New evidence suggests that wolves might not be the environmental saviors of Yellowstone
Nature
While the 1995 reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone was long credited with a massive ecological recovery, recent studies suggest the reality of this landscape transformation is far more complex than a simple predator effect.
Recent research challenges the popular narrative that wolves single-handedly restored Yellowstone by scaring elk away from riverbeds. While willow and aspen trees have rebounded in some areas, scientists found that the landscape had changed too much during the wolves absence for a total recovery.