Lone Gray Wolf Tracked In California; First Since 1924

SISKIYOU COUNTY (CBS13) — A gray wolf has wandered onto California soil for the first time since 1924, according to the California Department of Fish and Game.

An 2-½-year-old male designated "OR7" that was wandering in southern Oregon crossed the state line into northern Siskiyou County on Wednesday afternoon. State biologists are tracking the wolf's travels with a GPS device mounted on its collar.

Since he was collared in February, the wolf has traveled more than 300 miles away from his pack in northeast Oregon. The wolf has wandered more than twice that amount when factoring in his frequent changes in direction.

DFG continues to collaborate with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife to monitor the wolf, which while in California is protected as endangered under the Federal Endangered Species Act.

"Whether one is for it or against it, the entry of this lone wolf into California is a historic event and result of much work by the wildlife agencies in the West," said DFG Director Charlton H. Bonham. "If the gray wolf does establish a population in California, there will be much more work to do here."

DFG has been following the recovery and migration of gray wolves in western states with the expectation that at some point they will likely reach California. The last confirmed wild gray wolf in California was killed in Lassen County in 1924.

DFG says gray wolf recovery in other Western states has been controversial because of potential impacts on livestock - mostly cattle and sheep. But it says concerns about human safety are largely based on folklore and unsubstantiated in North America. In recent years only one human death, in Alaska, was caused by wolves.