REVIEW: ‘The Rise of Wolf 8: Witnessing the Triumph of Yellowstone’s Underdog’ by Rick McIntyre
Image courtesy of Greystone Books / Provided by official site.
Rick McIntyre is a legend amongst Yellowstone naturalists and wolf enthusiasts. There is hardly a morning or evening that goes by that the retired National Park Service employee doesn’t head out from his cabin in Silver Gate, Montana, and travel to the wide vistas of the picturesque Lamar Valley in Yellowstone National Park, looking for the canine species that has kept him enthralled for decades. He’s a man in love with wolves.
One of the tradeoffs of McIntyre taking a step away from the NPS and devoting himself even more to this iconic species is that he has found the time to write down some of his eyewitness accounts and natural histories for readers who either cannot make it to the Lamar Valley or those relishing a chance to relive some memories from a recent trip.
His first book in the series came out in 2019 and is now available in paperback. The Rise of Wolf 8: Witnessing the Triumph of Yellowstone’s Underdog is the first part of a planned trilogy (though McIntyre is already thinking of future books beyond #3). The second part came out a few months ago, with the third installment scheduled for fall 2021.
The Rise of Wolf 8 is a fascinating story of not only wolf 8 who lived and thrived in Yellowstone in the 1990s, but also the entire reintroduction efforts of bringing this keystone species back to this preserved section of Wyoming (the national park also resides in slivers of Idaho and Montana).
McIntyre recounts these stories — all with a naturalist and ethologist point of view — based on his copious notes over the years. He knows the history of the many wolves that first came from Canada and relocated to Yellowstone, and he knows their offspring and their ultimate fates in this harsh terrain. He builds their family trees with precise language, beautiful imagery, scientific understanding and careful detail. He doesn’t nickname the animals, instead choosing to call them by their identified numbers, but it’s clear he sees these wolves as much more than numbers. To him, they are wonders of the animal kingdom, and they still inspire him to this day.
Given the interconnectedness of a wolf’s life and progeny, it was expected that McIntyre would expand beyond 8 in this work of nonfiction. He gives equal spotlight to 21, the adopted son of wolf 8 (and 21 is also the star of the second book: The Reign of Wolf 21).
Perhaps the best part of the book is understanding the pack mentality of these wolves — how they hunt, feed their young, quarrel with competing wolves, take down vulnerable elk and deal with each chapter of life, from birth to death.
The Rise of Wolf 8 is a welcome entry in the increasingly large library of Yellowstone-centered books. McIntyre’s writings stand out amongst the others because of its on-the-ground details and obvious intimacy with the main subjects. He cares equally about these animals and about being accurate. The readers are the beneficiaries of his efforts.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
The Rise of Wolf 8: Witnessing the Triumph of Yellowstone’s Underdog by Rick McIntyre. 304 pages. Greystone Books. Click here for more information.
