Thirty-nine wolves were captured in northeast British Columbia in January 1996. One wolf was shot on the way to Idaho after it bit a biologist. The wolf that was put down may have been the most impressive of the entire bunch. Twenty-one of these wolves were all released in Idaho -- all on the same day in January at Dagger Falls on the Middle Fork of the Salmon River. Below are their numbers and characteristics in tabular form.
| Wolf ID Number | Color | British Columbia Pack | Weight upon capture (pounds) | Age in 1996 | Status as of Dec. 2005 |
| B17M | gray | Chief | 106 | adult | Not located since March 1996. |
| B18M | gray | Besa | 125 | adult | Paired with B35F. Alpha male Twin Peaks Pack. Most of the pack was destroyed in control operation. Moved along with B35F to Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness April 2000. Wolves last located near Anaconda, MT. Oct. 2000. |
| B19M | gray | Muskwa | 107 | adult | Killed in early 1999 by the Twin Peaks Pack |
| B20F | gray | Halfway | 95 |
subadult | Alpha female Snow Peak Pack, most northerly Idaho pack. Due to lack of radio collars, this pack's status became unknown after 1999. |
| B21M | gray | Halfway | 113 | adult | Killed accidentally in an ADC trap near Cascade, Idaho. No. 21 had been killing calves. |
| B22F | gray | McQue | 98 | adult | Alpha female Thunder Mountain Pack. Her mate is likely a native male. |
| B23F | black | Prophet | 85 | adult | Alpha female Stanley Pack. Shot by Wildlife Services for killed a cow calf early in 2001 after her pack had disintegrated. |
| B24M | gray | Prophet | 105 | adult | A lone wolf. Salmon River. Not observed since late 1997 |
|
B25F
"Raven" |
black | Prophet | 90 | adult | Alpha female Jureano Mtn. Pack. Illegally shot Aug. 1999 |
| B26F | black | Prophet | 80 | pup | Died of starvation in 1996 near the Deadwood River in southwest central Idaho. |
| B27M | gray | Sikanni | 100 | subadult | Alpha male, Stanley Pack. Trapped in summer 2000 and moved to northern Idaho (the logic for this is was not clear to me). Found dead in 2001 of suspicious causes 20 miles east of Weippe in northern Idaho. 27M had become large silver wolf. |
| B28M | black | a lone wolf | 105 | adult | Sole survivor of the former Bear Valley Pack. Paired in 1999-2000 with a disperser (an orphan pup) from the Stanley Pack to form the Orphan Pack. The pack moved to Western Idaho and some time after 2001, B28 died or was killed. |
| B29M | black | Besa | 105 | adult | Former alpha male Moyer Basin Pack Illegally poisoned March 1999. |
| B30F | black | Besa | 90 | subadult | Formerly of the Bear Valley Pack. Natural mortality in winter of 1998-9. |
| B31M | gray | Besa | 135 | adult | The biggest wolf introduced to Idaho. Alpha male of the Snow Peak Pack, but his radio collar failed and contact with his pack was lost in 1999. |
| B32M | black | Besa | 110 | adult | Alpha male Jureano Mtn. Pack Killed by Wildlife Services in Sept. 1999 because of livestock depredations. His pack, however, still exists as of Dec. 2005. |
| B33M | gray | Besa | 115 | adult | Was a lone wolf for a long time, but eventually became the alpha male of the Landmark Pack. Lost track. Eventual fate ??. |
| B34M | black | Petrie | 105 | pup | Thought to have been killed illegally in summer of 1998, he showed up with wolf 56F in April 1999 in the Big Hole Valley of Montana. Unfortunately, they had been killing some cows and both were shot by Wildlife Services. |
| B35F | gray | Petrie | 85 | pup | Alpha female Twin Peaks Pack. Pack destroyed in control operation. Pregnant 35F removed to Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness April 2000. She moved with her mate to near Anaconda, Montana. |
| B36F | gray | Petrie | 100 | adult | Alpha female of the former White Clouds Pack, removed to north central Idaho in April 2000. She moved with 2 pups to the Big Hole Valley of southwest Montana in the summer of 2000. Lost track of her in Montana late in 2000. |
| B37F | gray | Petrie | 95 | adult | Alpha female Moyer Basin Pack until ??. |
Notes:
1. Notice how much bigger the 1996 wolves for Idaho were than the 1995 wolves. B31M
was the largest wolf introduced to Idaho, and was slightly larger than R10M and R28M,
the original Yellowstone giants. Table of the 1995
Idaho wolves.
2. Six of the Idaho wolves came from the British Columbia, Besa Creek Pack. The rest of the Besa Crek pack was taken to Yellowstone and released as the "Druid Peak pack," which became the most visible, popular and aggressive wolf pack..
12/01/05 10:04 PM