The wolves in this story
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Birth of an icon
In 2004, the presence of two adult wolves and two pups in Hayden Valley confirmed the formation of a new pack in Yellowstone. Named the Hayden Valley pack, they were led by a white-coated alpha female and her mate. The following year, they welcomed another litter of pups, including a daughter who would one day become the Canyon Alpha Female.
A young White Lady by Mark Miller Wildlife Imagery/Alamy Stock
Surviving harsh conditions
Living in Yellowstone’s high-elevation interior, the Hayden Valley pack endured long, brutal winters. With deep snow, freezing temperatures, and elk migrating to lower elevations, they had to adapt by hunting bison—a far more formidable and dangerous prey. These harsh conditions tested their resilience, making pup survival difficult and keeping the pack small.
The loss of her parents
In 2006, biologists radio collared the alpha pair, identifying them scientifically as 540F and 541M. The following year, the neighboring and much larger Mollie's pack, began to encroach into Hayden Valley. For wolves, their territory is where they hunt and raise their young—which makes it worth fiercely defending. On Oct. 27, 2007, both Hayden Valley pack alphas were killed in a confrontation with the rivals. They died honorably for wolves—protecting their family and the hunting grounds that provided them with food.
712M courtesy of Mike Cavaroc/Free Roaming Photography
The rise of the Canyon pack
With their deaths, the Hayden Valley pack split apart. Some members left Yellowstone, moving west into Montana while the two year old Canyon Alpha Female remained inside the park. In 2008, she joined with two dispersing Mollie’s pack males, 712M and his older brother 587M. The three wolves established the Canyon pack, on the historic Hayden Valley territory where she was born and raised. As the Canyon Alpha Female carried on their legacy, her coat turned a glorious white over time, just as her mother's had, and she was called White Lady.
A beloved icon
The Canyon pack, under White Lady's leadership, became one of the most well-known packs in Yellowstone. Often seen traveling the park's roads, White Lady and her family provided countless visitors with a rare opportunity to observe a white-coated wolf in the wild. Her beauty, strength, and grace made her beloved to all who knew her.
Wapiti Alpha Female
In 2010, White Lady gave birth to a daughter, the future Wapiti Alpha Female. Like her mother and grandmother before her, the Wapiti Alpha Female's coat turned white over the years. In 2015, she paired with 755M (06’s former mate), and the couple founded the Wapiti Lake pack, making 755M the only alpha male in Yellowstone history to found two packs (Lamar Canyon and Wapiti Lake). In a gracious act of love and devotion, White Lady and 712M moved their Canyon pack westward, making way for their daughter to raise her own family in Hayden Valley.
Michelle Holihan/Alamy Stock
A tragic end
On April 11, 2017, White Lady was found mortally wounded inside Yellowstone National Park. Rangers determined that she had suffered a gunshot wound, a criminal act of poaching in a protected area. Despite efforts to save her, White Lady had to be euthanized due to the severity of her injuries. Her death was a tragic loss to the park and to all who admired her. A large reward remains available for information that leads to the arrest of the person(s) who killed her.
Michelle Holihan/Alamy Stock
Remembering White Lady
White Lady was 12 years old at the time of her death, making her one of the few wild wolves to live to old age. As the longtime alpha female of the Canyon pack, she raised eight litters of pups, even having one at 11 years old. She and her mate, 712M, shared an unbreakable bond, staying together for nine years—the longest recorded pair in Yellowstone. We mourn White Lady—for the wild beauty she embodied and the human cruelty that stole her life. Her legacy lives on through her descendants who still roam Yellowstone today.
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