WA wolf count grows in 2021
By Terry Murry on Tuesday, April 12th, 2022 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
OLYMPIA – For the 13th consecutive year, Washington’s wolf population showed growth in 2021. The 2021 annual report just released by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife shows a 16 percent increase in wolf population growth from the previous count in 2020.
“Washington’s wolves continue to progress toward recovery, with four new packs documented in four different counties of the state in 2021,” WDFW director Kelly Susewind said.
As of December 31, 2021, WDFW, partner agencies, and tribes counted 206 wolves in 33 packs in Washington. Nineteen of these were successful breeding pairs. This is up from 178 wolves in 29 packs and 16 breeding pairs in the 2020 count.
Four new packs formed in 2021 including the Columbia Pack in Columbia County, the Keller Ridge Pack in Ferry County, the Dominion Pack in Stevens County, and the Shady Pass Pack in Chelan County. The Naneum Pack was not located during the survey; the two collared wolves in the pack dispersed from that area in November. One traveled through the Southern Cascades and Northwest Coast Recovery area and the other joined the Stranger pack in northeast Washington. As a result, that pack was removed from the tally.
