TIME-TEMPERATURE- WEATHER:

Early AM (first light-9AM): 4:45 38 at SG. Clear.

Late AM (9-noon) 65 degrees at 10:30 AM

Evening: 4:30-9PM sorry, not recorded

CROWD: Seems a little less busy today

SUMMARY FOR THE DAY: This morning we have a happy surprise seeing most of the Junction adults at Slough, including 1479 in and out of the sage den. No pups are seen, though. A hunting party goes east.

The plane flies and gives us a good idea where 1385 took the pups.

One Mollies gray is seen in the late morning in Lamar; 3 Mollies grays are seen in the evening in Lamar.

In the evening at Slough, a few adults and 1479 are seen at Slough this evening.

WOLF SIGHTINGS (total; pack; individuals, pullout, time of day): 14 wolves total (from two packs)

9 Junction adults 7B/2G (including 1392M, 1479F, 1484M, 1489M, 1545M, uncollared front-leg limper, uncollared non-limping adult, uncollared yearling and UCG) in the morning from Slough

5 Mollies (all grays). 1 gray is seen from Picnic in the late morning and 5 grays are seen in the same area from Trash Can Hill in the evening. Since I cannot be sure that the morning gray was not one of the evening grays, I only count it once.

At Slough in the evening, 1479F and a second black are seen briefly. No pups.

COMMENTS (wolves): After last nights move of the Junction pups, I am grateful to have seen any wolves at all today!

NON-WOLF SIGHTINGS (what & where)

Black bear: a single bear browsing the west side of the big fan at the tree line in the AM from Picnic

Bison: various, usual spots, including the road! Also some small herds above the Horizontal Forest at Slough seen from Dave’s while the hunting wolves were in view

Coyote: In Lamar south of Trash Can, trailing a gray Mollies wolf in the AM seen from Trash Can

Sandhill crane: Slough

Mule deer: in the high meadows on my way back to SG in the evening

Elk: Several small herds east of the den area, seen from Daves in the AM while the Junctions went hunting there.

Fox: 2. I see the local fox near Baronette on my way down this AM, then another one (or maybe the same) near Lower Baronette on my way back to SG in the evening

Geese: Slough, Lamar

Pronghorn: Slough, Lamar

EARLY MORNING HIGHLIGHTS (first light till 9AM) As I climb up Daves Hill this morning, I try to ratchet back my expectation of seeing wolves, given the events of last night. So, I am happily surprised to be wrong.

We do not see the alpha female, nor any of the pups, but we find all the rest of the adults in the pack (7B/2G), which is all of them except for 1385F and 1478F (who is living behind Jasper Bench with whatever pups she has)

I am especially happy to see 1479F, who pops out of the sage den several times then goes back in again. My guess is that she must have at least one pup still with her. Otherwise, it would make more sense for her to be with the ones 1385 moved. Perhaps her pup (or pups) are too small or too weak to appear outside the den.

The uncollared gray arrives from the west around 6AM. He is his usual bouncy self and his arrival sparks a rally. The alpha male is here, nursing his new back-leg injury. But he doesn’t let it stop him from getting where he wants to go with perhaps a few additional rests in between.

One black wolf is feeding on the carcass in Aspen Drainage. Around 7AM the wolves begin to howl. This turns into another rally, and then a hunting party of three blacks and a gray sets off to the east: 1484M, 1489M, the non-limping uncollared black and the uncollared yearling).

They move steadily past the Crescent Rock, behind Diagonal Forest and continue east above the Horizontal forest. Small herds of elk and a few bison move away as the wolves approach.

They eventually reach the upper part of the Yellow Grass meadow before we lose them.

The wolves with injuries stay behind today: 1392M (hind leg limp), the big uncollared black (front-leg limp) and GPS yearling 1545M. He does not limp but continues to walking slowly, like something doesn't feel right.

Wolves get injured all the time. We have seen them heal and bounce back eventually. I think all three of these males will be better with the passage of time.

1479F remains behind as well, poking out of the den again, then going back in. She likely knows where 1385 and the pups are, so it’s fascinating to me that she is here, not there. Another wolf mystery.

We track the hunters past DF, HF and into YG Meadow. We see small groups of elk and a few bison, getting out of their way.

The alpha male limps his way down to spring meadow for a drink. Then he heads back up to the eastern trees. He joins 1545M in the shade for a nap.

The wolf plane is spotted. Aha! They know about the pups being moved. The plane circles an area above and slightly west of upper Aspen Drainage. Welp, I guess that is where we should be looking!

Once the plane leaves, Rick and I head to our cars to check out the spot where the plane circled. We are looking for a needle in a haystack but I believe we'll get more info as the days pass.

We do not find anything to report, so I head east to Lamar.

LATE MORNING HIGHLIGHTS (9AM-12 noon) Around 9:15 I join watchers at Picnic, to view a single collared gray Mollies wolf roaming the flats to the south. He wanders about, sniffing and digging every now and then.

The gray turns back east so I relocate to Trash Can. A single coyote trails the gray from a distance, perhaps intent on keeping the wolf from its den.

After a while, the wolf disappears into the eroded area of the old Druid rendezvous.

It is up to 65 at 10:30 so I go back to SG.

EVENING HIGHLIGHTS (4:30PM-9PM) I am back at Slough this evening to meet Becky at Dougs lot.

We see two black adults bedded near the eastern trees. A lady who was here last night and saw the pups being moved tells us that 1479 went into the sage den around 5PM. She has not yet come out.

Then we get a call from Maureen in Lamar. She and Rick are with Mark and Carol watching Mollies.

Becky is up for seeing Mollies so we head there.

It is quite a happy scene up on Trash Can hill, and reminds us both of our old days watching the Druids. The Mollies are not in the rendezvous as I thought, but much further away on the big broad plateau west of Mt. Norris. The Cache Creek trail is visible to the right of the bedded wolves.

Three grays are visible out there. They move just enough to be interesting and many visitors get to see them. Around 7:15 the three grays become five when they get up to greet two arrivals.

They have a boisterous rally, then head east towards Dead Puppy. I lose them at 7:30.

I bid goodnight to Becky and head back to Silver Gate.

SPECIAL NARRATIVE: This evening I get teary showing three little girls (and their parents) their first wild wolves. They jump up and down for joy. I tell them a short version of the Mollies significance in wolf history.

TODAY I SAW: 2 black bears, bison (and calves), coyotes, sandhill cranes, mule deer, elk, 2 foxes, pronghorn, 14 wolves from two packs: 9 Junctions (1392M, 1479F, 1484M, 1489M, 1545M, Black front limper, uncollared non-limping black adult, uncollared yearling, uncollared gray) plus 5 Mollies wolves (all gray males) and the spirits of Allison, Richard, Jeff and Chloe.

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS I USE, IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER:

DF: Diagonal Forest (a feature east of the Slough den)

DPH: Dead Puppy Hill, the partly treed hill below the crest of Mt. Norris immediately south of Footbridge pullout. Named by coyote researchers before the 1995 wolf reintroduction. The hill has been a popular area with local wolf packs since wolves were reintroduced. It has held several coyote dens over the years, but to my knowledge, this year is the first time a wolf pack has denned on it. The Mollies chose an area on the western slope above the new growth forest, and produced at least two pups, one black and one gray, which were seen infrequently during June.

HF: Horizontal Forest (another feather east of the Slough den

HR: Hellroaring (large overlook pullout on the Blacktail)

LCW: Lamar Canyon West (pullout on the western side of Lamar Canyon) that overlooks a lot of, but not all of, the area wolves use at Slough.

MST: Marge Simpson Tree (distinctive tree in Slough Flats) In 2024, the Junctions used the meadows below and left of Marge as their August-October rendezvous.

OGR: The OGR Old Gardiner Road (current name for the new road hastily constructed after the 2022 flood on top of the former gravel road between Mammoth and Gardiner)

RP: Round Prairie (big meadow south of Pebble Creek campground)

SB: Soda Butte (or SBV Soda Butte Valley) where Soda Butte Creek flows between Round Prairie and its Confluence with the Lamar River)

SG: Silver Gate (small town just outside the northeast Park entrance)

SRT: Southern Round Tree (distinctive tree south of the Marge Simpson Tree)

UCG: Un-collared gray (Junction 2 yr-old bouncy male). Born to the Rescue Creek Pack, he joined the Junction Pack sometime in February 2025.

YGM: Yellow Grass Meadow (a feature east of and upslope of the Horizontal forest at Slough)