It has been confirmed: the female gray wolf that was killed in December in southern Utah is the same endangered wolf that was spotted near the Grand Canyon in October, according to The Arizona Republic.
Geneticists matched a DNA sample from the dead wolf to samples taken from the wolf in October, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service confirmed "it is the same wolf, identified by the Service as 914F." The gray wolf is a federally protected species.
The wolf had been radio collared near Cody, Wyo., on Jan. 8, 2014 and then seen 450 miles away in the Grand Canyon area on Oct. 27, 2014. In December, a hunter in the Tushar Mountains said he mistakenly thought the wolf was a coyote and shot him, according to The Arizona Republic.
The wolf's death is a blow to conservationists who were rooting for the recovery of the gray wolf. Officials speculate the wolf had travelled in search of food or a mate, according to The Arizona Republic.
"It is nothing short of a tragedy that this wolf's journey across the west was cut short because she was shot and killed by a coyote hunter," said Director of Southwest Programs for Defenders of Wildlife Eva Sargent, according to Timber Wolf Information.
"This brave and ambitious female gray wolf that made it all the way from Wyoming to the Grand Canyon had already become a symbol of what gray-wolf recovery should look like - animals naturally dispersing to find suitable habitat."
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is conducting an ongoing investigation.
