By Kelly House | The Oregonian/OregonLive
Oregon’s OR-7 wolf, his mate and their pups are now a pack.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife have begun describing the wandering wolf and his companions as the Rogue Pack in a nod to the area in southwestern Oregon where they have established territory.
Achieving packhood adds another historic distinction to OR-7’s long list of triumphs. In addition to his status as the first gray wolf to travel west of the Cascades in more than six decades and the first found in California in 90 years, OR-7 and his family are the first established pack in Western Oregon since wolves became extinct here in the late 1940s.
Oregon’s eight other packs are all located in Eastern Oregon.
“It’s pretty significant that we have a pack of wolves in that part of the state, so far away from all the other known packs,” said John Stephenson, wolf coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. “It’s likely to result in a lot more wolves in that general area as time goes on.”
Stephenson expects OR-7’s offspring to disperse in search of their own mates within the next year. “It’s pretty random which way they go,” he said, but they could remain in Western Oregon or even head down to California.
The group’s designation as a pack means at least two of OR-7 and his mate’s three known pups have lived through the end of 2014. Fish and wildlife officials don’t yet have an official count, but more details should be included in statewide yearly wolf count numbers that could be released within weeks.
OR-7 and his mate could become Western Oregon’s first “breeding pair,” a term wildlife officials use to tally their progress toward recovering Oregon’s wolf population.
“An official designation won’t come until we do all the counts,” said Michelle Dennehy, a spokeswoman for ODFW.
It’s likely 2014 will mark the third straight year that Oregon had four or more breeding pairs among its Eastern Oregon packs. Under the state’s wolf plan, that milestone means the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission could consider removing the Eastern Oregon packs from the state endangered species list.
If delisting happens, OR-7 and his family will remain protected as long as they stay put. Wolves west of highways 78, 95 and 395 are still protected under the federal Endangered Species Act.
OR-7 gained fame after breaking off from the Imnaha wolf pack in 2011, then traveling several thousands of miles across Oregon and into California. The world joined OR-7 on his historic journey using information gleaned from a radio collar around his neck.
The collar’s signal is fading and so far, biologist have been unsuccessful in multiple attempts to recollar OR-7.
“Right now, the plan is we’ll try again in the spring when they’re likely denning,” Stephenson said. “That’s the best time of the year to get them.”