A game camera monitored by Washington state wildlife biologists recently caught an image of what appears to be a lactating female wolf in the middle of Pend Oreille County.

"We've made no announcements because we have not confirmed that it's a wild wolf," said Madonna Luers, Washington Fish and Wildlife Department spokeswoman. "There are a lot of wolf-dog hybrids out there."

Hair samples have been taken from a bait site and testing is under way to determine if Washington has its second documented pack of breeding gray wolves.

Meantime, state biologists are monitoring a probable den location for a confirmed wolf pack in the Methow Valley. Nearly a year ago, those wolves became the state's first documented pack to have pups since the species was extirpated about 70 years ago.