This update provides an overview of gray wolf conservation and management activities in Washington during April 2019.
Program updates
WDFW will be using a new format for monthly updates beginning with this update. The update will be posted the second Monday of each month to provide time for field staff to write and finalize content as well as opportunity for public and media inquiry.
WDFW staff continued working on analyzing Washington wolf population data collected during the last decade to update the population model that will inform the ongoing periodic status review for wolves.
A report was completed assessing the relatedness among Washington’s wolves using DNA analysis. The report details the family relationships between packs and individuals based on analysis of 16 tissue samples from seven different packs and two single wolves.
Communication and coordination
In early April, WDFW released the 2018 Annual Wolf Report and presented information in the report to the Fish and Wildlife Commission. Both the written report and a video presentation are available on the WDFW website.
Wolf biologists also gave presentations on wolf ecology and the 2018 Annual Wolf Report to the elk research group in North Bend, Vestas - Wildhorse Windfarm, the Yakima Valley Audubon Society in Yakima, the Lower Columbia Basin Audubon in Kennewick, and the Outdoor Writers Conference in Wenatchee. Additionally, the report was presented to WDFW Hunter Education instructors during their in-service training sessions.
The Wolf Advisory Group (WAG) met in April in Olympia and discussed changes to the wolf-livestock interaction protocol before the upcoming grazing season. Notes from the meeting are available on the WAG webpage.
WDFW also conducted an interagency wolf meeting to facilitate communication on wolf issues in Washington between other state/federal agencies and tribal governments.
WDFW completed three information/outreach documents for public use: 1) recreating with your dog in wolf country, 2) glossary of wolf-related terms, and 3) understanding wolf behavior and habituation. The information can be found on the gray wolf species page.
Current population status and proactive conflict mitigation
The year-end minimum population count for 2018 was at least 126 known wolves in 27 known packs, including at least 15 breeding pairs. Annual wolf population surveys are conducted in the winter because wolf populations experience the least amount of natural fluctuation during this time. Counting the population at the end of each year allows for comparable year-to-year trends at a time of year when the wolf population is most stable. The year-end minimum population count for 2019 will be released in April 2020.
Reports of remote camera images or videos, wolf tracks, or sightings from the public are extremely helpful in locating previously undocumented wolf activity and potential new packs on the landscape. Please take photos of wolves or wolf sign (use some way to measure the size of a track) and upload them to the wolf reporting page.
Wolf biologists conducted capture efforts to collar wolves with the following priorities: 1) packs that overlap the WDFW predator/prey research study, 2) packs with a recent history of interactions with livestock, and 3) packs that will help assist in long-term monitoring of the wolf population.
Definitions: A “pack” is defined as two or more wolves traveling together in winter, and a “breeding pair” is defined as at least one adult male and one adult female wolf that raised at least two pups that survived until December 31. In any given year, the number of packs will always be greater than or equal to the number of breeding pairs. The known territories and more information for each pack can be viewed by clicking the pack name.
Beaver Creek pack: No activity to report.
Butte Creek pack: No activity to report.
Carpenter Ridge pack: No activity to report.
Diobsud Creek pack: No activity to report.
Dirty Shirt pack: No activity to report.
Goodman Meadows pack: No activity to report.
Grouse Flats pack: No activity to report.
Huckleberry pack: No activity to report.
Leadpoint pack: No activity to report.
Lookout pack: No activity to report.
Loup Loup pack: No activity to report.
Nanuem pack: A range rider is working in the Naneum territory this month. Producers have been informed regularly about known wolf activity and unconfirmed wolf sightings in the territory.
Three unconfirmed sightings of wolves were reported in the Wild Horse area. Observers reported wolves near elk, near cattle, and sitting in open areas. Other reports in the same area described large coyotes but no wolves. Follow-up visits to those locations yielded no tracks or signs of wolves. No photos were available from these unconfirmed reports. A cattle producer reported finding a dead calf in the Green Gate area, but a subsequent investigation found no evidence of wolves in the area nor confirmed a cause of death. Coyote tracks were found around and near the carcass and birds had consumed most of the remaining carcass except bones.
Several search attempts to locate a denning area for the Naneum pack occurred in the last two weeks. No indicators were found.
An unconfirmed sighting of three wolves was reported near Vantage, close to a large sheep operation. The area was examined for tracks and other wolf sign, and inquiries were made to wind farm employees and the sheepherder in the area. No wolves or wolf sign were observed by them, and WDFW staff members will continue to monitor the area for wolf activity.
Old Profanity Territory (OPT) pack: No activity to report.
Salmo pack: No activity to report.
Sherman pack: No activity to report.
Smackout pack: No activity to report.
Stranger pack: A collared adult male wolf belonging to the Stranger pack was harvested on the Spokane Indian Reservation this month.
Strawberry pack: No activity to report.
Teanaway pack: This month, the Teanaway pack was located within their known territory. No livestock is known to be near the historic denning areas in this territory this month.
Togo pack: No activity to report.
Touchet pack: No activity to report.
Tucannon pack: No activity to report.
Wedge pack: No activity to report.
Miscellaneous/lone wolves: No activity to report.
Note: The Frosty, Nason, Nc’icn, and Whitestone pack territories are within the Colville Confederated Tribes (CCT) reservation and are managed under tribal authority. Information regarding these packs is proprietary and reported at the discretion of the CCT.
Mortalities
As noted above, a collared adult male wolf belonging to the Stranger pack was harvested on the Spokane Indian Reservation this month.
On the morning of April 29, WDFW was informed that a wolf was killed east of Highway 97 in Okanogan County in a “caught-in-the-act” scenario. The incident is under investigation by WDFW law enforcement. The unmarked, male yearling died near a calving area in the estimated Beaver Creek pack territory. The calving area included cow-calf pairs that were enclosed in a fenced pasture within sight of the house of the livestock producer. The producer routinely buries all carcasses and removes afterbirth from the area.
Depredation activity
Please report any suspected livestock depredations or the death or harassment of wolves to the WDFW Enforcement Hotline at 1-877-933-9847.
Below is a summary of packs with documented depredation activity within the past 10 months (some packs have depredation history prior to the current 10-month window; this timeframe is considered based on guidance from the wolf-livestock interaction protocol (PDF)).
|
Pack |
Depredation date |
Depredation type |
Proactive nonlethals |
10-month window |
Agency lethal removal actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Togo |
8/8/18 |
Confirmed kill to cow |
Yes |
6/8/19 |
|
|
Togo |
8/10/18 |
Confirmed injury to calf |
Yes |
6/10/19 |
|
|
Togo |
8/18/18 |
Confirmed injury to calf |
Yes |
6/18/19 |
Adult male lethally removed 9/2/18 |
|
Togo |
9/7/18 |
Confirmed injury to calf, death later |
Yes |
7/7/19 |
|
|
Togo |
10/26/18 |
Confirmed injury to calf |
Yes |
8/26/19 |
|
|
OPT |
9/5/18 |
Confirmed injury to calf |
Yes |
7/5/19 |
|
|
OPT |
9/5/18 |
Confirmed injury to calf |
Yes |
7/5/19 |
|
|
OPT |
9/5/18 |
Confirmed kill to calf |
Yes |
7/5/19 |
|
|
OPT |
9/6/18 |
Confirmed injury to calf |
Yes |
7/6/19 |
|
|
OPT |
9/7/18 |
Confirmed injury to calf |
Yes |
7/7/19 |
|
|
OPT |
9/11/18 |
Confirmed injury to calf |
Yes |
7/11/19 |
Juvenile lethally removed 9/16/18 |
|
OPT |
9/17/18 |
Confirmed kill to cow |
Yes |
7/17/19 |
|
|
OPT |
9/21/18 |
Confirmed injury to calf |
Yes |
7/21/19 |
|
|
OPT |
9/21/18 |
Confirmed injury to calf |
Yes |
7/21/19 |
|
|
OPT |
9/21/18 |
Confirmed injury to calf |
Yes |
7/21/19 |
|
|
OPT |
9/21/18 |
Confirmed injury to calf |
Yes |
7/21/19 |
|
|
OPT |
9/21/18 |
Confirmed injury to calf |
Yes |
7/21/19 |
Adult female lethally removed 9/28/18 |
|
OPT |
10/5/18 |
Confirmed injury to calf, death later |
Yes |
8/5/19 |
|
|
OPT |
10/7/18 |
Probable injury to calf |
Yes |
8/7/19 |
|
|
OPT |
10/11/18 |
Confirmed injury to calf |
Yes |
8/11/19 |
|
|
OPT |
10/23/18 |
Confirmed kill to calf |
Yes |
8/23/19 |
|
|
OPT |
1/4/19 |
Confirmed kill to cow |
No |
N/A |
|
|
OPT |
1/4/19 |
Confirmed kill to calf |
No |
N/A |
|
|
OPT |
1/4/19 |
Confirmed kill to calf |
No |
N/A |
|
|
Smackout |
8/20/18 |
Confirmed injury to calf |
Yes |
6/20/19 |
|
|
Smackout |
10/14/18 |
Confirmed kill to heifer |
Yes |
8/14/19 |
|
|
Smackout |
10/21/18 |
Confirmed kill to heifer |
Yes |
8/21/19 |
|
|
Smackout |
10/31/18 |
Confirmed kill to heifer |
Yes |
8/31/19 |
|
|
Smackout |
11/1/18 |
Confirmed kill to heifer |
Yes |
9/1/19 |
Adult male lethally removed 11/8/18 |
|
Single wolf (Chiliwist area) |
11/27/18 |
Confirmed kill to calf |
No |
9/27/19 |
|
|
Grouse Flats |
8/23/18 |
Confirmed injury to calf |
Yes |
6/23/19 |
|
|
Grouse Flats |
9/2/18 |
Confirmed kill to calf |
Yes |
7/2/19 |
|
|
Grouse Flats |
10/28/18 |
Confirmed injury to cow |
Yes |
8/28/19 |
|