Eleven-year-old George Krachenfels spend a
week at the "junior keeper" camp at the Wolf Sanctuary in
west St. Louis County. He learned how conservationists are
trying to save several types of wolves from extinction.
The 6th grader from Ballwin was one of 27
kids 10-to-14 at the first of two weeklong camps sponsored
last month by the Wild Canid Center. That's the "survival
and research center" set up 35 years ago by noted naturalist
Dr. Marlin Perkins.
Dr. Perkins was the former director of the
St. Louis Zoo who starred in a long-running television series,
"Wild Kingdom." One theme of that series was danger of extinction
for many of the world's wildlife species.
Kids like George got up-close-and-personal
looks at how scientists are breeding some of those endangered
species in captivity. Their offspring are then released
back in the wild.
Because the animals at the sanctuary are truly
wild, the kids don't get to work with them personally. But,
George said, "We got within about 10 feet."
One day at the camp, the kids made "enrichment"
objects to supplement the animal's regular foods. For instance,
they picked up objects from the nearby woodlands and then
attach food bits and smells before tossing them to the animals.
Thirteen-year-old Shannon English of Webster
Groves said one "enrichment" project used a section of heavy
fire hose and garnishing it with bacon bits. They then threw
them to a group of African wild dogs.
Asked if the wild dogs played with toy, she
said, "They ripped it to bits."
During one session, the naturalists tending
the animals told the kids they'd never be allowed to be
close to the wild dogs. Although among the smallest of the
animals at the sanctuary, the dogs are "the most vicious."
Of course, the week at camp wasn't all about
wolves. One day, the kids got to explore a nearby bat cave.
Ten-year-old Noah Howerton of Maplewood said,
"I saw one bat and you hear others further back in the cave."
He added, "We saw mountain lion tracks at the cave entrance."
Other activities involved a creek walk, exploring
an abandoned mining camp and visiting a pond on the property.
The Wolf Sanctuary is located on a Washington University's
Tyson Research Center land.
During World War II, the property had been
a military munitions area, with lots of camouflaged storage
bunkers. One of the bunkers is called "The Igloo." During
the camp, it was used for meetings and as a lunch area.
Of course, there was also time for play.
On the final afternoon of the camp, there
was water playtime. And in the evening, the kids got to
hold a "wolf howl."
Fourteen-year-old Liz Steinacker said she's
been coming to Wolf Sanctuary camps since she was in 4th
grade. The freshman at Notre Dame High School said, "Every
year I've been here, the wolves have returned our howls."
All kids interviewed for this article said
they "loved" animals and had pets at home.
George Krachenfels will be a 6th grader at
Parkway West Middle School in the fall. He said he has both
dogs and cats as home pets. He said the pets don't fight.
Noah Howerton said he has a dog and four
cats. He said he keeps them separated.
"If they get close, the dog will bark and
the cats will hiss. But, they don't fight," he said.
Noah said he'd like to work with animals
as a career when he gets older.
Shannon English said she'd like to "do something
with horses" as a career. She said she goes horseback riding
about once a month.
George said he'd like to be a professional
baseball player. But, if that doesn't work out, he said
"maybe I'd come back here" to work at the Wolf Sanctuary.
The Wolf Sanctuary works with other endangered
species besides wolves and African wild dogs. The center
also breeds swift foxes.
With assistance from Purina Mills, the center
conducts nutrition research. They have developed different
foods that are used widely for animals in similar research
facilities.
If you'd like to know more about the Wolf
Sanctuary, visit www.wolfsanctuary.org.
For information about tours and events for
the public, call (636) 938-5900. The sanctuary's
fall open house, "Rendezvous with the Wolves," is held on
the first Sunday in October. No reservations are needed.
Wolf family released in Arizona forest
A wolf family from St. Louis' Wolf Sanctuary last
month was released into the wilds of the Apache National
Forest. The four Mexican gray wolves join a small
group of other wolves already living in the wild.
The family includes an alpha male, named Laredo,
that was born at the Eureka, Mo., sanctuary in 2003.
Also included were his mate, Alita, and two of their
offspring.
In a story in the St. Louis Post Dispatch,
the sanctuary director, Susan Lindsey, said the newly
introduced wolves have DNA from each of three Mexican
wolf lineages. She said the new animals are the most
genetically valuable ever released into the wild.
The St. Louis sanctuary has been breeding wolves
for 35 years and then introducing them back into the
wild to build up numbers of threatened wolf species.
The new wolves join a small group of Mexican gray
wolves already in the national park. All the wolves
have been collared so wildlife officials can keep
track of their travels in their native habitat.
A group of federal and state agencies as well as
an American Indian tribe combined to handle the wolf
release.
Releasing the animals is a sophisticated process.
The naturalists build a mesh enclosure that the wolves
can break out of. That way, when they achieve freedom
in the wild, there will be no humans around to remind
them of where they came from.
The naturalists said it took only five hours for
the wolves to chew their way to freedom.
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