Montana mammals

Gray Wolf in Montana

Canis lupus

Native to Montana S4 Apparently Secure in Montana

Not listed as nonindigenous in Montana by USGS NAS; native to its Montana range.

IUCN Red List status

LC – Least Concern

Widespread and abundant; not at risk.

Photo: Robbie Hannawacker · CC0Silver-gray wolf walking along a gravel bank in AlaskaPhoto: Alejandro Santillana · CC0A pale, cream-phase wolf on the move in Yellowstone. Coat color spans cream to coal black.Photo: Piotr Lukasik · CC BY 4.0A black-phase wolf in a Yellowstone meadow at last light.Photo: mefisher · CC0A wolf beds down in open grassland, tail tucked alongside.Photo: Norma Malinowski · CC BY 4.0A gray wolf in winter coat. From the front, the wide head and short rounded ears are unmistakable.

Cream-colored gray wolf walking through dry grass with its mouth open — Photo: Robbie Hannawacker · CC0Silver-gray wolf walking along a gravel bank in AlaskaPhoto: Alejandro Santillana · CC0A pale, cream-phase wolf on the move in Yellowstone. Coat color spans cream to coal black.Photo: Piotr Lukasik · CC BY 4.0A black-phase wolf in a Yellowstone meadow at last light.Photo: mefisher · CC0A wolf beds down in open grassland, tail tucked alongside.Photo: Norma Malinowski · CC BY 4.0A gray wolf in winter coat. From the front, the wide head and short rounded ears are unmistakable.

Gray Wolf in Montana, by the numbers

Common in Montana 36th most recorded of 122 mammals logged in Montana

202 occurrence records

Records from 2000–2026.

202 total records count every Montana occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the map plots a georeferenced sample of 198; the monthly chart covers the 192 records with a full observation date.

Field encounter

Where and when you're most likely to encounter a Gray Wolf

Most active: Montana, in September.

Where: MontanaMT
When: September

Observe from a distance and give it room. Never approach, corner, or feed one.

When to be most aware of the Gray Wolf in Montana

Most sightings fall in September.

192 Montana occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence.

Monthly Montana records (table)

Month	Records
January	8
February	9
March	12
April	7
May	12
June	15
July	12
August	28
September	57
October	8
November	11
December	13

Monthly gray wolf occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in Montana, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in Montana, with recorded sightings peaking in September.

Occurrence map

Where Gray Wolf has been recorded in Montana

198 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

198 Montana records mapped

Where gray wolf encounters are recorded

Park, forest, or monument	iNaturalist records
Glacier National Park	35
Bob Marshall Wilderness	4
Gallatin National Forest	4
Yellowstone National Park	3
Lolo National Forest	2
Swan River State Forest	2
Kootenai National Forest	1
Thompson River State Forest	1

Protected places with the most gray wolf records, from the USGS Protected Areas Database plus named mountain ranges, where encounters are most often recorded, not a full breakdown, so they don't sum to the total. Keep your distance and never approach one.

Where it's recorded in Montana

County	Records
Flathead County	92
Glacier County	19
Missoula County	17
Lincoln County	16
Park County	11
Lake County	8
Sanders County	7
Gallatin County	5
Madison County	3
Ravalli County	3
Lewis and Clark County	3
Beaverhead County	3
10 other counties	15

The complete county distribution, spread across 22 Montana counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

Montana is one of the few US states with a genuinely wild, self-sustaining gray wolf population, restored after wolves were trapped and poisoned out of the region by the early 1900s and later returned through natural dispersal from Canada and the 1990s Yellowstone reintroduction. The 202 records here trace territory around Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, Flathead Lake, and the Missouri River corridor, a spread that reflects both real wolf range and the areas where wildlife agencies actively track collared packs.

Records climb sharply into a September peak, more than four times the April low, a pattern that likely tracks late-summer pack movement and increased howling activity as young wolves disperse, alongside heavier monitoring effort during that stretch. NatureServe rates the species S4, apparently secure, in Montana, a notably healthier statewide status than the wolf carries in most of the Lower 48.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist and GBIF.

Gray Wolf in other states

View all states →

Full species profile Gray Wolf Canis lupus Size 1.1–1.6 m3.4–5.2 ft Weight 23–80 kg50.7–176.4 lb Lifespan Up to 20.6 yr View the full profile

More mammals in Montana in the atlas

Data & sources

The data and visualizations on this page draw on these open sources:

GBIFCC-BY 4.0occurrence records behind the range map, elevation, and record counts
iNaturalistCC0 / CC-BY / CC-BY-SAobservations, photos, and audio recordings
NatureServe ExplorerCC-BYthe state conservation rank
IUCN Red Listattributed factthe global conservation status
USGS NASpublic domainnative / introduced status
Natural Earthpublic domainthe relief basemap
USFSpublic domainnational-forest boundaries
USGS Protected Areas Databasepublic domainthe named parks, forests, and refuges behind "notable places to look"