Woman Among Wolves My Journey Through 40 Years of Wolf Recovery

Wildlife biologist Diane Boyd has spent four decades studying and advocating for wolves in the wilds of Montana, just west of Glacier National Park amidst some of the most pristine wilderness left in America. This is her incredible true story.

A single woman living on her own in a cabin without running water or electricity, Boyd launched her career in the 1970s, a time when men dominated the conservation scene in America. It was also a time when wolves were among the most hated animals in the country, detested by farmers, politicians, and ranchers alike. Boyd's goal was big and risky: she was to trap and attach radio collars to as many wolves as she could without alerting too many locals to what she was doing ...

Strapping on her skis in waist-deep snow, Boyd traveled far and wide searching for wolves to trap, tranquilize, radio collar, and release back out into the wild to, she hoped, thrive in their rightful home. In her evocative writing, Boyd captures her passion, her indomitable spirit, and the intricate balance between human and carnivore coexistence.

She also introduces us to Kishinena, the first wolf who marked the species' return to the western United States. The founder of what was later known as the Magic Pack, Kishinena's pioneering life of adventure and bravery mirrors Boyd's own.

"This is a book about a courageous woman. Often alone in wild country, she endures hardships and faces danger in many forms .... It is a book I highly recommend: informative, fascinating, and beautifully written." --DR. JANE GOODALL

"A gripping and vital portrait of wolf repopulation. It is impossible not to root for Diane, or for the wolves." --ERICA BERRY, AUTHOR OF WOLFISH

Called the Jane Goodall of wolves, world-renowned wildlife biologist Diane Boyd has spent four decades studying and advocating for wolves in the wilds of Montana near Glacier National Park. When she started in the 1970s, she was the only female biologist in the United States researching and radio-collaring wild wolves. With her two dogs for company, she faced the rigors of the Montana winter in an isolated cabin without running water or electricity.

Boyd fearlessly forded icy rivers, strapped on skis to navigate thick stands of lodgepole pine, and monitored packs from the air in a tiny bush plane that skimmed the treetops so she could count wolves and see what they were feeding on. She faced down grizzly bears, mountain lions, wolverines--and the occasional trapper--as she stalked her quarry: a handful of wolves that were making their way south from Canada into Montana. Resilient and resourceful, she devised her own trapping methods and negotiated with locals as wolf populations grew from the first natural colonizer to more than 3,000 wolves in the West today.

In this captivating book, Boyd takes the reader on a wild ride from the early days of wolf research to the present-day challenges of wolf management across the globe, highlighting her interactions with an apex predator that captured her heart and her undying admiration. Her writing resonates with her indomitable spirit as she explores the intricate balance of human and wolf coexistence.

A debut memoir from one of the first women biologists in the United States to study wild wolves in their natural habitat--a story of passion, resilience, and determination.

Called the Jane Goodall of wolves, world-renowned wildlife biologist Diane Boyd has spent four decades studying and advocating for wolves in the wilds of Montana near Glacier National Park. When she started in the 1970s, she was the only female biologist in the United States researching and radio-collaring wild wolves. With her two dogs for company, she faced the rigors of the Montana winter in an isolated cabin without running water or electricity.

Boyd fearlessly forded icy rivers, strapped on skis to navigate thick stands of lodgepole pine, and monitored packs from the air in a tiny bush plane that skimmed the treetops so she could count wolves and see what they were feeding on. She faced down grizzly bears, mountain lions, wolverines--and the occasional trapper--as she stalked her quarry: a handful of wolves that were making their way south from Canada into Montana. Resilient and resourceful, she devised her own trapping methods and negotiated with locals as wolf populations grew from the first natural colonizer to more than 3,000 wolves in the West today.

In this captivating book, Boyd takes the reader on a wild ride from the early days of wolf research to the present-day challenges of wolf management across the globe, highlighting her interactions with an apex predator that captured her heart and her undying admiration. Her writing resonates with her indomitable spirit as she explores the intricate balance of human and wolf coexistence.