US Berkeley’s Rausser College of Natural Resources and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife have jointly announced a new partnership known as the California Wolf Project, which brings together scientists, wildlife managers and conservation communicators working with diverse stakeholders to better understand the social and ecological factors that shape wolf populations and inform management decisions. The project is also supported by the National Geographic Society.
The CAWP team uses interdisciplinary methods to gather data on wolf spatial ecology, diet, predator-prey dynamics, and recolonization within California, while contributing to conflict reduction strategies for rural communities and livestock producers.
“It is exciting to see wolves back in California, but there are a lot of questions about where they fit amongst a rapidly changing landscape with new challenges for agencies and livestock producers,” said Arthur Middleton, CAWP co-lead and Goertz Professor of Wildlife Management at UC Berkeley. “We hope our growing team can provide new support to those interested in and impacted by the state’s growing wolf population.”
As of 2024, CDFW has reported at least seven wolf packs across California. CAWP has initially focused on the Beyem Seyo (Plumas County), Harvey (Lassen and Shasta counties), Lassen (Lassen and Plumas counties), and Whaleback (Siskiyou County) packs. More recently CAWP has also started to expand its work with the Yowlumni Pack (Tulare County), with the help of CDFW’s Central Region staff. CDFW continues to survey for the presence of uncollared and collared wolves, based on sighting reports and other signs of wolf activity.
California’s wolf packs utilize large expanses of habitat compared to other areas in the western United States, presenting challenges for monitoring the population and questions regarding the availability of prey. The state and many landowners are mounting a variety of livestock protection and conflict reduction efforts while learning new lessons about their efficacy. CAWP hopes their research will complement these efforts.
The path of wolf recovery in California – the most populous and diverse U.S. state – has the potential to shape national perspectives on wildlife restoration and large-scale conservation. CAWP seeks to develop a model for how to bring universities, government agencies and local communities together around the science and practice of improving human-wildlife interactions on a shared landscape.
“The Wildlife Program at UC Berkeley is committed to fulfilling our university’s mandate to support the people, economies and nature of California with science, education and outreach. CAWP embodies those priorities and embraces the diversity of perspectives that accompany the recovery of large carnivores,” said Justin Brashares, CAWP co-lead and Professor of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation at UC Berkeley.
