California Park issues an important warning to hikers as an apex predator was thought extinct for a century

A pack of gray wolves has been spotted in a U.S. National Park for the first time in a century, officials say, but the majestic animal’s return comes with a warning to tourists not to get too close.

The species was thought to have been hunted out of Lassen Volcanic National Park in the 1920s, but was spotted again last month in the form of a small pack – after nearly 100 years of federal protection.

The group, consisting of a mother, a father and their two pups, was detected by a camera trap just south of the vast expanse of land in Northern California, the US Forest Service said, showing how the once-endangered speech is currently adapting it is repairing.

The family could use “portions of the park” as their habitat, the department’s “gray wolf coordinator” said added in a statement – while others marveled at the species’ long-awaited return.

There is widespread hope that this could be the start of a slow revival of the canines, which were once the area’s apex predator.

Such a development would drastically change the ecosystem, agency officials said in their statement, while confirming earlier reports from the same pack.

The park was once a gathering place for the animal, before hunters and a lack of federal protection drove them into near oblivion.

It now welcomes about half a million human visitors annually, who face little risk from the wolves’ return, officials said. It’s still recommended to carry bear spray – as the sighting made clear, they now roam parts of the popular park.

Scroll down for video:

For the first time in a century, a pack of gray wolves was spotted in a U.S. National Park, officials said. A still shows a wolf from another pack in Northern California

The species was thought to have been hunted out of Lassen Volcanic National Park in the 1920s, but was spotted again in pack form last month. The Sierra Nevada Red Fox, which roamed Lassen Volcanic National Park in February, could benefit

Axel Hunnicutt, the state wolf coordinator for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, confirmed the sighting in a statement this week

“I also wanted to clarify that the conversations I have had with the state wolf coordinator… that detections have occurred in the park,” the group wrote in response to the Active NorCal report being reshared.

‘We have been made aware of sightings in the park of this pack. This news was not reported by us first.’

After speaking with state wolf coordinator Axel Hunnicutt, the group said, it became increasingly clear that the sighting of the recovering endangered species was above board.

“They are currently unnamed and this yet-to-be-named wolf pack is one of dozens of groups/packs confirmed to be living in California,” the group added in its Monday bulletin.

‘It is unknown which pack the breeding adults currently come from.’

Meanwhile, others reacted positively to the news, seeing it as the first signs of a return to normalcy after wolves were exterminated from California in 1924.

‘Yes!! We needed this glimmer of hope,” one Facebook user responded when California Wolf Watch officials shared information about the sighting last Sunday.

‘So excited. I hope this platoon survives,” said another, as similar celebrations were seen over the course of several comments.

A wolf from the pack found earlier this year in the Sequoia National Forest is seen here howling

The more recent sighting is significant because it marks a return to the region since wolves began recolonizing California in the 2010s, officials said.

As it stands, there are currently eight packs of gray wolves roaming California – now nine, with this new pack.

Like the grizzly, the species was wiped out of the state by game hunters in the 19th and 20th centuries, causing packs to fan out and repopulate.

They left California and settled in several states such as Montana, Idaho, Oregon, and the Yellowstone area of ​​Wyoming.

However, in the 2010s it became clear that a gray wolf recolonization effort was underway.

Sightings across the Golden State showed the animal slowly returning to the state’s outskirts, with officials naming and identifying eight different packs.

“This finding is also important because it marks the ninth current pack in California, and the tenth in modern times since wolves began recolonizing CA in the 2010s,” Hunnicutt explains.

“As this group was found to have pups, we will work to monitor their survival into the new year as this will help quantify the recovery of the state’s wolf population,” he added in an e-mail this week email.

He added that the sighting is the closest to the park yet and could have greater connotations for local wildlife.

The gray wolf is a recovering endangered species protected by California and federal law, with nine known packs, including this one active in the state

In the absence of the gray wolf, coyotes have taken their place in the eat-or-be-eaten heap, leaving the Sierra Nevada’s similarly endangered Red Fox population to suffer.

“Sierra Nevada red foxes have been negatively impacted and are being outcompeted by coyotes,” California Wolf Watch member John Marchwick said this week.

“So with the return of wolves to California, it is expected that wolves will reduce the number of coyotes, leading to a potential increase in the number of red foxes in the Sierra Nevada.

“Something similar was observed in Yellowstone after wolves were reintroduced to the park in 1995-1996, with an increase in red fox numbers occurring after wolves were reintroduced,” he added.

Hunnicutt, meanwhile, clarified that the recent sighting occurred near the park’s southern border because the animal is now federally protected.

And while gray wolf attacks are rare, they are not completely unheard of. The carnivores have sometimes been known to follow walkers.

However, experts have attributed this behavior to curiosity and not predatory interest.

Gray wolf attacks are rare, but not completely unheard of. The carnivores sometimes known to follow hikers. Experts have attributed this behavior to curiosity rather than predatory interest. It is recommended that you bring a can of bear spray. Seen here, Lassen Volcanic National Park

In the past hundred years, there have been fewer than thirty documented attacks by wild wolves on humans, not only in the US, but in North America as a whole. Only two died after contracting rabies from bites suffered in Alaska in the 1940s, according to research. reports.

Still, carrying a can of bear spray is advised, officials said, because the animal can become aggressive toward parties it sees as competition for its food source.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife has not released any more information about the sighting.

Gray wolves are protected under the Endangered Species Act and may only be killed if they pose an immediate threat to human life.