There has been a lot of restlessness and changes in the Yellowstone wolf packs, and so it is already time for another update.

Druid Pack- Apparently there were no mortalities in either the Druid Pack or the Slough Creek Pack after their recent confrontation on the north side of Lamar Canyon, but for the last two days the Druids have gone way up Cache Creek to near the edge of the Park. The last tracking flight found them up there in steep, timbered country during a day of high winds.

In the last month, the Druids have fought with 2 wolves from Mollies Pack, the Agate Pack and the Slough Creek Pack. The Nez Perce Pack and the "new pack" have both impinged on their territory as has the Slough Creek Pack off an on this fall. The Slough Creek Pack and the Nez Perce Pack are bigger packs than the Druids. I wonder if the Druids are looking for new territory? Will 253M, 376F and other missing Druids rejoin the now 11-member pack?  Is the pack going to leave Yellowstone where it will have to confront the Sunlight Basin Pack, the Absaroka Pack and others, or is this just one of those every-so-often trips into the upper Lamar area?

The "New Pack"- It hasn't been seen for several days now. The last time they were seen they were in Rose Creek howling at the Slough Creek Pack and the Druids. Both packs were howling back.

Geode Pack- They have continued to be under pressure from the big Leopold Pack (Leopold now consistently seen as 24 wolves, not 27). On Nov. 21 Dan Stahler spotted the Geodes around an apparent elk kill east of Hellroaring Slopes, but upon flying lower he saw it was a cougar. When cougar researchers examined the dead male cat, birds had eaten a lot of him. It was hard to say if the Geodes had eaten some or just killed it, the usual case with competitive predators.

A couple days ago the Leopolds made their first visit to upper Crevice Creek area (on the northern Park boundary a few miles east of Jardine). The Geodes also went to Crevice Creek and today both packs were back on Hellroaring Slopes. Leopold outnumbers Geode 2:1.

The Nez Perce Pack did not leave the northern range after their recent appearance on Specimen Ridge and Mom's Ridge. The other day, 15 members of Slough Creek were seen advancing toward 15 members of the Nez Perce Pack who had moved onto Mom's ridge, but it seems no confrontation took place. Since then the Nez Perce has moved out of the Park into the Absaroka Beartooth Wilderness to the north. They are in the upper Hellroaring Creek area near Bull Mountain. The Nez Perce are normally a central Yellowstone Pack, but Stahler thinks it is possible the new Biscuit Basin Pack (it won't be called "Old Faithful Pack") might be a factor. Stahler told me he had found yet  more members of the Biscuit Basin Pack. The count is up to twelve wolves. He thinks 5 or 6 or them are pups.  Yesterday the Biscuit Basin Pack, founded by 340F a Nez Perce disperser, killed a bison in Nez Perce Creek.

The Swan Lake Pack seemed to be on the decline numberwise with only 7-8 members (a year ago there were over 20), but all of a sudden the count is up to 14 (perhaps due to the return of a pack sub-group). The Swan Lake Pack has been ranging from the Swan Lake area in the Park, all the way north to the Cinnabar Basin area about 8 miles north of the Park.

There is now a good count on the Cougar Creek pack -- 12 wolves. They are hard to see because much of their territory is in an area of dense lodgepole pole, the result of the fires of 1988.

In the last update I forgot to mention 194M and the U-black who had 5 pups last spring on Specimen Ridge. During the summer they moved south of the ridge onto the Mirror Plateau. They were last located in September near Wapiti Lake. 194M wears a new collar, but he hasn't been located since Sept. The collar might have failed.

There have been no recent sightings by Park wolf researchers of "The Hayden Valley Four" -- the white wolf, her or his, light gray mate and the two light gray (probable) pups.

Finally, Mollies Pack killed a bison the other day near Fishing Bridge.