Dead Moose on Isle Royale: Off Trail with the Citizen Scientists of the Wolf-Moose Project

Isle Royale in Michigan is one of the most remote and pristine of all the U.S. national parks, and it is the site of the world’s longest-running predator-prey study. Every summer, Jeffrey M. Holden leads groups of citizen scientists on week-long expeditions to search for dead moose. Those intrepid enough to join him backpacking off trail in Isle Royale’s rugged beauty face challenges from treacherous weather conditions, to wildlife, primitive backcountry camping, traveling through swamps and wetlands, and backpacks that grow heavier with bones every time a new dead moose is found. Sometimes the moose they find are long dead, with only a scattering of bones remaining. Sometimes they are freshly departed, rotted, stinking, and covered with thousands of bloodthirsty ticks. Scientists use the bones, photos, and data they collect to reconstruct the moose population through the years, correlating it against other data on wolves, weather, and ticks. This book provides a fascinating look into the day-to-day realities of backpacking in the wilderness, while featuring the extraordinary scientific discoveries of the Wolf-Moose Project itself and highlighting the role and rewards for volunteers in this extraordinary endeavor. This is a must read for anyone who is interested in off-trail hiking, becoming a citizen scientist, or exploring America’s least-visited national park.

Jeffrey M. Holden has been associated with the Wolf-Moose Project since 2002, when he first volunteered to look for dead moose on Isle Royale. He quickly became a group leader, and he has led at least one group every year since 2005. He is the president of the Wolf-Moose Foundation, a nonprofit whose mission is to advance research and education that promotes the conservation of predators and their prey, especially the wolves and moose of Isle Royale.