A remote camera in Lassen National Forest captures an image of a female gray wolf and one of her pups in 2017. A rise in California’s wolf population is making conflicts with humans more common.

This spring, California wolves concluded another denning and pup season. While most people have pleasant thoughts of cute little furballs of adorableness, those whose lives are directly impacted by wolves may feel differently. 

After being hunted to extinction in the state during the 1920s, gray wolves, which are protected under California’s Endangered Species Act, have recolonized the state — and their population is rebounding. As their numbers grow, conflicts between ranchers and wolves, including attacks on livestock, are also expected to increase. That’s a problem because the state does not have enough trained staff or the tools to address the moment, let alone a future with more wolves.

California’s wolf population is estimated at 80-90 adults, with 12 known wolf packs, 11 of which are in the northern part of the state. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife documented 198 confirmed or probable depredations (kills) from wolves on livestock in 2025, more than the previous four years combined. In comparison, Montana’s estimated wolf population of 1,091 killed 54 domestic animals in 2024. Part of Montana’s success has been utilizing the “Four C’s” — collaboration, conflict prevention, compensation and control — as laid out by........

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