Rare black female wolf. Nanuk Polar Bear Lodge. Michael Gerhartz photo.
Vast, wild, and beautiful: This best describes the Kaska coast, where the Boreal Forest meets the Hudson Bay. This unique ecosystem is home to the grey wolves of the Opoyastin River. Less than three percent of the grey wolves are black in colour.
This female was the first black wolf we’d seen at Nanuk Polar Bear Lodge in years. We first saw her in October 2023, when she slowly meandered along the coastline, coming from the east. Back then, she only paid us a short visit, and we thought we would never see her again.
This year we were surprised when she appeared out of the willows one evening, cautiously walking past the lodge. When she saw us, she stopped for a moment, thinking, remembering…
And then she was gone.
