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A pup from northeast Oregon’s
Wenaha pack that was born in spring 2011. Image taken by remote camera on Dec.
11, 2011. Courtesy of ODFW.
-Photo courtesy of ODFW-
Click photos to enlarge. |
Dec. 23, 2011
LA GRANDE, Ore.—Photos captured on an ODFW remote camera in northeast Oregon show the Wenaha wolf pack had at least one pup this year.
The photos were taken on forested land in western Wallowa County as part of ODFW monitoring
efforts for the Wenaha pack. They are the first indication that the pack’s
alpha pair reproduced in 2011.
The finding means that all four wolf packs in Oregon reproduced this
year. The Imnaha, Wenaha and Snake River packs
all had at least one pup. The new Walla Walla pack produced
at least three pups.
While any reproduction is good news for wolf conservation,
only one pack, the Walla Walla,
will likely be determined to be a “breeding pair” for 2011, or a wolf pack that
has produced at least two pups that survive through the end of the year.
Breeding pairs are an important measure of wolf conservation for wildlife
managers.
The Wenaha pack was determined to be a breeding pair in
2010. It is also believed to be the first pack to reproduce in
Oregon since wolves were extirpated back in the 1940s, when a July
2008 howling survey found evidence of pups.
ODFW’s efforts to find additional pups for the Wenaha and
other packs will continue so the department can get a complete year-end count
of all pups born in 2011.
More information on wolves in Oregon. ### |
