Isle Royale is a remote, wilderness island located in Lake Superior. The island is inhabited by a population of wolves and moose. Isle Royale is also the site of the world’s longest continuous study of any predator-prey system in the world. Every winter, we spend 7 weeks at Isle Royale observing the lives of these wolves and moose. Rolf began working on the wolf-moose project in the early 1970s. I began working on the project in the early 1990s, and I record our adventures and discoveries here in Notes from the Field. Every three to four days, a new entry will be posted here with all the latest from Isle Royale.
Much of what we learn about Isle Royale’s wolves and moose is learned while looking out the windows of the “Flagship,” a small plane with room for a pilot and one observer. Don is the project’s pilot. He has been flying with the wolf-moose project for more than 30 years. His piloting skills are unparalleled and critical to our success. This winter, 2015, is the 57th year of Winter Study.