U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Northern Rocky Mountain Recovery Program Update, 2010

摘要

Individual wolves can disperse over 680 miles from their natal pack, with actual travel distances exceeding 6,000 miles. A wolf that dispersed from Gardiner, MT to western Colorado where she was illegally killed by 1080 Compound poison in March 2009 travelled a straight line distance of 400 miles in 6 months but daily GPS locations showed she actually walked over 3,000 miles. The average dispersal distance of northern Rocky Mountain (NRM) wolves is about 60 miles. About 20 confirmed NRM wolf dispersal events from 1992 through 2010 have been over 190 miles and only 4 wolves travelled beyond the northern Rocky Mountain (NRM) Distinct Population Segment (DPS) border. Undoubtedly many other dispersal events have occurred but have not been detected because less than 25% of the NRM wolf population has been radio-collared and it is difficult to locate lone dispersing wolves.