Beyond Wolves: The Politics of Wolf Recovery and Management [Englisch] [Taschenbuch]

If you are reading this review chances are you are a "Wolf Lover" and like myself have an great and overwhelming interest in the wolf and its place on this planet. Sadly though, loving wolves and enjoying photographs, films and books of them will not save them from the persecution they endure by this planets most cruel predator-mankind. Author Martin A Nie points out that the Wolf stands as a symbol for Wilderness, and in the 19th Century that was a symbol of all things that mankind hated about the wild, a fear of the unknown, yet now in the 21st Century the Wolf stands for everything that we love about the wild, Freedom. So what has changed in the Wolf? That's right, nothing, the wolf is still the same animal, it is only our attitude that is different. BEYOND WOLVES looks at the Socio-politics of this change in human ideals and thoughts. Every single person who claims to support the Wolf should read this book to understand that it is a political problem that is retarding Wolf Recovery efforts throughout the world, and that these problems must be understood and acknowledged by everyone, Land holders, Farmers, Urban dwellers and Environmentalists. A personal observation about the continuing conflict between farmers (who use dogs for protection and herding) and wolf-lovers (who love dogs as well) is illustrated by wolf photographer Jim Brandenburg in his excellent book BROTHER WOLF when he writes, "Thousands of years ago we brought a powerfull intelligent predator into our caves, and today it sleeps at our feet.While we were learning to love the wolf that became the dog, we somehow learned to hate the wolf that stayed the Wolf"(J Brandenburg-Brother Wolf pg150)This is our dilema, and as an intelligent species we must attempt to make peace with the rest of the planet and its other inhabitants, because a war against nature, is ultimatly a war against ourselves. BEYOND WOLVES is divided into Four parts (one) Wolf Recovery and Managment as Value-Based Political Conflict (two) The wolf as Symbol,Surragate and Policy problem. (three) Wolves and the Politics of Place. (four) The Use of Stakeholders and Public Participation in Wolf Policymaking and Management. These parts and their sub-chapters may seem like a difficult thing to read but Author Martin A Nie is the Assistant Professor of Natural Policy in the School of Forestry at the University of Montana, and his fine fact based text is totally interesting (and backed up with copious notes) so that anyone with any interest in wolves will find it a fascinating, and most of all a very important book if our friend, CANIS LUPUS, is to survive with us on this planet.

This is an essential discussion of the politics of wolves and wolf recovery. Nie discusses the management of wild populations in Alaska and the upper Midwest as well as wolf reintroduction programs in Idaho and Yellowstone. He is primarily interested in wolf management policy. Though he is a professor, Nie avoids scholarly theory and jargon. He writes well and the book reads easily.

Nie has a background in both resource management and political science, so he's well positioned to talk about the human side of wolves. As a result of being more attuned to the social sciences, he provides a more insightful account of the human side of the wolf-human relationship than your typical biologist - or even your atypical biologist. This is really the best book available on the political social side of wolf management. However, it's not quite as reader-friendly as Steinhardt's book.

Nie considers a series of relevant issues: the symbolic issues of wolves and ranchers, the political economy of wolf regions, the politics of wildlife management organizations, and the successes and failures of stakeholder-based management such as the Fortymile caribou herd in Alaska and the Yukon. He emphasizes the conflicts in values between wolf supporters and opponents, and is sympathetic to solutions that bring interested parties into dialogue with one another.

The result is a very measured and moderate book. I can imagine fanatic anti-wolf people hating this book, but if you are a wolf lover who can't accept the idea of shooting wolves under any circumstances, you'll probably dislike his approach as well.

I would have liked to see him broaden his subject a bit. The book concentrates on the US, though Canada (and to a much lesser extent) Mexico are also discussed. It would be interesting to learn more about wolf management issues in Europe and Asia. For that, the best source is Mech and Boitani.