changing attitudes about wildlife, the 

 environment, and public lands. Finally with the passage of the ESA and similar laws in the states, changing 

 attitudes were institutionalized. Increasingly, the national pubhc embraced the wolf as a symbol of wilderness and 

 the call to save imperiled species. The calls were simultaneously reinforced by the media, which promoted broad 

 public interest in wolves and their ultimate restoration into former habitats in the northern Rockies. Today, 62% of 

 respondents in a national survey indicated that they were satisfied just knowing that wolves would be present in 

 YNP (Duffield et al. 1993). 



For some, the gray wolf symbolizes the diversity of American thought, values, and opinions. From persecuted 

 beast, to dogged survivor, to the top of the food chain in America's first national park, the gray wolfs lot and human 

 attitudes have gone full circle. Yet, there remains a great diversity in the social, cultural, and aesthetic values that 

 Montanans assign to gray wolves. 



Economic 



Montana is well known for its national parks, wilderness areas, vast expanses of public lands, and a high quality 

 environment that sustains healthy populations of native fish and wildlife. Visitors and residents alike enjoy hunting, 

 fishing, wildlife viewing, and other forms of outdoor recreation. In 1992, YNP area residents reported a 90% rate of 

 participation in wildlife viewing activities. Similarly, 94% of visitors who spent more than one day in YNP reported 

 that their activities included viewing wildlife (USFWS 1994a). 



The presence of wolves in Montana has contributed to the interest and visitation to national parks, as well as to the 

 perceptions of Montana having diverse and abundant natural resources. It is estimated that more than 30,000 

 visitors to YNP from 1995-1998 saw wolves (Bangs et al. 1998). As of August 2001, 85,000 people have seen 

 wolves in YNP (D. Smith pers comm.). The majority of nonresident visitors to Montana surveyed in 1999 ranked 

 Glacier and Yellowstone national parks as their primary attractions. Of all the types of attractions in Montana, 

 mountains. Glacier and Yellowstone national parks, rivers, open space, and wildlife were the top six, respectively 

 (Parrish et al. 1997, Dillion and Nickerson 2000). The net benefits of wolf recovery alone were estimated at $10 

 million per year (Duffield et al. 1993). 



In 1999, these attributes attracted 9.4 million visitors to Montana who spent an estimated $1.6 billion on goods and 

 services. Expenditures increa.sed about 4% over 1998 amounts. Since 1991, expenditures increased 2-7% each 

 year, except 1 996. Tourism is directly responsible for 30,000 jobs in Montana (6% of all jobs in the state) and 

 supports thousands more indirectly (Cheek and Black 1998). Nonresident travel is an important part of the state's 

 economy, on par with agriculture in terms of employment, and the wood products industry for total income (Cheek 

 and Black 1998). 



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