DNA Test Confirms ID of Wolf That Bit Minnesota Teen

ST. PUL, Minn. (AP) - DNA tests confirm a wolf trapped and killed at a northern Minnesota campground is the same wolf that attacked a 16-year-old there.

The Department of Natural Resources says the wolf's DNA matched samples obtained from a comforter used when he was taken to a hospital for treatment.

The DNR says final necropsy results on the wolf show a number of abnormal conditions that may have contributed to it biting a human. It says the wolf, estimated to be 1 1/2 years old, likely experienced a traumatic injury as a pup that developed into a severe facial deformity, dental abnormalities and brain damage.

DNR wolf specialist Dan Stark says it's surprising the wolf lived so long.

It was Minnesota's first documented wild wolf attack on a human resulting in a significant injury.