Wolf Tracks Offer Clues

Posted: 30 May 2012

(Update on yesterday’s post
about a wolf pup found in central Idaho)

 

Suzanne points to wolf tracks by the side of the road believed to be those of the mother and siblings of the lost pup.

Good news! Defenders wolf expert Suzanne Stone and lead field technician Patrick Graham from our Wood River Wolf Project went out last night searching for the lost wolf pup’s family in the central Idaho wilderness. They were able to find tracks of what appear to be the mother and several other pups. The tracks indicate that the mother wolf was using the road to move her litter through Sawtooth National Forest where they were disturbed by human activity and the one pup got separated from his family.

In cooperation with Idaho Department of Fish and Game, our field crew is heading back out to search for the den site and hopefully find the rest of the pup’s family. Wolves travel fast though, so if they can’t be found on foot, it may be necessary to conduct survey flights to locate them by plane if possible.

In the meantime, the pup is still being fed and cared for by professionals and is expected to be transferred to a zoo later today.  Let’s keep good thoughts going for his reunion with his family.

Here’s a video Patrick took over the weekend of the pup at an animal care facility:



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