Warm weather prevents annual wolf count on Isle Royale
Isle Royale, covering 54,200 hectares, is located in the remote western part of Lake Superior, between Minnesota, USA and Thunder Bay, Canada. The island serves as a haven for wildlife biologists, providing a unique setting to study wolves and moose in their natural habitat, free from human interference.
Since 1958, researchers have conducted annual surveys to monitor the park's wolf and moose populations. This year, temperatures in the region have been higher than usual, making the ice unsafe for scientists to access the island and forcing them to suspend the wolf and moose count for the first time in decades.
This image of Isle Royale was acquired by one of the Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellites on 4 February 2024.
In order to monitor and assess biodiversity in remote locations and to preserve and manage natural habitats and species, Copernicus provides useful information on land use, vegetation cover, and changes to ecosystems.
