A Conversation with Dr. Ron Sutherland on the Trajectory of Rewilding

As the concept of rewilding is becoming increasingly popular, we sat down with our chief scientist, Ron Sutherland, Ph.D., to hear his perspective on the trajectory of rewilding North America through on-the-ground research. Ron has much wisdom to share, derived from over 25 years of experience in wildlife research, making him a formidable force for wildlife and natural spaces through his fact-based approach to conservation.

Read on to hear his thoughts on red wolves, habitat connectivity, and the future of conservation below.  

Why are you passionate about restoring, reconnecting and rewilding North America?  

I’ve been passionate about saving nature since I was a young child. I grew up in an area in North Carolina that was urbanizing quickly, and all of the local forests I used to play in were bulldozed to make houses, roads, and shopping malls. As I’ve grown older and seen the incredible beauty and mystery of biological diversity across the continent, I’ve become more dedicated. We must beat the odds and make sure that we do everything we can to ensure the survival and recovery of wild places and wild species.  

What viewpoints and perspectives do you bring to your work at Wildlands Network?  

I approach my work at Wildlands Network as a fact-based scientist and an emotional and enthusiastic advocate. That is why I love this job, as I can bring both perspectives. It may sound contradictory, but the facts about what we need to do to save nature (and ourselves) drive a strong emotional response. I also bring the viewpoint of a parent who is very concerned with the type of world we leave for our children and grandchildren to enjoy. I want a world full of wilderness and wildlife, with clean air and water and a tolerable climate to boot.  

Why is connectivity research so important to rewilding North America? Why should people care about this research? 

We now know that many species, like wolves, grizzly bears, and mountain lions, need enormous amounts of habitat to survive in viable populations. Places like Yellowstone and Denali aren’t big enough on their own; we have to create networks of habitat. The question is: how to do that? Where do we reconnect parks by restoring habitats to best support bringing species back through rewilding? It isn’t just the big mammals either, so many other species, like eastern kingsnakes, wild turkeys, and box turtles, need room to roam, and we have to knit the natural landscapes back together so they can survive.  

Of your current research, what are you most excited about when it comes to rewilding? 

We have been the leading group working on understanding the ecological impacts of red wolves since 2015. Red wolves have been through the wringer and are now down to less than 40 individuals. I’m super grateful to contribute to improving community tolerance for these wolves through our research. Getting to see the wolves is always nice, but to me, the really exciting part is building up scientific information about the role red wolves play in southeastern ecosystems.

How do you feel about the concept of “rewilding” gaining popularity? What should people be paying attention to? Is there anything being misunderstood or missed altogether?  

I think it is great that rewilding is taking off! I see it as a powerful eddy of resistance against the river of destruction that humans are wreaking on the natural world. We can make so much progress bringing back species that have been lost and seeing ecosystems recover as they have in Yellowstone. People often assume it is too late, especially here on the East Coast. But North Carolina alone has close to 20,000 black bears now; we’re way wilder than we let on. But we also have to remember that rewilding only works if we save the right habitats for the long term. These species need places to live.

How has the conservation landscape changed since you started working in wildlife research?  

When I started working at Wildlands Network, I was told that what we were doing was controversial and that I should watch out for angry think tanks who would paint us with crazy conspiracy theories about our vision for the future. Now, close to 15 years later, the public seems to have broadly accepted the idea that wildlife need habitat corridors and road crossing structures. These concepts have bipartisan appeal, which makes sense, given how much we all seem to love nature in our own ways.

How have you and Wildlands Network been involved in these changes?   

I’d love to take credit for all of it, but the truth is that we gave the cart a big and powerful nudge with our bold and optimistic vision for conservation, and now the rollercoaster is speeding right along with incredible momentum. Our founders and early board members like Dave Foreman, Michael Soulé, John Davis, and John Terborgh deserve a ton of credit for setting us on the right path long before other groups thought to join in. I have enjoyed every bit of the small role I have played keeping the Wildlands vision alive into the 21st century.  

How do you envision Wildlands Network’s role in helping shape conservation research in North America in the future? 

We certainly aim to keep pushing the envelope in terms of what could be possible to achieve for nature conservation across North America. There is so much to learn about designing wildlife corridors and linkages, where to put wildlife crossings across roads, how to rewild keystone species, and so on. I know we’ll stay busy as there is so much we still don’t know about how to reconstruct the natural world that we’ve spent the last several centuries destroying. Don’t get me wrong; conservation can’t wait for all of the answers as the engines of development are roaring again across the continent. But Wildlands Network can continue making a name for itself by working with partners to inject the right research at the right times to set the course for a wilder, more ecologically sustainable, and frankly more enjoyable future.