Wandering wolf sticking close to Yellowstone
CODY, Wyo. (AP) — A wolf that wandered from Yellowstone National Park to
Utah last summer has done little traveling since it was returned to the
Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.
The 2-year-old male was originally from northeastern Yellowstone. It was
caught in a coyote trap near Morgan, Utah, last weekend, making it the
first confirmed wolf in Utah in 70 years.
The radio-collared wolf — No. 253 of Yellowstone’s Druid Pack — was
sedated and released between Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Park on
Monday.
Biologists believe the wolf trekked at least 150 miles and possibly killed
livestock as it made its way toward Utah.
“It was impressive but not unusual,” said Mike Jimenez, a U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service wolf biologist in Wyoming who helped get the wolf
returned to Wyoming. “It was just a classic example.”
Young male wolves typically leave their home packs to stake out new
territory. There were reports that the wolf had a companion in Utah but
that has not been substantiated, Jimenez said.
On Thursday, biologists surveyed the area where the wolf was released and
determined that No. 253 was within 5 miles of the point where he was
dropped off.
Not everyone was happy that the wolf was brought back to Wyoming.
Suzanne Laverty, of the Defenders of Wildlife office in Boise, Idaho, said
the wolf should have been allowed to remain in Utah so the endangered wolf
population could get a foothold there.
“Utah has a wide range of excellent habitat for a stable population of
wolves, and opinion polling has shown that a majority of the state’s
citizens favor the return of the species to its historic home in the
state,” she said.
The Fish and Wildlife Service has met its recovery goals for the
endangered gray wolf. There now are close to 700 wolves in Montana, Idaho
and Wyoming, the core of the recovery area.
The agency expects to move the wolf off the Endangered Species List soon,
possibly by the first of the year.