Park releases 2 wolves to the wild

9/17/96.

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On Sept. 17, Yellowstone NP biologists released two wolves that had been captured earlier this summer and held in the Nez Perce Creek enclosure.

The released wolves are no. 15M, originally from the Soda Butte Pack; and no. 47M, a pup born this spring to no. 27F of the Nez Perce Pack.

The pup's father is no. 28M, which has existed as a lone wolf ever since it was released last April.

Both no.15M and no. 47M had been captured in separate operations this summer (July 8 for no. 15 and Aug. 6 for no. 47).

No. 15 was a young adult captured in Alberta and released with the rest of the Soda Butte Pack during the spring of 1995. A year later, in the spring of 1996, the Soda Butte pack denned on private land far north of the Park near West Rosebud Creek. The den was on private land. Three pups were born. Because of the location, in early June all of the Soda Butte Pack except no. 15 was captured and placed in the empty Crystal Creek Bench enclosure pen. In late August the Soda Butte Pack was ferried across Yellowstone Lake, and relocated in the new, and very remote, Trail Creek enclosure. They will be released from this enclosure sometime this fall, probably after hunting season.

Trail Creek is in far SE corner of the Park, very far from any roads.

No. 15 escaped capture and soon he joined up with wolf 27F near Nye, Montana, not far from West Rosebud Creek. I have posted many articles about the unsuccessful attempts to recapture lone female no. 27 and her five pups-of-the-year.

After the passage of a month, no. 15 was finally captured and put in the empty Nez Perce Creek enclosure. Later, two of no. 27's 5 pups were cap-tured. One pup was injured and lost a leg to the trap. No. 47, however, was captured without harm and put in the pen with no. 15 with whom the pup was already familiar.

Recently no. 26F, a yearling female (also a daughter of no. 27 but born in British Columbia in the spring of 1995), has started to hang around the Nez Perce enclosure. It is hoped that with the release of 15 and 47, a trio will form and there will be a new pack -- a pack that will take up residence near the Firehole River on the western side of the Park -- the place it had been hoped the original Nez Perce pack would inhabit when they were released last spring. In fact, no. 26F was nearby when no. 15 and 47 were released.

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Readers may want to review my post of June 7 on the capture of the Soda Butte Pack, and my post of July 11 on the capture of wolf no. 15 to make better sense of this article.

The article above is based on a Sept. 17 news release from Yellowstone Park Public Affairs.