A New Wolf Pack in Grand Teton National Park
Our guides have been seeing a new group of wolves on the Elk Refuge this past month, a pack that has now been dubbed the ‘Blacktail Butte pack’ by Grand Teton National Park. This name stems from the place where several of the wolves were captured and radio-collared: Blacktail Butte, a land formation in the middle of the valley inside Grand Teton National Park. Near the butte on February 11, the state of Wyoming deployed 3 radio collars on two young male and one adult female wolf (National Park Service correspondence).
History of Wolves in the GYE
The formation of a new wolf pack is very exciting to all wildlife enthusiasts, especially our guides. While wolves are often difficult to spot today, they were once completely absent from Grand Teton National Park (and the GYE). When Yellowstone was established in 1872, wolves had already been present on the landscape for thousands of years. However, things quickly changed as predators (coyotes, wolves, and mountain lions) were considered destructive and subsequently targeted by eradication efforts. People at the time, including the National Park Service and Yellowstone’s superintendent, viewed wolves as a threat to desirable game animals like deer, pronghorn, elk, and bighorn sheep. In Yellowstone National Park, between 1914 and 1926, at least 136 wolves were killed (Greater Yellowstone Coalition). According to the National Park Service, “By the mid-20th century, wolves were virtually eliminated from the lower 48 states. An intensive survey in the 1970s found no evidence of a wolf population in Yellowstone,” (Yellowstone National Park). The Endangered Species Act was passed in 1973, with gray wolves listed under it in 1974. In January of 1995, 14 wolves from Canada were placed in acclimation pens in Yellowstone to get them used to the smells, sounds, and sights of the area. By the end of March, these wolves were released from the pens and made Yellowstone their home. In 1996, another 17 wolves were released into Yellowstone by the same acclimation process. This reintroduction was a success, and wolves have since reestablished themselves in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, with a population numbering around 500 individuals.
Wolves in Grand Teton Today
In 1999, for the first time in 70 years, a pack denned and had a litter of pups in Grand Teton National Park! Although wolf numbers and pack sizes are dynamic, Grand Teton National Park typically hosts 5-7 packs with a total of 40-45 wolves each year. There are an estimated 7 packs (including the new Blacktail Butte pack) in the park today comprised of at least 48 individual wolves. New packs form when one or more wolves leave one pack, and then rendezvous with one or more dispersing members of another pack. Wolves avoid inbreeding, which is why they combine members from different packs. The more pack members, the better – more individuals can help with the responsibilities of caring for pups, hunting prey many times their size, and defending territory. The success of the five new members of the Blacktail is greatly enhanced compared to if there were just two members of the pack.
With over 100 years of combined experience, Wildlife Expeditions guides have a breadth of knowledge about the wildlife, geography, history, ecology, and geology of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Take a tour with us to learn more about the history and current conservation issues surrounding wolves in this amazing ecosystem, and for your chance to spot one!
Sources:
Correspondence from John Stephenson, Grand Teton National Park Carnivore Biologist
https://greateryellowstone.org/yellowstone-wolf-reintroduction
https://www.nps.gov/grte/learn/nature/gray-wolf-monitoring.htm
https://www.nps.gov/yell/learn/upload/8_RI_2024_Wildlife.pdf
https://www.nps.gov/yell/learn/historyculture/wolf-management.htm
