Name: Gray wolf (USFWS photo)
(Canis
lupus)
Status: Endangered
in lower 48 states except in Minnesota where it is threatened.
Listed: March
11,1973
Description: Large
canine
Threats: Loss
of habitat, hunting, ranchers defending their livestock
Overview: The wolf, like the grizzly bear, has become an internationally recognized symbol of the wilderness. For ages, human civilizations have respected this elusive hunter out of both fear and awe, often endowing it with supernatural qualities in their mythologies. It was largely fear, for personal safety as well as for livestock safety, that motivated the efforts early in the 20th century to eradicate the wolf from the United States. By the time the wolf was listed on the Endangered Species Act of 1973, it had been exterminated in every one of the lower 48 states except for a population of a few hundred in northeastern Minnesota. Today, wolves are slowly making a comeback, in part because of re-introduction efforts and protection from hunting, but also because of public education programs that seek to allay unfounded fears about wolves.
In Idaho, a proposal to reintroduce wolves sparked so much controversy
that the state of Idaho refused to oversee the program. Instead, the Nez
Perce tribe accepted the job, and through its Wildlife Program, wolf
reintroduction efforts in central Idaho have been highly successful. In
1995, a pack of 35 animals was released in the Frank Church River of No Return
Wilderness and by 2001 Idaho had a breeding population of 191 wolves.
In Washington, gray wolf populations are rare but limited numbers are still
present. Currently a very small population is limited to the North Cascades ecosystem,
otherwise this species has been extirpated from the state. Exact population
trends in WA are currently unknown due to the lack of data and difficulty of
tracking individual wolves, which may have home ranges up to 100 square
miles. Though still highly controversial, the success of re-introduction
efforts in Yellowstone and Idaho has inspired a proposal for reintroduction of
wolves on the Olympic peninsula. In Oregon it is highly unlikely a viable
population exists in the state. Between 1999 and 2001 there have been 3
confirmed wolves in northeastern Oregon.
The last wolf identified was found illegally shot in the Blue Mountains
in 2000. For more information on
gray wolf ecology and current reintroduction efforts, check out the U.S Fish
and Wildlife Service's page at http://species.fws.gov/bio_gwol.html.
For information on the proposed Olympic National Forest reintroduction
project check out www.nps.gov/olym/issues/isswolf.htm
or www.nps.gov/noca/wolf.htm.
Click on map to Enlarge
WA Distribution: As
displayed in this sightings map, there are still gray wolf populations found in
Washington. There have been sightings throughout the Cascades as far
south as the Oregon border, but resident populations are believed to be farther
north. According to WDFW (Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife)
most remaining populations of gray wolves within Washington are concentrated
around the North Cascades ecosystem area. Historically, gray wolves were
found throughout the state.
We currently do not have map information for gray wolf sightings in Idaho or Oregon.
Last updated October
11, 2001
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