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<\/p>\nA wolf arrived in Los Angeles County on Saturday morning, marking the first time the apex predator has been documented in the area in at least a century, according to state wildlife officials.<\/p>\n
Around 6 a.m., the 3-year-old female sporting a black coat reached the mountains north of Santa Clarita, according to Axel Hunnicutt, gray wolf coordinator for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.<\/p>\n
Four hours earlier, she was traversing the desert south of Kern County, he said.<\/p>\n
He knows that because the wolf \u2014 known as BEY03F \u2014 is wearing a GPS collar. She was outfitted with one last May when she was spending time with the Yowlumni Pack in Tulare County. She dispersed from that area about a week ago.<\/p>\n
\u201cHer journey isn’t over,\u201d Hunnicutt said.<\/p>\n
BEY03F is seeking a partner \u201cand the fact that she is still on the move is an indication that she has not found a mate and suitable habitat.\u201d<\/p>\n
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The location from the collar on a wolf on Saturday. The CDFW’s wolf tracker provides the last known location of satellite collared wolves within California to help livestock producers mitigate wolf-livestock conflict. (California Department of Fish and Wildlife)<\/p>\n
She\u2019s come a long way to look for love. Born in 2023 in Plumas County\u2019s Beyem Seyo Pack, she\u2019s traveled more than 370 miles and walked the length of the Sierra Nevada to get to her current spot. It\u2019s been perilous. Two days ago, she crossed State Route 59 three times near Tehachapi.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis signifies a historic moment in the return of wolves for California,\u201d said John Marchwick, a writer for the nonprofit California Wolf Watch.<\/p>\n
Marchwick credited the state Department of Fish and Wildlife\u2019s monitoring efforts and the animal\u2019s protection under the state Endangered Species Act, saying they \u201callowed for this individual’s dispersal to be documented, but also for it to be realistically feasible.\u201d<\/p>\n
California\u2019s wolves were wiped out by hunters and trappers about a century ago, with the last documented wild wolf shot in 1924.<\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t until 2011 that the broad-muzzled canids returned, when a wolf ventured into the state from Oregon. He didn\u2019t stay but his arrival presaged their comeback.<\/p>\n
Today, there\u2019s estimated to be at least 60 wolves roaming the Golden State.<\/p>\n