Listed as an endangered species in 1967, the red wolf (Canis rufus) was declared extinct in the wild in 1980.

Native to the southeastern United States for 10,000 years, the species has endured, albeit in small numbers, only because a small population of captive bred red wolves has been reintroduced to a 1.7 million acre recovery area in northeastern North Carolina.

Between 2002 and 2014, according to the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI), “the wild red wolf population consistently numbered over 100 animals”. But from there, the story headed south.

According to the AWI, by 2015 the red wolf population had dropped to around 50 to 75 animals. The following year showed more losses, with around 25 to 48 animals remaining.

As of October 2021, only eight Red Wolves are known to be in the wild. The AWI denounces the mismanagement by the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission and the US Fish and Wildlife Service are responsible.

Management of the program shifted from Red Wolf biologists to bureaucrats in Atlanta, far removed from field work. And landowners who didn’t like the recovery program continued to kill wolves, claiming their innocence – “we thought it was a coyote“.

Additionally, the USFWS has actually issued permits to kill red wolves on private land, even in the face of such small numbers. AWI writes, “Given the small and dwindling number of red wolves, the loss of a single wolf has enormous implications for the species.”

“The impacts are particularly severe when a mother wolf is lost, as it not only orphans her young and likely leads to their death, but also eliminates the opportunity for that particular wolf to contribute more litters to the population,” says AWI. .

“Furthermore, it disrupts the dynamics of the whole pack, increasing the likelihood that other red wolves will hybridize with coyotes: although red wolves tend to pair for life, red wolves may interbreed or hybridize with coyotes.”

To an outside observer, the obvious solution would seem to be greater wildlife protection in North Carolina, including stopping the killing of coyotes and wolves.

The level of frustration of those who care about these animals and work most closely with them to save them must be out of this world – only eight in the wild and only one state!

As I continue my self-education on the state of wildlife in the United States, an even more disturbing picture than I had imagined emerges from reading and research. The story of the red wolf is truly shocking.

As an important apex predator for global biodiversity, this species needs much more attention. A higher level of commitment to support a sustainable population in North Carolina is needed, more space and attention to captive breeding, and more support for the reintroduction of red wolves to other suitable areas where they could thrive.

It is equally important to increase public awareness of ways to encourage tolerance for wolves around the world and to reinforce non-lethal approaches where there is predator-livestock/human overlap.

The mistreatment of the gray wolf, a big cousin of the red wolf, shows how essential education is. Also brought to the brink of extinction in America, the the gray wolf has been reintroduced in certain areas and found footing in a few parts of the United States – and apparently as soon as there is a little footing, there are those of us who are all too eager to kill animals.

This suggested essential education should include the story of how it came to be that there are only eight red wolves left in the wild of the United States, whose 48 contiguous states are over 3 million square miles.

Like the cougar, bison, and other species, wolves have not escaped man’s rapacity to eliminate non-human life. Wildlife advocate and author Rick Lamplugh writes that in 1970, only about 700 wolves remained in the lower 48 states, up from about 2 million before settlers arrived, who quickly eradicated wolves east of the Mississippi.

Several organizations are working on issues related to the survival of red wolves, with several zoos and nature centers housing captive animals totaling over 200. Kudos to them. Among them are breeding programs run by the Wolf Conservation Center at its Endangered Species Facility in South Salem, New York.

It’s great there are committed organizationsbut it seems – again from the perspective of a peeking outsider – that we should be much further ahead with more animals and with more animals being reintroduced into the wild.

Even allowing for the fact that science can move slowly, we’re talking decades since the few remaining red wolves were removed from the wild and placed in captive programs.

One program that hopefully will prove useful in identifying suitable areas for red wolf reintroduction is the Gulf Coast Canine Project.

Breeding has occurred among coyotes, gray wolves, and eastern wolves, resulting in red wolf genetics in coyotes on the southwestern coast of Louisiana and the Gulf Coast of Texas – coyotes are become reservoirs of genetic information for the red wolves.

By tracking these coyotes with red wolf genes, researchers are evaluating the genetic history to see what’s left of the red wolf, seeking to understand behavior, and ultimately hope to inform the conservation and management of red wolves and coyotes.

For more information and ways to help the red wolf, visit the North Carolina Wildlife Federation, Endangered Wolf Center, Wolf Conservation Center and Gulf Coast Canine Projectand read Rick Lamplugh.

— Maria Fotopoulos writes about the link between overpopulation and biodiversity loss. Contact her on Facebook at Be the change for the animals or at Manure rackand follow her on Twitter: @BeTheChangeForAnimals. Click here for previous columns. The opinions expressed are his own.

Federal government withdraws plan to cut red wolf protections in North Carolina

By Coastal Review on November 15, 2021

By Catherine Kozak | Reprinted from CoastalReview.org

MANTEO – A controversial proposal to limit long-standing protective habitat and management strategies for critically endangered red wolves in northeastern North Carolina has been removed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service.

the agency had proposed in 2018 replace existing regulations that provided protective measures for the world’s only known wild red wolves, referred to as the North Carolina “Non-Essential Experimental Population” or NC NEP, with a drastically reduced rule. Many environmental groups had challenged the proposal in federal court, saying it violated the requirements of a provision of the Endangered Species Act.

“Based on recent court rulings involving the NC NEP and after reviewing public comments submitted in response to the proposed 2018 rule, the Service has determined that withdrawing the proposed rule is the best course of action at this time,” said the agency said in a November statement. ten Press release.

By withdrawing the proposed rule, Fish and Wildlife allowed the slate to start over on previously successful management tactics used in existing regulations, “as clarified by relevant court orders,” the statement said. This means that under the 1995 Management Rule, the agency has the authority to release captive-bred wolves into the wild population and conduct adaptive management – a point of contention detailed in the 2018 proposal and the subsequent legal proceedings.

Fish and Wildlife will also resume work with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission to implement coyote sterilization on federal and non-federal lands, subject to written agreements with landowners, according to the press release. In addition, the agency said that the authorized taking will primarily be limited to protecting oneself or others from potential harm.

Under the 2018 proposal, most of the private land in the 1.7 million acre reclamation area that encompasses Hyde, Tyrrell, Dare, Beaufort and Washington counties had been removed, leaving a small area in County Dare. Once this plan is completed, all five counties will remain in the recovery area.

“Environmentalists have been waiting 3 years to put the terrible red wolf proposal of 2018 behind us, and it is extremely gratifying to know that the USFWS is finally officially withdrawing from its plan to dramatically reduce recovery options for wolves.” Ron Sutherland, chief scientist for Wildlands Network, a nonprofit environmental group, said in an email. “Being able to finally put this hideous and cowardly proposition to bed is super rewarding and excellent news for the future of the Red Wolves. “

Sutherland said an analysis by Wildlands, a strong advocate for red wolf recovery, public comments on the 2018 proposal found more than 90% of the more than 100,000 comments the agency received supported doing more. , no less, to protect the wolves. .

Although red wolves once covered a wide range along the Gulf of the United States and the southeastern coastal plains, their populations have been decimated by overhunting and habitat loss. The red wolf was listed in 1973 under the Endangered Species Act as an endangered species and was declared extinct in the wild in 1980.

Four pairs of captive-bred wolves, descendants of a few wild wolves captured on the Gulf Coast, were released to Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge in 1987, and by 2005 the number had grown to 130 wolves.

Conflicts with private owners over wolf management had intensified over the past 10 to 15 years, with owners complaining of wolves killing pets and livestock, exacerbated by poor communication on the part of the wolf. wildlife managers.

The 1.7 million acre salvage area will continue in Hyde, Tyrrell, Dare, Beaufort and Washington counties. But with as few as 10 known red wolves still roaming the recovery area, in addition to around 20 collared wolves, conservationists fear there is no time to waste.

The agency said it was taking steps to improve relations with landowners.

“The Service will continue to work with stakeholders to identify ways to encourage and facilitate a more effective coexistence between humans and wolves …”, according to the statement, “and to establish the necessary support for wolf conservation. Red”.

Gov. Roy Cooper tweeted in support of the Home Office’s decision, calling it “an important step to save the American red wolf, the world’s most endangered canine species.” Cooper has pledged to work with the Biden administration, Wildlife Resources, and the North Carolina Zoo to prevent extinction.

the @ InteriorThe announcement is an important step in saving the American red wolf, the world’s most endangered canine species. These are only found in northeastern North Carolina and we look forward to working with Administrator Biden, @NCWildlife, @NCZoo & others to prevent their extinction. pic.twitter.com/prBbfJTtiV

– Governor Roy Cooper (@NC_Governor) November 12, 2021

Perrin de Jong, a lawyer at the Center for Biological Diversity, called the plan to reduce the red wolf recovery area “reckless and ill-conceived.”

“I am relieved that the Fish and Wildlife Service has finally listened to the public outcry against him,” said de Jong. “People want federal agencies to do more, not less, to protect the world’s most endangered wolf.”

---

To learn more

To learn more about CoastalReview.org, visit https://coastalreview.org/

---