A wolf was struck and killed on Highway 93 South in Kootenay National Park.
Lindsay McPherson, a spokesperson for Lake Louise, Yoho and Kootenay, said Parks Canada’s dispatch received a report of a wolf in the ditch about 700 metres north of Vermilion Crossing at 3 p.m. on Sept. 14.
“It was an adult female,” said McPherson. “She wasn’t known to our staff.”
This is the second wolf to be struck and killed in the Lake Louise, Yoho, Kootenay field unit so far this year. Another female wolf was killed on Highway 93 North in Banff National Park on July 9.
In recent years, an annual average of 53 large animals have been killed in Kootenay National Park. This does not include those dying out of view from the highway or removed by scavengers.
Roads are barriers to wildlife searching for food, shelter and mates, prompting Parks to install 4.7 kilometres of fencing and three wildlife underpasses near Dolly Varden day use area in Kootenay where there is a large deer population.
According to Parks Canada, wolves were the first large animals to use Kootenay’s new crossing structures, but they were soon joined by bear, whitetail deer, moose, snowshoe hare and other wildlife species.
Last year, the federal agency announced $9.6 million in funding to build another 6.5 km of fencing and at least four more wildlife crossings along the busy highway. Construction is underway.
