Gray wolf populations are down from an all-time high of 174 in Yellowstone National Park to as few as 80 at the latest count. But the park’s leading biologist says wolves have adjusted to the number of available of deer, elk and bison as a food source, and notes the current numbers are on par with a 10-year average. Doug Smith has led the Wolf Restoration Project at Yellowstone since its inception. The leading natural cause of death for wolves he says is other wolves. Smith says protected wolves in Yellowstone still have a 20-percent mortality rate because they are fiercely territorial. He adds wolves compensate for high death rates by breeding when they are young, and producing large litters.
“But that’s an outgrowth of them living for millions of years at a high death rate. And so, 80 percent chance of survival for one more year sounds bad – but for them, it’s kind of normal.”
Smith explains wolf populations have held steady at around 100, for the past decade, and last year, a pack of 10 wolves in southern Yellowstone left the park’s parameters and showed up in the state’s count. Smith says Yellowstone doesn’t have a specific population goal for wolves, and it is National Park Service policy to allow nature to take its course.
