The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) reports it currently has an estimated wolf population ranging from 957 to 1,573 animals with the most likely estimate of 1,195 animals, a 12.3 percent increase over 2019. The state wolf management plan calls for 350 wolves outside of reservations.
Researchers at the DNR and the University of Wisconsin-Madison developed the department’s new occupancy model with data from systematic winter tracking surveys and collared wolf packs to estimate the total area occupied by packs. The model then combines average pack territory size with the average number of wolves in each pack to estimate the state’s wolf population.
The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation agrees with scientists that the western Great Lakes wolf population is fully recovered, should be delisted and returned to state management.
(Photo source: Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation)