The Wolf That Changed America

Yellowstone National Park takes in over 3 million visitors each year. Why? Let’s take a look:

• It’s our Nation’s first National Park and an enduring symbol of conservation across the globe.
• The hundreds of geo-thermal features of the Park like Old Faithful, Grand Prismatic Spring, and Geyser Basin allow a close up look at the inner geologic workings of our planet.
• visitors get the opportunity to observe some of North America’s grandest wildlife like Bison, Elk, Bears, Coyote, Birds, Moose, and Wolves in their natural habitat.

Keep in mind that Yellowstone National Park is not a zoo – it is ecology in action and provides an opportunity to observe the ecological dynamics of plants, weather, and wildlife found nowhere else on our planet.

The above video shows only a single example of what students and teachers have the opportunity to experience with a visit to our Nation’s greatest outdoor classroom. With the reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone National Park in 1994, biologists brought back a keystone species that once dominated this landscape but had been absent for close to 100 years. How would wolves affect the populations of elk, Bison, scavenger species, and even the plants of the Park? Can wolves be successfully reintroduced to a landscape and establish self-sustaining populations? Biologist are learning the answers to these questions and so much more.

A field science program with Gtrek to Yellowstone National Park (find out more by clicking here) reaches goals beyond those that can be taught in the classroom. It will not only solidify your ecological and earth science lessons learned in the classroom, but students will also come home with new skills, knowledge and stories that will stay with them for years to come. Visit Yellowstone anytime of the year – each season offers something unique to the experience. One could spend a lifetime exploring the Park and still find something new and awe-inspiring with each visit. Create that first experience with your students today. Visit the Gtrek web pages for sample itineraries and then contact us to get your classroom without walls started.