The Big Bad Wolf (Pack)

There are few animals shrouded in such mystery as the wolf. The wolf, whose cry chills the soul, truly is an elusive and slightly terrifying creature. As children we are read stories about wolves and their snarls, about Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf, about how they will eat us for supper. And we know their howl without ever having heard a real wolf howl in the wild, for they are labelled "bad."

The reintroduction of the wolf to the Yellowstone ecosystem began in 1995 when wolves from several separate packs were captured just a bit farther north in Canada, transported down to Yellowstone, and acclimated for their new role sharing the top of the food chain in Yellowstone with the bears. Now there are wolves outside the park in Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho, and decent populations at that.

Naturally this reintroduction was, and still is, the subject of considerable controversy - just as foxes do not mix with chickens, so wolves do not mix with livestock. Ranchers livelihoods were at risk from wolf predation of their stock. My own personal opinion is split - I love the opportunity to see the wolves in the wild and they do keep the coyote and elk populations in check, and on the other hand I grew up in New Zealand and thus love the farm, farmers, and livestock. Or should I say I love the ranch, ranchers, and livestock seeing as how I live in the American west now. Anyway it's a tough issue.

So what to do when a highly unusual occurrence occurs and a wolf pack is about to cross the road right in front of your big fat SUV? Well if you're me you pull over, jump out, and shoot them from a respectful distance. So that's what I did. I shot them from a respectful (and legal) distance as they crossed and then disappeared into the timber.

There appeared to be five wolves, including one jet black one. This was the newly formed Canyon Pack. Below is the best shot of the quick event of the wolf pack crossing the road - a highly unusual event for such a mysterious and elusive animal. These wolves showed no interest in me whatsoever, even though I was looking right at them, shooting a couple of frames, and advancing slowly toward them in wonder and amazement. Oh, and lots of excitement like a wee kid who's just discovered he's in the largest chocolate factory on earth. It's truly a privilege to be able to see these mysterious animals in person and outside a vehicle.

So how about the photograph below? I say coyote, a large coyote to be sure, but to me the ears just are a bit too big even if slightly rounded and the poise says coyote. I would like to be wrong, naturally. So have your say and prove me wrong! This animal was alone in the Canyon vicinity just around sunset, just a couple of days earlier than the when I shot the wolf pack above. It's a lighter color than the wolves of a typical gray wolf, but still a grayish color and the Canyon wolf pack does have one whiter colored wolf.

Here's some links courtesy of the NPS to help you decide: Yellowstone Coyote Digital Slide File, Yellowstone Wolf Digital Slide File. While here's a Gray Wolf endangered species sheet.