A 3-year-old gray wolf may be roaming in Los Angeles County in search of a mate -- a major milestone for a species that was wiped out in California a century ago.
The black-coated female was born in Plumas County in 2023 and was fitted with a GPS collar by California Department of Fish and Wildlife teams in May 2025. She traveled with the Yowlumni pack in Tulare County for about eight months in 2025 before heading out on her own.
Wildlife officials said the wolf, known as BEY03F, was detected on remote cameras in Tulare County. More recently, GPS tracking data showed the wolf in Los Angeles County, though there have been no confirmed physical sightings there. On Tuesday, the state wolf tracker map showed a ping in Kern County.
According to the state wolf coordinator, breeding season occurs in February, and wolves can travel hundreds, even thousands, of miles in search of a mate.
"This wolf would have traveled nearly the entire length of the Sierra Nevada over the last year or so, and her journey isn't over," the state wolf coordinator said.
