Gray wolves are not an established, breeding population in North Dakota today. NatureServe ranks the species SX in the state, presumed extirpated, reflecting a history that saw wolves eliminated from North Dakota by the early twentieth century through bounty hunting and habitat loss. The 12 records logged here, all from GBIF with no iNaturalist photos, read less like evidence of a resident pack and more like scattered dispersal records, animals wandering in from Minnesota or Canadian populations before moving on or being removed.
Sightings are spread thin across the year with no real seasonal pattern, just isolated hits in April, June, July, and August. J. Clark Salyer, Long Lake, and Chase Lake national wildlife refuges are the kind of large, connected habitat blocks where a wandering wolf would be most likely to pass through, not a sign of a resident population denning nearby.
Full species profile
