Overview
- Ecology and Evolution published the analysis on November 17 describing remote videos of gray wolves retrieving crab traps to access bait in Haíɫzaqv territory on British Columbia’s central coast.
- A May 29, 2024 recording shows a female wolf swimming to a buoy, dragging the line, and hauling a fully submerged trap ashore within minutes.
- A February 15, 2025 clip captures another wolf pulling the line of a partially submerged trap, indicating at least two instances of similar behavior.
- Researchers and outside experts disagree on whether the rope‑ and buoy‑pulling meets strict definitions of tool use, with some calling it object use and others pointing to clear causal understanding.
- Haíɫzaqv guardians have dedicated 24/7 cameras to the traps and are adjusting deployment to reduce damage as teams investigate how the behavior arose and whether it spreads within the pack.