Alpha Female #16 Dies in Captivity

Added on 7/31 *Necropsy Results on Female #16 - See 3rd report at bottom of page.

Below are two reports on the sudden and tragic death of Female #16. I'm not quite sure what to think about the death of #16. As far as I knew she was a perfectly healthy wolf before being captured.

In my heart I believe that the stress of being darted, tranquilized, captured, and handled excessively was a major factor in #16's death.

According to records Female #16 and her three offspring were transported to Turner's Flying D Ranch on Thursday June 8th, after being held in a Yellowstone acclimation pen since their capture on May 25th.

When interviewed for a June 14th news article, biologist Mike Phillips said the four wolves arrived just fine, "no glitches anywhere."

So at that point, Female #16 showed no signs of illness.(?) And for almost a month no one observed any unusual behavior in her(?).

Then suddenly, on the 12th of July, after #16 had been tranquilized and captured/handled for the third time in less than 6 1/2 weeks, she became severely ill and required emergency care.

And then, after only a brief recovery, and according to the last sentence in the Wolf Recovery Report, (which I've bolded) she was tranquilized and handled yet again??

That poor animal was darted/tranquilized and captured/handled four times in less than 2 months!

Also, the Wolf Recovery Report states that #16 was found dead in the pen. She was "unresponsive" (meaning comatose or semi-comatose) and on IV meds and fluids the night before, and they left her in the pen??

I'm just trying to understand what could have happened here. I realize that #16 is gone and nothing is going to bring her back, but I just keep remembering the face of that tiny little black pup back in 1995 and I want to know, need to know, what really happened to her.

I somehow doubt that we will ever know the whole truth behind the sudden illness and death of poor Female #16.

She was just another wolf to researchers. And her death meant nothing more than a setback to their experiment. That's the difference between those of us who truly care about the lives of the individual wolves and those who see them as mere "experimental" objects who can easily be replaced.

I am just saddened beyond words at this time.

The following is an excerpt from the latest Gray Wolf Recovery Report on the death of Alpha Female #16.

Tragically, the alpha female (#16) of the Sheep Mountain pack died on July 19th.

She and the other 3 pack members were captured in the pen on the Flying D Ranch last week, July 12th, in preparation for the training research which was scheduled to begin in late July.

They were fitted with standard radio collars which also included the training device. The research had not been initiated, no training tests had occurred, and no collar had an activated training device.

Soon after capture she overheated and had problems breathing that required emergency care by the attending veterinarian.

The handling crew and veterinarian conducted a review of capture procedures that evening and recommended that handling time (20 minutes) and air temperature (80's) could have magnified drug affect, causing or contributing to the immediate complications witnessed immediately after her capture.

She recovered much later than the other 3 wolves that were handled at the same time and in the same manner. By that night she appeared to have completely recovered and was feeding and traveling normally. However, on the 17th, she appeared to walk with some stiffness.

By the 18th she was lethargic and unresponsive and was immediately treated with fluids and antibiotics, and blood was drawn for analysis. The analysis showed liver and kidney failure and on the night of the 18th Service biologists discussed options with the veterinarian.

Early on the morning of the 19th, she was found dead in the pen.

A necropsy is being performed to determine if the liver and kidney failure was a pre-existing condition that was exacerbated by handling which could explain her strong reaction to drugging on the 12th, or if the most recent handling and/or capture caused the damage. Test results should be available by next week.

And this account comes from the Billings Gazette. Article's URL is below.

An experimental program to teach wolves to avoid cattle has suffered a setback with the death of the Sheep Mountain pack's alpha female, apparently of natural causes.

The 5-year-old wolf, called No. 16, died this week at a Gallatin Gateway ranch owned by Ted Turner, where the pack has been held until the experimental training program begins. Blood tests indicated the wolf probably died of kidney and liver failure, said Ed Bangs, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's wolf recovery coordinator.

The animal had been sick for several days and researchers are not sure if it was injured when it was captured or if it already had the ailment. A necropsy next week is expected to provide more information, he said.

"It's definitely a setback," Bangs said. The four wolves of the Sheep Mountain pack were being held in a one-acre pen on Turner's Flying D ranch to get them acclimated before researchers from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Wildlife Services started experiments with electronic collars.

The collars will allow researchers to deliver a shock to wolves if they approach calves placed in their pens. If successful, the remaining three wolves will be returned to the wild, Bangs said.

The pack was captured after it was seen feeding on a calf near Dailey's Lake in May. Federal managers decided to put the remaining members of the pack in the experimental "conditioning" program.

Federal wolf managers have already shot and killed six members of the Sheep Mountain pack after the wolves made a series of attacks on livestock in southern Paradise Valley.

The pack had ranged between Sheep Mountain north of Gardiner and Dome Mountain and regularly crossed Paradise Valley to the Gallatin Mountains northwest of Yellowstone National Park.

Billings Gazette - Updated: Saturday, July 22, 2000

Click Here for original article.

This is what the necropsy report says about the death of Female #16. And sadly, as I suspected, it confirms that she died from complications due to the stress of (excessive) tranquilizing and capturing/handling.

The necropsy indicated #16 died from capture related causes. The combination of this individual wolf's sensitivity, drugging, and particularly overheating during her capture apparently caused the liver and kidney damage that ultimately killed her. There was no evidence a preexisting condition was just triggered by capture.

A post-capture briefing was conducted to look at better ways such captures could be conducted in the future to reduce the chances of this type of unfortunate accident from happening again.

"Unfortunate accident?" Is that what they've diminished it to? It was just five short years ago that saving the lives of little #16 and her seven brothers and sisters was of the utmost importance to the success of the reintroduction.

I would have thought that Mike Phillips, in particular, would have been just a little more protective of the life he once fought so vehemently to save.

How things have changed....

I will not forget you #16. I will never forget you.

*In a rather ironic and very sad footnote to this already tragic story, Alpha female #16 may have been the only member of her pack who was never caught in the act of, or known to be guilty of, killing any livestock.