Two new wolf packs discovered in Northern California reveal the continued resurgence of the species, a century after it disappeared from the Golden State.
Wildlife officials confirmed the presence of the gray wolf, which is native to California, earlier this month. SF Gate reported.
One pack, which has not yet been named, is made up of four wolves, two of them cubs, roaming the southern part of Lassen Volcanic National Park, about 120 kilometers southeast of the city of Redding.
“This discovery is remarkable,” Axel Hunnicutt, a wolf biologist with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, told the magazine.
“This confirms that California's wolf population, like other recently identified packs, continues to expand in both size and range within the state.”
The second newly sighted pack, called the Diamond Pack, includes two adult wolves and was spotted about 80 miles north of Lake Tahoe.
Since last year, biologists have been monitoring the pair to see if they meet the criteria to be considered a pack, one of which is four or more sightings of two or more wolves in the same area over a six-month period. , Hunnicutt explained.
There are currently 9 packs available gray wolf Wildlife officials have confirmed this in California, including three new ones this year alone.
Although abundant from the mid-1800s to the early 1900s, they were thought to be extinct in the state by the 1920s due to hunting and habitat encroachment by humans.
They are considered federally and state-endangered. Officials were shocked in 2011 when wolves left their packs and walked across the Oregon-California border, settling there for the first time in decades.
In May, the bill was passed Despite encountering resistance from the Biden administration, it has decided to remove wolves from the endangered species list in most parts of the country.
Although wolves are known to avoid harming humans, their reappearance could cause problems for local residents such as ranchers. a calf was killed by a wolfand can weigh up to 150 pounds.
These animals are protected under the Endangered Species Act, so it is illegal to kill or harm them in most circumstances.
“I have mixed feelings about that,'' Hunnicutt said. said in september.
“Population growth poses significant challenges regarding people and the current agricultural environment.”
