By Ed Cara Published January 7, 2025 | Comments (0) | A picture of wolf 907F taken December 14, 2019. NPS / Jeremy SunderRaj One of Yellowstone Natural Parks most famous denizens has tragically passed. Wildlife researchers have confirmed that the long-lived wolf 907Falso known as Queen of the Wolvesdied this Christmas. Wolf 907Fs death was first reported by local media outlet CowboyStateDaily late last month. According to researchers with the Yellowstone Wolf, Cougar and Elk Project, 907F succumbed to injuries sustained during a territorial fight with a rival wolf pack a few days before her death. The exceptionally hardy and battle-scarred canine was 11.8-years-old, having lived three times longer than the average wild wolf. 907F was well-known for her tenacity. Born in 2013, she overcame a severe case of mange early in life and eventually rose to become the alpha female of the Junction Butte wolf pack in 2017, according to project researchers. She did eventually lose her position, but remained an important member of the pack.At around the age of four, 907F lost her left eye, likely due to a fight. And in her later years, she was often seen limping. But she continued to thrive long into her life. She had several litters of pups, with the latest arriving in May 2024 at the age of 11an astonishing feat. Though the exact number of offspring she had remains unknown, project researcher Taylor Rabe told CowboyStateDaily that 907F was the most reproductively successful wolf in Yellowstone history.Most wild wolves typically live around three to four years. And only six wolves living in Yellowstone have been recorded living to 11 since their reintroduction to the area 30 years ago, according to Smithsonian Magazine (somewhere between 83 and 123 wolves currently live in Yellowstone). But even legends eventually die. According to the project researchers, 907F and her pack got into a fight with a rival pack that had encroached onto their territory on December 22. Though 907F did survive the initial battle, her injuries proved too grave to overcome. By Thursday morning, her sustained lack of motionas recorded through a radio collarmade it clear that she had died sometime during Christmas a day earlier. Though 907Fs death is tragic, especially to the many researchers and wolf enthusiasts who followed her over the years, it does come with a sort of silver lining. Many wolves and other wild animals often die as a result of human activity, such as motor vehicle collisions. So as violent as 907Fs end was, it was at least on her own wolf terms, the researchers say. Its sad. But specifically for all of us on the project, we always like to see a wolf die naturally, rather than at the hands of a human, Rabe told CowboyStateDaily. It gives us peace to know that she went in a natural manner.Daily NewsletterYou May Also Like By Ed Cara Published December 27, 2024 By Isaac Schultz Published December 4, 2024 Margherita Bassi Published November 21, 2024 By Isaac Schultz Published November 17, 2024 By Ed Cara Published September 13, 2024 By Matt Novak Published September 3, 2024