BOISE, Idaho - The wolf reintroduction debate in Montana has a new thread - with tapeworms winding their way into the discussion. A recent study found some wolves tested in the region were infected with Echinococcus - a type of parasite found in wild and domestic dogs. The tapeworm survives via a 'predator-prey' cycle, and reintroduced wolves are being blamed for bringing the tapeworm with them.

Wildlife veterinarian Mark Johnson, founder of Global Wildlife Services, oversaw the health of the wolves before they were reintroduced. He says the wolves aren't to blame.

"We treated every wolf at least twice with an injection of praziquantel. Those wolves did not have Echinococcus when they came in."

Johnson says it's clear to him the wolves got the tapeworm from local deer and elk. Several proposals are being discussed as possible ways to battle the tapeworm. One plan is to further reduce wolf numbers. Johnson says the way the tapeworm spreads has nothing to with how many wolves, foxes or coyotes there are - so it would be ineffective.

"Reducing the number of wolves, or density of wolves, will not change the abundance of Echinococcus in any way, shape, or form, because the wolves are not getting it from each other."

Johnson wants the public to understand that tapeworms have been around much longer than wolves, and people who could be exposed need to take precautions just like they do to protect against other hazards, such hantavirus and tick-borne diseases.

Those raising the issue say they're concerned the tapeworm might infect livestock, although that's never been documented. There also are human health concerns because people can become infected if they ingest eggs present in wolf, fox or coyote feces. Johnson notes that human cases are rare since egg-laden feces must be ingested to become infected.




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Pennsylvania has a strong commitment to urban agriculture and community gardening, and some groups in the state are working to get more colorful native plants into local gardens.

Victoria Miles-Chambliss, secretary/treasurer of Empowered Community Development Corporation, said one way they are addressing food insecurity is by planting produce at the Cecil Street Community Garden in a Philadelphia neighborhood. Attracting critical pollinators is one of the goals, in addition to boosting a garden's output.

"We're in the process of putting in fruit trees, like a pear tree," Miles-Chambliss pointed out. "We're putting in a peach tree. We're planting strawberries. We're going to be planting a lot of different native plants so that, of course, we can have the pollination situation going."

Miles-Chambliss pointed out the community-friendly pollinator garden is helping to solve blight in the community as well. She added it is accessible, and provides a safe place for neighbors to come together for community meetings and learn more about what the garden offers.

She emphasized it is important to bring together young people and seniors, so they can learn from each other and work on maintaining the garden.

"With so much that's going on, we want the young people to have somebody that they can go to, and talk to," Miles-Chambliss stressed. "And in that community garden, it would make it so much easier."

Lamar Gore, refuge manager of the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum, is working with the Cecil Street Garden through its urban program, which provides resources to help maintain the garden and build relationships with the community.

He said they want to make sure the concerns of Black and Brown residents are being heard.

"It's an environmental justice community," Gore explained. "And the plan here at Heinz is to serve environmental justice communities, Black and Brown communities, that have been ignored and left out of the conversation. I want this wildlife refuge to be a part of the community."

Gore confirmed they are helping increase healthy food access by planting more fruit, vegetables and native plants for pollinators. He noted the development of the green space has educational benefits, as they teach environmental education at elementary schools, and create jobs, by hiring local high school students to work in the garden.

Some 18 recent graduates of an urban pollinator habitat-restoration program in Boulder got grants from the Endangered Species Coalition to put more native flowering plants in the ground.

Colorado's native pollinators can only travel a few hundred feet before they need to find a place to land and refuel - with water, nectar and pollen.

City of Boulder urban biodiversity program founder and Cool Boulder lead Andrea Montoya said graduates also are trained to convince their friends and neighbors to join a growing national movement to create more pollinator pathways.

"But when you multiply that - by having yard after yard connected to community spaces, connected to another yard," said Montoya, "and you've built this chain of places that pollinators can visit. That is the key to their survival."

Bees and other pollinators are considered keystone species for entire ecosystems, and contribute to the direct production of up to $577 billion worth of food every year. Pollinator populations are in decline, largely due to loss of habitat to humans, the use of insecticides, and climate change.

Montoya said she sees Colorado's urban lawns, which add zero nutrient value to pollinators, as prime targets for habitat restoration.

Dillon Hanson-Ahumada is the Southern Rockies field representative for the Endangered Species Coalition. He said anyone can get involved in restoring pollinator habitat, and points to resources available at 'endangered.org/pollinator-protectors.'

"Every pollinator plant counts," said Hanson-Ahumada. "Every small habitat area counts. You don't have to have acres and acres. If anything it can be a couple of plants that you plant on the side of your house."

Montoya developed the program curriculum for the climate initiative Cool Boulder. She said after she retired her lawnmower, and replaced grass with native plants, her water bill dropped by 75%.

She said native plants, pollinators, insects and microorganisms underground help maintain soil health - and can play a role in mitigating climate change.

"Native plants form a relationship below ground with native microorganisms that support these plants," said Montoya. "These plants are then able to sequester 150% more carbon than a non-native plant."

More than 300 elk, deer, moose and other large animals are hit and killed on Teton County Roads each year.

Wildlife Highways in Teton County is a new audio listening tour which was recently launched to alert drivers to the risks of collisions. The app taps data collected by scientists, who have been tracking wildlife using GPS collars to identify where wildlife cross roads and highways.

Kristin Combs, executive director of Wyoming Wildlife Advocates, said because many collisions go unreported, the actual number is likely much higher.

"We kind of know where those areas are," Combs pointed out. "As you're traveling throughout the county, it prompts people to slow down in those corridors where we know animals are traveling, so that hopefully we're reducing rates of vehicle and wildlife collisions."

The audio tour is available for free on the TravelStorysGPS platform, and offers lively background to those yellow signs and slower speed limits on county roads. Combs said the goal is to share the magic of the area's incredible landscape and its many wild residents to visitors and locals alike who may not realize there are hotspots where wildlife are found at different times of the day and year.

Statewide, more than 7,000 animals are lost each year to wildlife-vehicle collisions. The total cost of wildlife-vehicle collisions is estimated to be $55 million per year, and Combs noted collisions also come at a high price for drivers.

"People are also injured," Combs emphasized. "If we think about the cost to insurance companies and to individuals, if you're hitting something like an elk or a moose, that's going to pretty much total your vehicle."

The audio tour was written by local resident and journalist Brigid Mander, who discovered after moving from the big city, safe driving inside a thriving ecosystem is far from an innate skill. Combs added the tour paints a picture of how wildlife cross roads to access important habitat.

"This is just one more tool that we can use to hopefully reduce the impact that people are having on wildlife," Combs explained. "And making sure that we're keeping these migration corridors open so that wildlife can continue to move across the landscape."