ON SUNDAY, AUGUST 12 AT APPROXIMATELY 1530 HOURS, I RECEIVED A VOICE MAIL ON MY CELL PHONE FROM THE RP REQUESTING THAT I CONTACT HIM REGARDING SOME POSSIBLE WOLF TRACKS HE FOUND ON HIS PROPERTY NEAR PICKETT CREEK AT AN OLD HOMESTEAD. THE RP HAD EXPERIENCED A WOLF DEPREDATION ON HIS CATTLE A FEW MONTHS PRIOR AND WAS CONCERNED ABOUT THE PROXIMITY OF THE WOLF TO HIS CATTLE. I CONTACTED THE RP BY PHONE AND ARRANGED TO MEET HIM AT 0700 HOURS THE NEXT MORNING.
I MET THE RP THE FOLLOWING DAY. THERE IS AN ACTIVE WATER TROUGH AT THE SITE AND A LARGE NUMBER OF COWS AND CALVES GRAZING IN THE AREA. I LOCATED LARGE CANINE TRACKS APPROXIMATELY ONE HUNDRED YARDS OR LESS FROM THE WATER TROUGH ON A CATTLE TRAIL RUNNING FROM THE WEST DOWN TO THE WATER TROUGH. THE TRACKS WERE APPROXIMATELY FIVE INCHES LONG FROM HEEL TO TOE AND BASED ON MY TRAINING AND EXPERIENCE, WERE TOO LARGE TO BE COYOTE TRACKS. THE TRACKS HAD WELL DEFINED CLAW MARKS FROM THE TOES. THE CONFIRMED PRESENCE OF WOLVES IN THE AREA AND THE LACK OF DOMESTIC DOGS IN THE AREA LEAD ME TO BELIEVE THE TRACKS WERE WOLF TRACKS. THE SERIES OF TRACKS WAS INCOMPLETE AS THERE WERE CATTLE TRACKS COVERING SOME OF IT. I LOCATED AT LEAST 10 COMPLETE OR PARTIAL WOLF TRACKS. I ONLY LOCATED WOLF TRACKS HEADING TOWARDS THE WATER TROUGH. THE WET AREA AROUND THE WATER TROUGH WAS HEAVILY TRODDEN ON BY RECENT CATTLE ACTIVITY AND NO MORE TRACKS WERE FOUND. THE WOLF TRACKS THAT WERE LOCATED WERE FOUND ON THE TRAIL IN AN OPEN FIELD ON A SPOT WHERE THE DIRT WAS LIGHT AND LOOSE ENOUGH TO FORM A TRACK. I PHOTO GRAPHED THE TRACKS AND STRIDE PATTERN WITH BUSINESS CARDS TO MARK THEIR LOCATION. I DID NOT HAVE ENOUGH BUSINESS CARDS ON ME TO MARK ALL OF THE TRACKS FOR THE PHOTOS OF STRIDE PATTERN.
I CHECKED TWO OTHER WATER TROUGHS AND DID NOT LOCATE ANY MORE TRACKS. NO INJURED CATTLE WERE OBSERVED. THE CLEARED THE AREA AT APPROXIMATELY 1100 HOURS.
