A radio collar recently returned to Parks Canada by a trapper revealed an incredible 450 km journey for a female wolf from the Sunwapta pack near Jasper.

According to the information collected by the radio collar, the wolf began her journey in the Whirlpool valley on April 2, 2008. She traversed Athabasca pass before she worked her way to Kinbasket Lake, where the wolf followed the river north to Highway 5, crossing the road five kilometres south of Valemount. She then spent seven days on the upper Canoe River before moving into Wells Gray Park, and followed Black creek south to Mahood Lake, before she was caught by the trapper three kilometres from Clearwater, BC on April 30, 2008.

The journey included several mountain traverses and she would have encountered many wolf packs during her journey, however it’s difficult to tell if she did join one of the B.C. Packs, according to Parks Canada biologist Layla Neufeld.

The journey took place in 2008, however information from the radio collar was recently returned to Jasper National Park.

Wolves usually disperse from packs due to food or social conditions, Neufeld said, as they seek mates, territory and food.

“She either joined a pack or eked out an existence as a lone wolf,”

Parks was interested in the difficulty of the route chosen by the wolf, Neufeld said.

“It’s not the most easy route. It’s over a lot of mountain passes. But this is a wolf that lives in the mountains, so it’s used to that,” she said.

Wolves have been known to travel up to 800 kilometres during a dispersal. Wolves in the 12-member Sunwapta pack have a range that measures 75 km by 30 kms, according to Neufeld.

“Range can depend on density of prey,” Neufeld said.

Not much is known about wolf dispursals in Jasper National Park, however there is a tendency for the animals to use North-South corridors. Wolves travelling west by themselves isn’t thought to be as common, Neufeld said.

“Wolves show more of a north-south dispersal preference, but that’s just a tendency,” she said. “Often wolves will disperse and we won’t know where they’ve gone. We often don’t hear about them until they’re killed.”

Although the story doesn’t have a happy ending for the wolf, Parks is appreciative the collar was returned. Most wolf movement is determined through DNA analysis after they die, not through radio collaring, which is more expensive.

“It’s not common we get them back,” Neufeld said. “Almost every wolf disperses at some time in its life,” Neufeld said. “This is the first time we’ve gotten to see it on film.”

The wolf only crossed one highway – Highway 5 near Valemount – however it must have crossed many other mountain roads as well.