Who brought wolves back to Yellowstone?

In January 1995, U.S. and Canadian wildlife officials captured 14 wolves from multiple packs east of Jasper National Park, near Hinton, Alberta, Canada. These wolves arrived in Yellowstone in two shipments—January 12, 1995 (8 wolves) and January 20, 1995 (6 wolves).



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To make the wolves establish a home in the park, Yellowstone built three acclimation pens to house 14 wolves for several weeks. Carcasses of elk were covertly “planted” to give wolves a taste of their new environment.

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In Yellowstone, cost estimates on wolf recovery are from $200,000 to $1 million per wolf (AWSNA). When one remembers how many wolves were reintroduced in two years, this is a lot of money. Believing there are better ways of spending money, advocates against the wolf want this money to be redirected to other places.

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Wolves – The re-introduction of wolves to the Yellowstone ecosystem in 1995 caused a nationwide uproar. As wolf packs spread throughout the region and attack ranch animals, the controversy is very much alive.

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As of January 2023, there are at least 108 wolves in the park. Ten packs were noted. Wolves in Yellowstone sit at the core of a larger population connected throughout the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. In general, wolf numbers have fluctuated between 83 and 123 wolves since 2009.

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Approximately 150–200 with home ranges wholly or partially in the park. As of 2021, 1,063 estimated in greater Yellowstone.

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You think you hear a beep and you don't. Wolves were hunted to near-extinction as the country was colonized. The last pack of Yellowstone wolves was killed in 1926. They were reintroduced to the park in the mid-1990s, and along with mountain lions and grizzly bears, they've made a comeback.

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Until the wolves returned, this was one of the densest and most stable coyote populations in the country because of the lack of human effects, Dr. Crabtree said. In just two years, 50 percent of the pre-wolf population of coyotes has been killed.

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