A second wild wolf in almost 100 days has made its way to California. Wildlife workers have properly assessed the tracks and think that it is a gray wolf. Officials from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) have said that it is a wolf based on trail cameras and study of tracks.

Officials said people reported them about sightings of a lone wolf earlier this year. They installed remote trail cameras in southeastern Siskiyou County to know about the matter. In May, they had pictures of a ‘large, dark-colored, lone canid’, but were not able to confirm that whether it was wolf or not.

Next month, they found tracks and installed more cameras. In July, when they downloaded pictures, the suspected wolf was captured in images. This led biologists to affirm that it is a lone wolf who has wandered down from Oregon.

Since then, more number of cameras has been installed. Officials aim to collect and test the scat samples. “With the potential confirmation of another wolf in California, it is all the more critical that the state wolf plan provide the management strategies that will best recover and conserve these magnificent animals”, said Amaroq Weiss, West Coast wolf organizer with the Center for Biological Diversity.

It is great news that wild wolves are returning, but in order to have successful reestablishment of them, these animals need protection.