Wildlife officials in California believe that a grey wolf managed to venture into the state from Oregon making the animal the second grey wolf to get there since the 1920s.
In the document "Evidence of a Wolf in Siskiyou County," which was released on Monday, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), said that it has started conducting investigation following reported sightings of a wolf-like creature by Californians earlier this year.
It said that it deployed cameras along trails in Siskiyou County's remote areas and were able to capture images of the creature. Biologists also looked at the fresh tracks and in the area and gathered DNA samples albeit testing results were not conclusive because of the poor quality of the genetic materials that were collected and used for analysis.
Biologists with the CDFW said that they believe that the lone animal is a grey wolf based on tracks and photographic images. The tracks of the animals were also significantly bigger compared with those of coyote.
Before 2011, there were no grey wolves in California with the last one known to have been killed in 1924 but in December 2011, a lone grey wolf which was later named OR7 was discovered in the state encouraging environmentalists who hope that the species would be able to establish their foothold in California again. Wild wolves once inhabited the state but they were extirpated.
CDFW said that if the animal that was photographed on the trail camera is a wolf, it is probably like OR7 which has dispersed from a pack in Oregon. The department said that the newly spotted wolf was not OR7, which has not been in the state for over a year now and known to be the breeding male in one pack in Oregon.
"This situation is unique from OR7's presence in the state, however, because this animal does not have a radio collar," the department said in a statement. "OR7 was collared with a radio and satellite transmitter by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife in early 2011."
CDFW explained that dispersing wolves make attempts to be part of other packs, look for a mate, create new territories or form their own pack. Gray wolves are protected in California under the Endangered Species Act of the government and this means it is prohibited to harass, shoot, wound or pursue a gray wolf.
Photo: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Headquarters | Flickr
