Anyone hear about this?

[moss13]

I was watching a show on animal planet tonight called "After the attack" where a guy helps victims of wildlife animal attacks get over their horrific attacks and in the end faces the type of animal that attacked them. Anyway it really caught my attention when one of the top stories was a wolf attack on a family at Lake Superior Provincial Park in Canada on the northeastern end of the lake over labor day weekend of 2006.

Here is the link to the story. Pretty creepy. I never heard about this before. On the show I saw the kid's legs with bite marks all over and stitches everywhere.

http://www.heartlandoutdoorsman.com/php ... hp?t=14896

Oh great and how about this?

http://www.wolf.org/wolves/news/2005rel ... attack.asp

http://www.wolf.org/wolves/learn/interm ... onquin.asp

http://www.wolf.org/wolves/news/live_ne ... sp?id=1340

[fonixmunkee]

My goodness, that is pretty terrifying. I honestly haven't heard of any legit wolf-human attacks before, so this was quite startling.

I didn't read the other links because they are blocked here at work, but is it possible these animals were rabid?

[moss13]

All tests of the attacks mentioned came back negative on rabies. Check out the links when you get home then. Well worth the reading. The international wolf center in Ely is a first class organization and I find them reputable on their stories. While most of us know that wolf attacks on humans is rare, if we do some research there are incidents out there that just don't get published in the mainstream for fear of causing panic. These cases happened in Canada but if you really think about it, that is not far from Isle Royale and a similar environment.
I was very surprised to read about this as I will be much more aware of wolves on my next trip to Isle Royale next summer.
Just a freindly reminder to folks, don't feed the wolves!

[moss13]

Just found this article too from last year about a kayaker attacked by a wolf.

http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolo ... e16ea229d4

[Kevinl]

Fascinating stuff Moss. Thanks for sharing.

And the following has nothing to do with humans getting attacked, but seems to fit here. From this week's Duluth Tribune. I know cougars in Minnesota aren't all that rare, but a pair hunting together seems off the mark.

"Ted Kline and Ron Smith did what deer hunters are supposed to do — wait a few minutes before tracking a doe that Smith shot Monday morning near Culver.

But in the 30 minutes from the time Smith, of Lakeville, Minn., took his shot to when they found the downed deer, two hungry cougars had moved in on the kill.

“When we got there they had both been eating on it. We scared them off, but they kept circling us. They didn’t want to leave,” said Kline, who owns the land where the two were hunting along the Artichoke River, about 25 miles northwest of Duluth.

The hunters called for help so two men could drag the deer out while Kline could keep two hands on his rifle.

“The chunks they tore off that doe were huge. The claw marks were huge,” he said, estimating the cougars ate about a third of the usable meat in the few minutes before the hunters arrived.

Photos of the carcass show that the deer’s neck, rear leg and intestines were ripped apart. Kline said it appeared the cougars came upon the animal before it died.

Kline said the animals had long tails and were three feet long and definitely weren’t wolves, dogs or bobcats.

Kline’s wife had reported seeing the cougars cross their driveway, and Kline had seen cougar scat before in the yard.

Cougar sightings are fairly common across northern Minnesota, including by Department of Natural Resources employees and other wildlife personnel. The question is whether the cats are released or escaped pets or part of a small but nomadic population of wild cougars. The closest established population of cougars is in the western Dakotas, although cougars are native to Minnesota.

Kline and Smith reported their story to a DNR conservation officer.

“We probably get 200 cougar reports each year ... but most turn out to be bobcats or house cats or yellow dogs,” said John Erb, DNR forest wildlife biologist in Grand Rapids. “We do get confirmation on occasion. We had two confirmed last year, including one near Floodwood … but they are very, very rare. And for there to be two cougars together in one spot, that would be the first time in Minnesota probably in 75 years.”

Cougars are protected in Minnesota and can’t be shot, although law enforcement officers have wide leeway in deciding if an animal may be a threat to people."

[Less Paul]

Holy crap. I was at LSPP mid August of '06. I know right where Katherine Bay is.

Creepy chit.

[Backpacker534]

These articles once again remind us that, while rare, wolves have been known to attack humans. After all, they are wild, predatory animals and becoming complacent when we're in their territory could lead to problems, especially if they begin to lose their fear of humans. This all goes to reinforce some of the points made in the Wolves vs Moose Showdown thread (http://www.isleroyaleforums.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=356) in this web forum.