Wolves keep park howling

By Kyle Boggs
Staff Writer

Sit and listen. The majestic howls of the unseen creatures haunt the woods like banshees in the night. The eerie echoes fracture the silence.

Every night at Wolf Park in Lafayette, the wolves chorus to the moon in this way.

Wolf Park has housed wolves and entertained visitors for nearly three decades but most Purdue students still don't know it exists.

In the early '70s, former Purdue psychology professor and founder of the park, Erich Klinghammer, wanted to turn 75 acres of his 110-acre property into a large park that featured great North American animals.

However, this wasn't his goal immediately after graduating from college

Klinghammer went to school at the University of Chicago to study ethology. As an ethologist, Klinghammer studies the biology of animal behavior from an evolutionary standpoint.

He started working at the University of Chicago with pigeons and doves. Eventually, he became allergic to these birds and in 1968 he decided to move to Lafayette and take his research in a different direction.

Klinghammer taught at Purdue for a few years while he figured out what his next project would be.

Always a lover of dogs and other canines, Klinghammer decided to retire from Purdue and start a wildlife park on his own property. In 1972, the park was officially opened to the public.

As president of the North American Park Foundation, Klinghammer was able to implement his idea.

Now as park director, Klinghammer is in charge of the development of the park and the care of the animals living in the park — 19 wolves, four foxes, one coyote and 14 bison.

"We observe behavior, analyze data and find out how wolves do things," said Klinghammer. "Breeding season is our biggest time of year. We learn and observe who does what with who."

Doug Smith, a wolf researcher from Yellowstone National Park, is expected to visit the park to monitor the wolves and share some of his ideas.

Pat Goodman, research associate, park curator and one of Kinghammer's former students, is in charge of observing the wolves, collecting information, training interns and informing visitors about the animals in the park.

Goodman has loved wolves her entire life and said she enjoys the hands-on work.

"I always wanted a wolf of my own, but because of Wolf Park, I can be around many wolves all the time without all the responsibility of owning such an exotic pet," Goodman said.

Goodman received her undergraduate degree at Stevens College and earned her master's degree with Klinghammer's supervision at Purdue.

Although society often depicts wolves as killers, the wolves at Wolf Park have been raised at the park since they were pups and are used to coming into contact with humans.

Klinghammer said that wolves are wild animals and could be potentially dangerous, but according to the National Park Service, a wolf has never been reported as having killed a human in North America.

"More likely, there is more danger from traffic in Lafayette than our wolves in the wild," said Klinghammer.

Wolf Park is constantly changing, whether it is in the number of animals, newer buildings or expanded staff.

With the recent acquisition of new funding, Klinghammer is in the process of having an observation building, an educational building and a new home for the gift shop constructed.

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