Monthly wolf report- March 2024

This update provides an overview of gray wolf conservation and management activities in Washington during March 2024. 

Program updates and coordination 

Outreach and education  

A Wolf biologist gave a presentation to the Central Washington University forensics class on depredation investigations. He also gave a presentation at the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) Range meeting in Pendleton, OR to share an update on the status of wolves in Washington.    

Current population status and proactive conflict mitigation 

The year-end minimum population count for 2022 was at least 216 known wolves in 37 known packs including at least 26 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 2023 will be released at the WDFW commission meeting in April 2024. 

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 (learn how to differentiate between wolves and coyotes; use some way to measure the size of a track) and upload them to the wolf reporting page here: https://wdfw.wa.gov/species-habitats/at-risk/species-recovery/gray-wolf/observations 

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 territory 
WDFW biologists conducted monitoring activities in this pack territory. Biologists also located a VHF collar that fell off of a wolf due to a device on the collar that had a timed drop off function.   

Big Muddy pack 
WDFW biologists conducted monitoring activities in this pack territory. 

Butte Creek pack 
No activity to report. 

Carpenter Ridge pack 
No activity to report. 

Chewuch pack 
WDFW biologists conducted monitoring activities in this pack territory.  

Miscellaneous/lone wolves 
WDFW biologist conducted monitoring activities in the historic Naneum pack territory of Kittitas County and in areas between Highway 410 and Highway 12 in Yakima County.   

Note: The Frosty, Nason, Nc’icn, Keller Ridge, Strawberry, Whitestone, and Wilmont pack territories are within Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation (CTCR) lands and are managed under tribal authority. Information regarding these packs is proprietary and reported at the discretion of the CTCR. 

Mortalities 

Depredation activity 

In general, about 80% of known wolf packs in Washington have not been involved in any documented livestock depredation in any given year. 

WDFW staff did not document any depredation events on livestock by wolves in March. The average number of depredations for the month of March is 0.2 based on depredation records from 2019-2023. 

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 ten months (some packs have depredation history prior to the current ten-month window; this timeframe is considered based on guidance from the wolf-livestock interaction protocol (PDF)).