Pack Status: No longer active. Designated in 2018.
In November of 2014, OR23 (a female from the Umatilla River Pack) dispersed to the northern portion of the Chesnimnus Unit and later paired with a male wolf. In 2015, the pair moved from the area and was renamed the Shamrock Wolves.
In June 2016, resident wolves were again documented in the Chesnimnus Unit. The female was collared (OR42, see photo below), and the pair produced at least four pups that survived to the end of the year. In 2017, three radio-collared wolves were documented in the area; however, OR42 died, and the pair was not counted as a breeding pair.
In 2018, a new pack formed in the unit, later designated the Chesnimnus Pack. The origin of the wolves is unknown, but the pair produced at least five pups that survived to the end of the year. Two pups survived to the end of 2019. An individual wolf was spotted in the area in 2019.
The Chesnimnus Pack was counted as a breeding pair in 2020, and they had seven pups that survived through the end of the year. . A total of nine wolves were counted in the winter survey.
In 2021, the Chesnimnus Pack produced at least four pups that survived to the end of the year and was counted as a breeding pair. Nine wolves were once again counted in the pack.
An uncollared yearling male from the pack was killed by an agent of a livestock producer in May 2022. The department then removed two uncollared wolves, a yearling male in June and a two-year-old male in July. Four wolves were documented in the Chesnimnus Pack area at the end of 2022. The pack was not counted as a breeding pair.
In 2023, one wolf from the pack was killed by poison. No wolves were documented in the area at the end of 2023. The pack is no longer considered active.
Photos
