As of this May, California has three known wolf packs. I want to bring you up to date on the packs, how they came together, whether they had pups this spring, and especially their status as fires burn in their home ranges.
The Lassen Pack
The Lassen pack is the state's oldest and has consistently helped the state’s wolf population grow by producing pups every year since 2017. They roam a broad area, about 500 square miles in western Lassen and northern Plumas counties.
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) says genetic analysis shows the original breeding male of the Lassen pack dispersed from southwestern Oregon’s Rogue Pack. That means he travelled more than 200 miles to his new home. The original breeding female dispersed from elsewhere in the northern Rocky Mountains. The Lassen pack has produced another six pups this year, according to CDFW.
The Dixie Fire has burned through the Lassen pack’s home range. That fire has engulfed more than 771,000 acres and even now is only 48% contained. The fire started in mid-July—when those Lassen pups would have been three months old.
The good news is that CDFW biologist Kent Laudon reported recently seeing two adults, a yearling, and four of the six pups. According to an article in The Sacramento Bee, Laudon and another biologist found the wolves in “a little meadow with a creek nearby—an oasis of green amid miles of soot and ash.”
The Whaleback Pack
California’s second oldest pack, the Whaleback pack consists of breeding male OR-85 and an uncollared female. They have a large home range too, about 480 square miles near Mt. Shasta.
OR-85 dispersed from the Mount Emily Pack near La Grande, Oregon, made his incredible 500-mile journey southward, entered California in November 2020, and was photographed by a trail camera with another wolf in December. He had found what he sought.
Genetic analysis shows that the Whaleback breeding female is closely related to southern Oregon’s Rogue pack that lives 130 miles north of her new home. The Whaleback pack has had its first litter—at least six pups—this year.
According to CDFW at least two fires have burned in or near the Whaleback’s home range. The largest is the Antelope Fire. That fire was started by lightning at the beginning of August, has burned more than 71,000 acres, and is 60% contained. The other threatening fire is the Lava Fire, also lightning-caused. It started late June, has burned more than 26,000 acres, and is 85% contained. This means that the Whaleback wolves have been threatened by fire since their pups were just a little over two months old.
Here’s more good news. Amaroq Weiss, senior wolf advocate at the Center for Biological Diversity, told me that she heard from a dependable source that the Whaleback pack has survived so far. Images of OR-85 and the pups were recently captured via trail camera. While, to her knowledge, the breeding female was not photographed, Weiss points out that she may still be alive but did not walk near the trail camera.
The Beckwourth Pack
The Beckwourth pack, California’s third and newest, was confirmed this May when three wolves were photographed by a trail camera. CDFW says DNA analysis reveals that one of the Beckwourth wolves is LAS12F, a female born to the Lassen pack in 2019. She has chosen a new home range in southern Plumas County that is near where her birth pack still lives. The origins of the pack’s other two wolves are unknown. There is no record that this pack had pups this year.
The lightning-caused Beckwourth Complex Fire started in early July and may be near the Beckwourth pack’s home range. The fire has burned more than 105,000 acres and is 98% contained.
As of August 30, there was no information available on how these three wolves have fared during the fires.
Wolves are incredible survivors
I’m relieved to learn that two of California’s three packs are accounted for and that at least some of this year’s pups have survived the fires. I hope that the Beckwourth pack is soon found to be alive and well.
These California packs are great examples of how wolves, when given the opportunity, will disperse over hundreds of miles, find mates, create new packs, survive natural disasters, and increase the genetic diversity and health of our nation’s wolf population.
These wolves have been helped to flourish by being protected under the California Endangered Species Act even though protections for wolves in the Lower 48 under the federal Endangered Species Act were stripped away early this year.
To learn the incredible ways that lone dispersing wolves find each other
JOIN Rick in his latest writing adventure, Love the Wild, a free weekly letter to subscribers. You’ll enjoy a diverse selection of podcasts, photo essays, opinion pieces, excerpts from Rick's award-winning books, and more. All aim to excite your mind and warm your heart with stories about wildlife and wild lands.
Indie author Rick Lamplugh writes, speaks, and photographs to protect wildlife and preserve wild lands.
Rick's bestselling In the Temple of Wolves; its sequel, Deep into Yellowstone; and its prequel, The Wilds of Aging are available signed. His books are also available unsigned or as eBook or audiobook on Amazon.
 |
| Signed Sets Available |
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.