From Staff And Wire Reports
The Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation has received a $187,000 federal grant to continue wolf research on the reservation and develop a wolf management plan.
The grant is from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Earlier this winter, the tribe’s wildlife biologists were able to put GPS collars on an adult female wolf from the Strawberry Pack and an adult female from the Nc’icn Pack.
The grant will pay for additional wolf monitoring efforts, including DNA sampling and more collaring of animals.
DNA extracted from scat samples identifies individual wolves and also provides a record of what the wolves are eating at various times of the year, tribal officials said.
Wildlife biologists will use that information to estimate annual consumption of elk, deer, moose and other prey species.