I received an email today saying that 302M and another black wolf had been spotted again in the Lamar Valley. This prompted a call to Rick McIntyre on the latest info about the most visible northern range wolf packs.
McIntryre said that second wolf with 302M was not the U-Black female, but wolf of undetermined origin, probably a male. 302M shows up not just alone but with various other wolves. 302 continues to get a warm reception from pups and most of the Druid females, but is eventually chased off by the alpha pair and 3-legged 253M. This time 302 and his companion escaped the "Druid enforcers" by taking different routes -- 302 near the road where many people saw him. The other wolf fled down the Lamar River. This wolf was apparently chased a bit more aggressively. Eventually 302 and the other wolf joined up west of Lamar Valley.
I asked McIntyre if he thought 302 would ever challenge 21M or 253M, when 21 dies. Of course, he didn't know but he said that 302 seemed to have learned or had a natural ability to make the best of a difficult situation where all of the places for packs on the northern range are filed today. He suggested that had 302 been one of the original reintroduced wolves, he would have quickly become an alpha male. 302M is about 3-4 years old, in his prime. By many human accounts an handsome wolf with distinctive beautiful howl. Of course, to wolves he is probably perceived in ways humans don't understand.
The U-Black female, who has often been with 302M and is currently on leave, or expelled from the Druid Pack, was seen today in the vicinity of Mom's Ridge in the company of two wolves, one of which was 194M of Mollie's Pack. He is a recent arrival into the Lamar, although his birth pack was Rose Creek, so 194M knows the country.
The Slough Creek Pack has not been in view from the road since the death of their alpha female 217F, but I understand her carcass was examined today. I lack details about its disposition (I have had a lot of email about 217, including even a fine poem about her). I will check further.
The Agate Pack might have had an "encounter" at night several days ago with the Druids in the vicinity of Junction Butte.
In other news, hundreds of people saw a cougar on a kill from the road overlook above Hellroaring Slopes, This is not a common sight for visitors. The cougar was not far from the Geode Pack, which had a kill near the Hellroaring Creek/Yellowstone River confluence.
A final note about the Druids . . . The pups are not yet clearly helpful in the hunt and the alpha pair is getting old, the Half Black female's limp has not healed, 253M has a permanent limp, so it is likely that most of the effective Druid hunting is being done by 255F, 286F, and the gray female yearling. The arrival of hunting maturity from the numerous pups will be a great help to their pack.
12-26-04. Rick McIntrye, Tonya Matthews and one other person saw 21M and 42F mating on Jan. 22.
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