Romeo was a wild black wolf who spent about six years, from 2003 to 2009, living on the edge of Juneau, Alaska, around Mendenhall Glacier and its frozen lake. Instead of avoiding people, he sought out their dogs to play, and thousands of residents, skiers and visitors saw him up close. Wildlife photographer and writer Nick Jans documented him from the first meeting, and his book A Wolf Called Romeo tells the full story. In September 2009 Romeo was illegally shot by a local hunter.
Here is how the friendship began, what made this wolf so unusual, how the town responded, and what his life and death teach about living alongside wild predators.
A wolf at the edge of the lake
Jans lived on the outskirts of Juneau, Alaska's capital, with the Mendenhall Glacier and lake close by. One winter evening in 2003 he was outside with his Labrador when a lone black wolf appeared at the edge of the ice. Before Jans could react, the dog bolted toward the stranger.
Nick Jans
Every instinct said this should end badly. Wolves are territorial and will kill dogs they see as rivals or prey. Instead, the two animals sniffed, circled and then started to play. Jans managed to photograph the encounter, and the wolf did not leave.
Nick Jans
Romeo belonged to the Alexander Archipelago wolf, a subspecies of gray wolf found in the rainforest coast of southeast Alaska and British Columbia. He was probably a young lone wolf, born around 2003, who had lost or left his pack. Local people soon named him Romeo, after the restless young lover in Shakespeare.
Six years of play at Mendenhall Glacier
Over the following winters Romeo became part of daily life in the Mendenhall Valley. He trotted out across the frozen lake to meet dogs being walked by their owners, bowed to invite them to play, and chased and was chased in turn. Some dogs became regular companions.
Arnie Hanger
Jans spent much of those years watching and photographing him. Other residents, including photographer Arnie Hanger, also recorded the wolf, and over time a small group of people built up a detailed picture of his habits, routes and favourite partners.
Nick Jans
The trails around the glacier are among Juneau's busiest outdoor spots, used by skiers, hikers and tourists. That meant Romeo was seen by an extraordinary number of people for a wild wolf, many of whom had never expected to see one at all.
How Juneau learned to live with a wolf
Not everyone was delighted at first. Some residents feared for their pets and children, and wildlife officials worried that a habituated wolf could become dangerous. Over the years, though, Romeo's behaviour stayed remarkably consistent. He did not attack people, and reports of trouble with dogs were rare compared with the thousands of peaceful meetings.
Nick Jans
Jans described the wolf bringing out objects he had stashed, including a foam float, and offering them to a friend named Harry to throw, much as a dog would. Romeo seemed to read both canine and human signals, and the people around him adjusted too.
Nick Jans
For Jans, the remarkable part was that the understanding went in every direction. As he put it in a 2015 interview: "We were these three species working out how to get along harmoniously. And we did."
Dave Wilson
That shared effort, between the wolf, the dogs and their owners, is what turned Romeo into a local symbol. He became a living reminder that Juneau sits right at the edge of wild country.
How Romeo died
Romeo disappeared in September 2009. The following year a Juneau man, Park Myers, pleaded guilty to charges arising from an incident on 22 September 2009: unlawfully taking a wolf using a rimfire cartridge and unlawfully possessing it. He also admitted setting up a black bear bait station without a permit, plus further possession counts. A black wolf pelt was shown in court, and observers said they were sure it was Romeo's.
In November 2010 Judge Keith Levy sentenced Myers to 330 days in jail, all suspended, and $12,500 in fines, with $7,500 suspended. He was ordered to pay $1,100 in restitution, forfeited three rifles and lost his hunting licence for the length of his probation. In court he said: "I am remorseful about what I did." Many residents felt the penalty was far too light for the loss of an animal the whole town knew.
Nick Jans
Juneau did not forget him. Residents held a memorial and placed a plaque in his honour near Mendenhall Lake, where many of his famous play sessions took place.
Klas Stolpe/Juneau Empire
What Romeo teaches about wolves and people
Romeo's story is moving precisely because it was so rare. It is not evidence that wild wolves are safe to approach. Most wolves avoid people, and serious attacks are uncommon, but they do happen: in 2010 a teacher, Candice Berner, was killed by wolves near Chignik Lake on the Alaska Peninsula. Wildlife agencies across North America give the same basic advice:
- Never feed wolves or leave food and rubbish where they can reach it. Food-conditioned wolves are the ones most likely to become bold and dangerous.
- Keep dogs leashed in wolf country. Dogs can be seen as rivals, and most wolves are not as tolerant as Romeo.
- Give distance. If a wolf approaches, stand tall, make noise and back away slowly rather than running.
- Report bold animals to local wildlife officials so they can monitor them.
His life also showed how fragile such animals are around people. A wolf that trusts humans is easy to kill, and the protections that exist on paper depend on people respecting them. Many who knew Romeo argue that his true legacy is the question he left Juneau: how much room a community is willing to make for the wild animals living at its edge.
Read the whole story
Nick Jans first wrote about Romeo in The Glacier Wolf (2009) and then told the complete story in A Wolf Called Romeo, published by Mariner Books in 2015. It is the best account of the six years, written by the man who was there from the first evening. Other books include John Hyde's photographic Romeo, The Story of an Alaskan Wolf (2010) and the children's book Black Wolf of the Glacier by Deb Vanasse.
You can find Nick's book here: A Wolf Called Romeo. For another look at wild canids, see British Columbia's Coastal Wolves Through Ian McAllister's Lens.
Sources: Wikipedia: Romeo (wolf); Anchorage Daily News: Hunter believed to have shot Juneau wolf 'Romeo' sentenced; Nick Jans, A Wolf Called Romeo (Mariner Books, 2015). Photos by Nick Jans, Arnie Hanger, Dave Wilson and Klas Stolpe/Juneau Empire; an earlier version of this story circulated via The Mind Unleashed.
COMMENTS