Current numbers: 4
Pack status: Active. Designated in 2012.
Although the Nc’icn gray wolves were confirmed as a pack in 2012, wolves had been documented on the lands of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation (CTCR) in NE Washington since 2008. The Colville Tribe named the group of wolves in the Sanpoil River region of the reservation the Nc’icn Pack, which means “grey mist as far as you can see” in the Okanogan language.
Since the pack’s territory is on the tribal lands of the CTCR, the pack is managed by tribal, not state, leadership. In July 2016, tribal biologists collared a female wolf.
At the end of 2018, biologists confirmed at least four pack members and confirmed the family had breeding pair status. The state’s 2019 annual survey estimated at least seven wolves resided in the pack. Two pack members were killed in legal tribal hunts in 2019.
A breeding pair was marked successful in the 2020 annual survey, which also stated that the pack had a minimum of nine wolves.
In 2021, there were 10 wolves confirmed in the pack, with one wolf legally hunted by the CTCR. In 2022, there were eight wolves in the pack, and two wolves were legally hunted.
The 2023 annual survey confirmed nine wolves in the pack and three wolves killed by legal tribal hunts. In 2024, the pack was considered a successful breeding pair with four known wolves and two wolves killed in legal hunts.
Photos
Useful Links
Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife – Nc’icn Pack
