A Gray Wolf killed in Otsego County in 2021 marks a rare return of the species to the region, offering insights into their travel patterns from Canada.
Credit: New York State Museum
Cherry Valley wolf skull on display at New York State Museum
Author: WGRZ Staff
Published: 7:19 PM EST December 9, 2025
Updated: 7:19 PM EST December 9, 2025
ALBANY, N.Y. — The New York State Museum can now confirm that an animal shot and killed in Otsego County in 2021 was a wild Gray Wolf. The findings were published in the latest issue of Northeastern Naturalist.
Gray wolves were eliminated from the northeastern United States by the end of 19th century. This is the first documented case of one of these animals south of the St. Lawrence River in Decades. Officials say the discovery provides insight into how wolves travel.
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“The Cherry Valley wolf specimen is an exceptionally important piece of physical evidence of occasional dispersals by wild wolves into the northeastern U.S. from core breeding areas in eastern Canada.” says Dr. Jeremy Kirchman, the NYSM Curator of Birds and Mammals.
To identify the wolf, researchers from the museum, Princeton University, and the Northeast Ecological Recovery Society conducted extensive analyses of the animal’s genes. They say DNA comparisons across the genomes of more than 400 sampled wolves, coyotes, and dogs firmly grouped the specimens with Canis lupus.
In addition, Skull measurements and body mass showed the animal was larger than eastern coyotes.
Because of the discovery, the New York State Department of Conservation has increased its efforts to help hunters distinguish between coyotes (which can be legally hunted in New York) and wolves (which are protected under state and federal law). However, there are still challenges with identification, due to the history of mixing between wolves and coyotes in eastern North America.
As for the hunter who shot and killed the wolf, they cooperated fully with officials and was not fined.
The NYSDEC confiscated the taxidermy mount and skull and transferred them to the New York State Museum. The Cherry Valley wolf is currently on display as part of the Canine Contrasts exhibit, where visitors can learn about the complex relationship between wolves, coyotes, and their hybrid descendants.
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