Wisconsin's wolf population grew slightly according to a report issued by the DNR.
Extensive monitoring efforts by more than 100 volunteer trackers and DNR staff suggest that Wisconsin's wolf population is stable while remaining ell above established population goals. Data collected during track surveys this past winter reveal an overwinter minimum wolf count of 914-978 wolves, similar to the 905-944 wolves detected during the prior year's count.
DNR biologist Jane Wiedenhoeft in Park Falls says the numbers are holding steady...
"...This year it increased by only one percent. Actually, I should mention that last year that was a slight decrease from the winter of 2016-2017...."
Wiedenhoeft says the wolf population had been increasing steadily since the early 1990s but appears to have stabilized over the last few years. She says tracking this past winter was both good and not so good because of the weather...
"...This winter was odd because we had fantastic conditions early in the year. Starting in November we had snow on the ground in northern Wisconsin and we had good snow conditions through December. Then in mid-January things got not so good..."
Wiedenhoeft says the more experienced trackers saw the good conditions early and the bulk of the reporting for this year's count came from those early reports. After the snow got deep in the north, less tracking was done.
She says most wolf pups have been born for this year.
The number of wolf packs detected during surveys increased slightly, from 238 packs last year to 243 this past winter.
More data on the count is on the DNR website by putting wolf count in the search box.
