The Wyoming Game and Fish Department (WGFD) estimates there are 311 wolves in 43 packs. That 2019 estimate is 25 animals larger than the 2018 count.
“I think we’re really settling into a pattern that is outlined in the wolf management plan and an objective we’ve had as an agency, that is to reduce the population and stabilize it around a number that’s above the minimum recovery criteria while also reducing conflicts and reducing the number of wolves we take as an agency,” Ken Mills, WGFD wolf biologist, told the News & Guide.
A court mandate returned the management of wolves to WGFD in 2017. The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation maintains that wolves should be managed by state agencies just as they manage elk, mountain lions, deer, bears and other wildlife.
(Photo source: Wyoming Game and Fish Department)