Early July update on Wyoming Wolves outside Yellowstone

July 9, 2001

Mike Jimenez, Wyoming wolf manager for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service told me today he thought all the Wyoming wolves outside Yellowstone had pups, except the Gros Ventre Pack which has no radio collars, and which he has not been able to locate despite hiking up almost every drainage and visiting the pack's old den sites and rendezvous sites.

The Sunlight Pack, still led by former Druid 41F and former Rose Creek 52M definitely has pups, but the number have not yet been counted.  The Absaroka Pack, which was new in 2000, and led by153F and 164M, has one yearling still with the pack and 4 new pups.  This is their second litter.

The Beartooth Pack, of which famous no 9F is a member, probably has pups.  Someone asked me today about no. 9F. She is still alive and her radio collar works, but she is not the mother of the likely pups. The mother of the pups would be 9's granddaughter no. 77F. The number of pups has not been determined or even verified, although Jimenez says their existence is very likely.

The Sunlight Basin, Beartooth, and Absaroka Packs all live in the area between the northeast boundary of Yellowstone and Cody, Wyoming to their east.

Further to the south near the NE boundary of Grand Teton National Pack, the Teton Pack which amazed people earlier by having pups when there was thought not to be an alpha male, now is known to have nine pups, rather than the 4 pups earlier reported. There is a possibility of a double litter, especially because the two females in the pack were both seen in the den for extended periods a number of times. There are 3 or 4 adults in the pack. The pack is not far from the controversial national park pasture where Hansen-Mead runs about 1000 cow/calf pairs each summer, but the grass hardly grew this year. It has gone to seed at 3 to 5 inches. The pasture looks horrible, and it is growing numerous noxious (non-native) thistles, and so far they have not put cows on it. Speculation is that they might not. Instead the "Kelly Hayfields" of the Park are being used, and I have heard they are now in bad condition.

The Washakie Pack, which re-emerged from the realm of speculation last year, has a new litter (after much observation it was determined they had a litter in 2000 from which 2-3 pups survived). Now they have at least 5 new pups (3 gray and 2 black). The pack also has 6 adults. Both the alpha male and female are uncollared wolves with no numeric designation. However, the biologists have now trapped a female who may be the alpha. She is 3 to 5 years old. An examination showed she has whelped pups in the past. One other member of the pack was collared last summer, a disperser from the Chief Joseph Pack. 

In summary, with the surprising 9 pups for the Teton Pack perhaps Jackson Hole will finally start to see more than the trivial wolf recovery it has seen so far.