Wolves depart from Mammoth area; no pups after all

Life is back to normal after a four-wolf pack setting up shop near Mammoth Hot Springs departs the area.

The arrival of the Canyon Pack caused quite the stir in Yellowstone National Park during the normally sleepy month of May. The three males and single female were quite brazen in their attempt to den just south of Mammoth Hot Springs. With the wolves clearly not concerned with proximity combined with the potential to cause traffic jams forced National Park Service officials to close the shoulder of some of the Tower Junction Road, ban hiking in the area and issue a Ranger to stand guard over the den.

But life is back to normal now that the four wolves have abandoned the den, located about a half mile from employee housing at Mammoth. Park officials hazed the wolves, who didn’t put up much of a struggle to keep the den: the female, as it turns out, wasn’t pregnant after all, thus eliminating the need for the pack to den. Park biologists checked out the den yesterday and found no evidence the wolves were still using it, much less staying in the area.

RELATED STORIES: Park officials chasing down problem wolf; Canyon pack to be hazed; The biggest hit of Yellowstone’s summer season so far? The Canyon Pack

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