CDFW Confirms Six Wolf Pups for Sierra County Pack

SIERRA COUNTY — Last week, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) confirmed in a quarterly report that the Beyem Seyo Wolf Pack in eastern Sierra County has successfully reproduced in 2025. The pack is raising a minimum of six wolf pups based on genetic analysis. According to the agency’s known wolves document, the breeding male is from the Whaleback pack. The female is part of the original Beyem Seyo breeding pair and originated from the 2020 Lassen Pack. The pack has produced two other litters – six pups in 2023 and five pups in 2024.

The Beyem Seyo pack is one of only three packs in California to have a confirmed litter of pups in 2025. The Harvey Pack in Lassen and Shasta Counties has produced at least seven pups. The Whaleback Pack in Siskiyou County has produced at least nine. The CDFW also confirmed in its report that the Beyem Seyo Pack is responsible for 14 confirmed and two probable depredation events on livestock from April through June of 2025; by far the highest of any other California pack monitored by the agency.

Two wolves dispersed from the Beyem Seyo pack in 2025, both being males. One has remained within Lassen County, while the other traveled north, eventually into Oregon. One Beyem Seyo female dispersed from the pack previously and has since been found with the Yowlumni Pack in southern California.

The updates reveal that at least 22 wolf pups are being raised in California in 2025. CDFW wildlife biologists documented at least 50 wolves in the state at the end of 2024. While ranchers in the Sierra Valley are experiencing frequent wolf livestock depredations and urging officials to consider lethal management solutions, some environmentalist organizations worry wolves are not populating quickly enough. “I’m glad to know at least three of California’s wolf families had pups this year but it’s concerning that there’s no indication the other seven packs have had pups,” said Amaroq Weiss, a senior wolf advocate at the Center for Biological Diversity. “Wolf recovery here is still in its infancy and for recovery to stay on track there need to be more wolves in more places.”