Researchers working with the Heiltsuk Nation say the footage may be the first documented example of a wild wolf using a tool.
BELLA BELLA, British Columbia — A remote camera set on a rocky beach on Canada’s central coast recorded a female coastal wolf gripping a crab-trap float, tugging the rope and dragging the trap into shallow water before tearing into the bait, researchers said this week. The clip, filmed in May 2024 and reviewed over the past year, answers a local mystery of damaged traps and has prompted scientists to weigh whether it qualifies as tool use by a wild canid.
The find matters because it documents an unusually sophisticated sequence by a predator already known for swimming and foraging in the Pacific. The footage emerged from a collaboration between the Heiltsuk Nation’s stewardship teams and academic researchers who had been trying to curb invasive European green crabs while tracking what — or who — kept emptying their traps. The research team has now described the behavior in a peer-reviewed paper, framing it as the first possible tool use observed in wolves and opening a fresh debate over how scientists define tools in animal behavior. The stakes are scientific and practical: confirmation could expand the list of known tool-using species and influence how communities secure gear along remote shorelines.
In the video, a wolf pads out of the water with an orange float between her teeth, drops it on cobble, then wades back to seize the rope and walks backward until the hidden trap surfaces. She noses the mesh, rips into the bait cup and trots off. The sequence lasts only minutes but shows a step-by-step method that surprised even veteran field crews. “Something had been pulling our crab traps and taking the bait,” said William Housty, director of the Heiltsuk Integrated Resource Management Department. “We couldn’t figure out what had the ability to do that until we put a camera up and saw there are other intelligent beings out there.” Ecologist Kyle Artelle, a co-author of the study, said the wolf “solved the problem the same way we would,” adding the efficiency suggested prior practice. A second camera later caught another wolf tugging a buoy line, and crews say dozens of traps showed similar tooth-marked mesh and missing bait through the season.
Field notes and timestamps place the first clear footage in May 2024 on a beach a short boat ride from Bella Bella, within Heiltsuk territory on the Central Coast. Guardians had deployed the cameras after reporting traps hauled from deeper water and left scuffed on the shore. Bears, otters and seals were early suspects, but those species leave different signs and typically lack the leverage to haul fully submerged gear. According to the researchers, the wolf in the clip brings the float to land before switching to the rope, then backs up in short bursts until the trap emerges — a sequence they describe as purposeful and learned. How the behavior started remains unknown. Artelle said the pack’s repeated success implies social learning, with younger animals likely watching older ones. The team also emphasized what they do not know: whether wolves first encountered the trick with derelict gear, how many packs participate and how far the behavior has spread along the coast.
Local crews say the discovery forced quick changes. The Heiltsuk Nation has been setting traps to check the spread of European green crabs, an invader known to damage clam beds and eelgrass. Those traps became unintended puzzles for the wolves. “It’s almost like a daily chess game with our crew and the wolves,” Housty said. Guardians shifted trap locations, adjusted soak times and reworked bait canisters to keep lures away from opportunistic animals while continuing to monitor the invasive species. Researchers documented varied damage: chewed mesh, bent frames and bite marks on bait jars. They also noted wolves targeting traps set in deeper water, which suggests the animals learned that lines connect floats to food. The behavior did not appear to be a one-off; logs describe “hundreds” of baited sets intercepted or altered across multiple weeks as the team experimented with placements.
For scientists, the question is whether the behavior meets the bar for tool use. Some ethologists define a tool as an external object used to achieve a goal, a category that typically includes sticks, stones and even sponges used by dolphins. Others require modification of the object or exclusion of cases where animals exploit human-made gear. In this case, the wolf manipulated a float and a rope to retrieve food from an otherwise inaccessible place. Supporters argue that fits the broad definition. Skeptics counter that the gear was not fashioned by the animal and that pulling a line may be better classified as problem-solving. The study’s authors label it “possible” tool use and note the careful sequence — retrieve float, grab rope, haul trap, access bait — as evidence of foresight. They also place the finding in a growing record of coastal wolf behaviors, from swimming island to island to hunting salmon and foraging shellfish along intertidal zones.
The coastal setting is central to the story. Wolves on this stretch of the Pacific often live at the ocean’s edge, moving among islets and tidal flats. In Heiltsuk territory, they are not hunted, and encounters with people tend to be brief, giving animals space to experiment. Researchers say that tolerance may allow wolves more time to explore objects on beaches, including buoys washed ashore and lines snaking into the surf. The partnership that produced the footage — between Heiltsuk Guardians and outside scientists — grows out of years of work mapping wildlife and monitoring fisheries. Guardians first flagged the trap losses while tracking green crabs, then helped position the cameras to capture whatever was interfering. The resulting images show a wolf comfortable in surf and kelp, a characteristic of so-called sea wolves long documented on the central and northern coasts of British Columbia.
Procedurally, the team compiled clips, site notes and damaged gear records for analysis, then prepared a manuscript describing the behavior. The paper was published this week in a scientific journal and outlines evidence from the main video, a second clip of a different animal interacting with a line, and field reports of repeated incidents. It does not claim universal tool use among wolves or assign a population-wide rate. Instead, it frames the observation as a notable first and calls for more systematic monitoring. Next steps include placing additional cameras this winter and spring, testing trap designs that can withstand tooth pressure without harming animals, and mapping where the behavior occurs. If future footage shows juveniles copying adults, it would strengthen the case for social transmission — a key marker when scientists assess cultural behaviors in wildlife.
On the ground, the discovery has already changed daily routines. Some crews now haul traps more frequently or shift them away from narrow beaches that create natural winches for a rope-and-float pull. Others are trialing heavier lids and locking bait jars. Fishermen in nearby communities have reported seeing floats dragged toward shore at night, though those accounts remain unverified. Researchers caution against drawing tidy lessons from a few clips. They note that wolves interacted with the bait, not the crabs, and that the trap raids did not appear to injure the animals. Still, every damaged trap means less data on the invasive species the community is trying to track. The collaboration plans regular briefings with local leadership and expects to share updated findings as new camera deployments come back with more video.
Back on the beach where the first sequence was recorded, the scene looks ordinary: tide lines of kelp, a tangle of nylon rope, the knock of a float against cobble. Field crews say that is now the first thing they check when a trap goes silent. “She knew exactly what to do,” Artelle said of the wolf in the primary clip. “Every motion looked practiced.” On clear days, Guardians say they can track pawprints between wrack and water where a buoy has been set down. The prints often lead toward the treeline, where ravens wait to scavenge bait scraps. Residents describe hearing the clack of floats at dusk and seeing wolves slip between rocks at low tide. The behavior, they say, fits a broader picture of adaptable animals that have long learned to make a living at the ocean’s edge.
As of Thursday, researchers and Heiltsuk Guardians say they are redeploying cameras at several beaches and reviewing more footage from 2024–25. The next update is expected after crews retrieve memory cards from remote sites in the coming weeks, along with notes from tests of modified traps and bait canisters.
Author note: Last updated November 20, 2025.