Taylor Rabe, a researcher, stated via Instagram: “Wolves are very aware when cameras are in the area, and you can see these two adults checking it out!”
Her video was reminiscent of the accompanying footage, captured last year in Canada’s Yukon Territory. In the Yukon Wildlife Cams video, the canid is a coyote and its response is spirited.
David Troup of Yukon Trail Cams stated on Facebook: “Coyotes are known for being wary of trail cameras as this one demonstrates with a rather animated response upon that sudden realization.”
In the footage, the coyote stops in its tracks and bows briefly before bounding away from perceived danger.
Troup’s cameras are disguised but he explained, “Inevitably wildlife can detect peculiarities in their environment, whether it’s by sight, sound or smell.”
Yukon Wildlife Cams last year also shared footage showing a momma grizzly bear mouthing a trail camera near a pond.
Which animal has the best reaction after encountering a trail camera, the Yellowstone wolf or Yukon coyote?
Remote trail cameras wonderfully showcase the natural behavior of wild animals, but that’s not always the case.
For example, the Rocky Mountain Wolf Project recently shared footage showing a wolf in Yellowstone National Park licking a trail-cam’s lens.
“Just a short clip of some wild wolves from Yellowstone, courtesy of our colleagues at the National Park Service,” the RMWP stated March 27 on Facebook.
The footage, posted below, shows a lead wolf become curious about the camera before stopping to lick the device. Several other wolves ignore the camera.
The footage was somewhat reminiscent of a clip featured here last December, showing a coyote’s comical response after encountering a trail camera in Canada’s Yukon Territory.
In the footage, posted below, the coyote bows briefly before bounding from a perceived danger.
David Troup of Yukon Wildlife Cams stated: “Inevitably wildlife can detect peculiarities in their environment, whether it’s by sight, sound or smell.”
Last September, one of Troup’s cameras captured footage of a grizzly bear responding like the Yellowstone wolf.
Troup wrote on Facebook: “A family of grizzly bears find a camera and investigate the peculiarity in September, with a quick view inside mom’s mouth included.”
–Editor’s note: A similar version of this post, with more focus on Yellowstone wolves, was published April 18
“There is an undeniable power in both these species of animals and to see it firing on all cylinders was beyond incredible. Guides and guests wait for moments like this for years, so I felt very lucky to have witnessed this one.”
At one point during the pursuit, both animals cross a highway in front of an idling vehicle.
Welden explained that fleeing elk will try to access rivers for safety. In this case the elk simply outran the wolf “and walked away alive” in footage accompanied by Sia’s hit song “Unstoppable.”
Welden told FTW Outdoors that he captured the footage in October 2021, and that the wolf belonged to the Wildcat Ridge Pack in the park’s northern region. (Grand Teton National Park is just south of Yellowstone National Park.)
“That evening was magical because it highlighted the fact that wolves are not 100% successful in their hunts,” Welden said. “Elk are strong and fast and wolves try to kill them with their faces [teeth]. That’s hard to do.”
Wolves are sometimes killed by elk and typically work as a pack to bring one down.
Welden added: “Both the elk and the wolf deserve tremendous respect as members of a beautiful intact ecosystem. We need them both here. Without the other the one will suffer.”
–Generic wolf image courtesy of NPS/Yellowstone National Park
The footage, captured by a Wolf Tracker guide, shows the bear leaping onto the tree and scrambling several feet up to escape the older male wolves. (If footage doesn’t appear below, click here.)
https://www.instagram.com/p/Cg5Nqqgvdfg/
If viewers swipe to the the second clip they’ll see one of the wolves baring its teeth.
A commenter asked if the bear or wolves were hurt during the confrontation and Wolf Tracker responded: “All okay! Just some friendly disagreements.”
The disagreement began when the bear approached the wolves’ freshly killed bison. “They chased and harassed this bear up the same tree for close to half an hour!” Wolf Tracker wrote.
The wolves belong to the Junction Butte Pack, which roams the park’s northern range.
–Black bear image is generic, courtesy of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
A Yellowstone National Park tourist enjoyed a rare encounter last week involving a lone wolf that paused on the road to howl as he drove past the animal.
A Yellowstone National Park tourist enjoyed a rare encounter last week involving a wolf that howled plaintively from the road as he drove past the iconic predator.
Justin Byerly’s footage, posted below, shows the dark-colored gray wolf trotting in the same direction on the other side of the road, and pausing to issue a skyward howl.
Byerly, of Woodlife Photography, told For The Win Outdoors that he encountered the wolf between Norris and Mammoth at about 2:30 p.m. That in itself is somewhat rare, given that wolves are most active at dawn and dusk.
He said he drove past the wolf to a pullout so he could watch it catch up as he was parked (see accompanying images). Byerly then left to explore the park.
A friend later told him that the wolf stayed on the road until a caravan of about 10 vehicles followed, then it vanished into the woods.
Justin Byerly/Woodlife Photography
Yellowstone’s wolves are most commonly spotted in Lamar Valley and Hayden Valley, and sightings typically involve distant animals. Close encounters involving lone wolves crying out for company are extremely rare.
Last Christmas Day, a different photographer captured footage showing a solo wolf howling into a snowy wilderness during a dawn encounter. That wolf also was said to belong to the Wapiti Lake Pack.
In December 2021, Yellowstone estimated the number of wolves living inside the park at 95 individuals – a 23% decline from 2020. The decline was due largely to relaxed hunting regulations outside the park, primarily in Montana. (Yellowstone wolves can be legally shot by hunters if they venture beyond park boundaries.)
In February 2022, toward the end of hunting season, the park estimated the number of Yellowstone wolves to number 90 individuals.
For those who may be wondering, the number of Yellowstone National Park wolves killed by hunters this season has increased to at least 23.
For those who may be wondering, the number of Yellowstone National Park wolves killed by hunters this season has increased to at least 23.
That’s the highest number of park wolves harvested by hunters in one season since the predators were reintroduced in 1995-96.
All 23 wolves were legally harvested after they had wandered outside park boundaries, mostly in Montana.
The high number is attributed to the easing by Montana of hunting regulations for 2021-22. New regulations increased quotas and eliminated buffer zones.
A Montana hunter/trapper can harvest as many as 20 wolves, with restrictions. A legal wolf is any male or female, including pups.
Members of the Junction Butte Pack. Top image shows a Wapiti Lake wolf. Credit: Yellowstone National Park
The overall Yellowstone wolf population is now an estimated 91 animals.
In a tally maintained by the park, 18 of the 23 wolves were killed by hunters in Montana. Three were harvested in Wyoming; two in Idaho.
Packs most impacted: Phantom Lake (as many as 7 wolves killed); Junction Butte (6); Wapiti Lake (2), 8 Mile (2), and Bechler (2).
Four wolves were collared: 1234M of the Wapiti Lake Pack; 1109F, an older female recently dispersed from the Junction Butte Pack; 1238M of the Mollie’s Pack, and 1266M of the Wapiti Lake Pack.
Four pups were among the Yellowstone wolves harvested outside the park: two from the Bechler Pack and two from the Junction Butte Pack.
In early January, park officials issued a statement to the AP saying the high number of wolf kills represented “a significant setback for the species’ longterm viability and for wolf research.”
A state review is initiated after 450 wolves are killed, or when quotas are reached in either of seven regions. Otherwise, Montana has not backed off; the general hunting season runs through March 15.
–Note: This post is intended as an update for park aficionados and does not delve into the politics of wolf management or the reasoning behind changes of hunting regulations.
A Yellowstone National Park visitor spent Christmas morning following a lone wolf as it howled plaintively into the snowy wilderness.
A Yellowstone National Park visitor spent Christmas morning following a lone wolf as the animal howled plaintively into the snowy wilderness.
“I don’t know if he’s a pack member or an outside male looking for love,” Deby Dixon, who captured the accompanying footage, told FTW Outdoors. “Judging from the size of his tracks, I feel certain it was a male.”
Dixon, a nature photographer sho specializes in Yellowstone wildlife, described the surreal encounter as “a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
Surprisingly, the wolf did not abandon the road as Dixon followed from a safe distance; the animal seemed to care only about receiving a response from other wolves.
The wolf might have become separated from the Wapiti Lake Pack, which was observed in the same area a day earlier.
Wolf sightings are not uncommon in Yellowstone, especially during the winter when the distant animals are easy to spot as they travel across snow. But close encounters involving lone wolves crying out for others are extraordinary.
Dixon said she was pleased that two groups behind her also enjoyed the experience.
“The roads were tough and I had passed a tour van and a truck before spotting some fresh wolf tracks on the other side of the road,” Dixon recalled. “I followed them for two or three miles before spotting the wolf.
“The folks in the truck were from Georgia and they said that they let me pass thinking I might lead them to wolves. They were excited. While following slowly behind the wolf, I was aware of trying not to ruin the sighting for them, especially the tour bus, while not disturbing the wolf.
“In this situation, I was excited to be sharing the experience with others but also aware that they couldn’t see him as well as I could and my staying well back wasn’t helping that. So, when the wolf turned and went past us [at the end of the video], it was just the icing on the experience.”
Like sheep dogs herding cattle, a pack of Yellowstone National Park wolves recently ran down dozens of elk before singling out one individual for a day’s feast.
Like sheep dogs herding cattle, a pack of Yellowstone National Park wolves recently ran down dozens of elk before singling out one individual for a feast.
The footage below – grainy because it was captured from afar – shows the elk trying to stay grouped while fleeing as wolves hold positions at their rear and left flank.
Finally, at 32 seconds, one elk tires and strays from the herd and is converged upon, essentially ending the hunt. (Warning: An elk take-down is shown in the video.)
“The circle of life,” Yellowstone Wolf Tracker, an eco-tour agency that operates in the park, described Tuesday on Facebook. “We were fortunate enough to witness the Junction Butte Pack successfully complete a hunt in the Northern Range of Yellowstone.
“Only 10% of the time are wolves successful in their hunts so to be able to see the entire sequence unfold was incredibly special.”
Michael Sypniewski, a Yellowstone Wolf Tracker guide, told FTW Outdoors that he captured the footage through a spotting scope from a mile away, explaining its grainy, surreal presentation.
The Junction Butte Pack is one of the most frequently observed wolf packs in Yellowstone National Park, largely because of its proximity to a main road.
But scenes like the one captured by Spyniewski are rarely observed or documented during Yellowstone day trips.
–Image showing some of the wolves pursuing elk is courtesy of Yellowstone Wolf Tracker
A photographer on Saturday shared video footage showing two Yellowstone National Park hikers startling a wolf pack at close quarters and continuing on as though nothing had happened.
A photographer has captured footage showing two Yellowstone National Park hikers startling a wolf pack at close quarters and continuing as though nothing had happened.
That’s because the off-trail hikers were not paying attention and did not know that wolves had been napping and were suddenly watching them from only 20 yards away.
“They have no clue,” Julie Argyle says in the video, as she and her group watch from 600 yards. “Isn’t that funny, those people have no clue.” (Video is posted below.)
Argyle was shooting through a spotting scope; hence, the grainy footage. It shows the hikers – one of them fidgeting with his backpack – walking with their heads down as the closest wolf eyes them from a hill to their right.
Stirring in the shadows are at least three other wolves, all from the Wapiti Lake Pack.
“The wolf at the beginning of the video was actually laying down halfway down the hill when the hikers were walking up,” Argyle told FTW Outdoors. “I hadn’t started my video at that time. It realized they were coming toward it and it jumped up and hid behind the tree.”
Wolf from Yellowstone’s Wapiti Lake Pack. Photo: Julie Argyle
Yellowstone guidelines stipulate that tourists must stay at least 100 yards from bears and wolves. But it does not appear as though the hikers had been in danger.
In fact, in sharing the footage – the encounter occurred Sept. 25 – Argyle hoped to drive home the point that wolves are not the savage creatures many believe them to be.
Wolf from the Wapiti Lake Pack. Photo: Julie Argyle
Her Facebook introduction reads: “What happens when two hikers unknowingly walk into an area where a pack of wolves is sleeping? Absolutely nothing.
“Contrary to what some people want you to believe, wolves are not going to attack you. In most cases they will run away from you if you encounter them in the back country.”
When it was suggested that the hikers were fortunate that a momma grizzly bear wasn’t sleeping on that hill with her cubs, Argyle responded, “They sure were. That would have been an entirely different story.”
For the second time this month a Yellowstone National Park tourist has captured footage showing a wolf biting a grizzly bear’s butt.
For the second time this month a Yellowstone National Park tourist has captured footage showing a wolf biting a grizzly bear’s butt.
In the first instance, in early September, the behavior was understandable because an elk carcass was nearby, according to photographer Gary Gaston, and wolves do not willingly share with grizzlies (or vice versa).
That footage, showing the young wolf nipping the bear several times, occurred at daybreak at Crystal Creek, near Slough Creek.
On Sept. 10, six miles away in Lamar Valley, Gaston captured the accompanying footage, showing another black yearling wolf biting a grizzly bear’s butt as the bear searched for roots and grass shoots. (The bite occurs at 37 seconds.)
Gaston told FTW Outdoors that he believed this butt-nipping involved a different wolf, and it certainly involved a different bear.
“The yearling wolf followed the grizzly for 3-4 minutes, then it began nipping the bear’s butt,” Gaston wrote on a Yellowstone-themed Facebook page. “Why? The bear was eating roots, and didn’t seem a threat. But the wolf seemed intent on chomping bear butt. Hard to figure out these silly wolves.”
Yellowstone National Park spokeswoman Linda Veress told FTW Outdoors that biologists have observed this behavior and believe it’s associated with competition for food or defense of a pack’s territory.
So in Gaston’s video clips both wolves are simply trying to persuade the bears to leave, and staying to the rear of the much larger bruins would seem a wise survival strategy for the smaller but quicker canines.
Both species are fierce competitors – especially when an elk or bison carcass is involved – and not friendly toward one another, as implied in the Facebook comments.
–Grizzly bear image courtesy of Yellowstone National Park
