Mexican Gray Wolf: Reintroduction by Dating
A female Mexican gray wolf, which was part of reintroduction efforts for the endangered species, has been recaptured by authorities.
Endangered wolf captured
An endangered Mexican wolf, captured last weekend after traveling hundreds of kilometers from Arizona to New Mexico, is now being prepared for a kind of dating game as part of federal authorities' reintroduction efforts.
After the wildfire burned the land, it cleared the way for an open forest equally popular with ranchers and wolves alike. But only time will tell whether the US Fish and Wildlife Service will succeed in finding a suitable mate for the female wolf numbered F2754. The newly captured female has a choice between two brothers, also housed at the federal wolf management facility in central New Mexico.
“We wanted to capture her earlier so she has a better chance of bonding with a mate and then hopefully pairing successfully. We will monitor her and see what happens. Hopefully she will show interest in one or the other.”
Agency spokesperson, Aislinn Maestas
25 years of reintroduction
It could be late February or early March before the biologists know whether their efforts have been successful.
It has been 25 years since Mexican gray wolves were reintroduced to the southwestern United States. Through captive breeding and targeted releases, wildlife managers have succeeded in rebuilding the population of the rarest subspecies of gray wolf in North America.
Last year, Arizona and New Mexico recorded the highest number of Mexican gray wolves since the program began. Federal and state wildlife managers had tracked the lone female wolf for months, waiting for an opportunity to recapture her.
Inbreeding problems and too limited a habitat
A helicopter team working with the New Mexico Game and Fish Department shot the wolf with a tranquilizer dart and then prepared her for the journey south to the Sevilleta Wolf Management Facility.
«Such dispersals often occur in search of a mate. Since no other wolves are known in that area, it was unlikely she would be successful and she risked being mistaken for a coyote and shot.»
Brady McGee
The recovery area spanning Arizona and New Mexico is currently home to more than 240 of the endangered predators. There is also a small population in Mexico.
«In the case of Mexican wolves, these unrelated mates are becoming increasingly difficult to find due to inbreeding within the population and the narrow area in Arizona and New Mexico where wolves are permitted to roam.»
Greta Anderson, Deputy Director of the Western Watersheds Project
Ranchers in New Mexico and Arizona have long complained that wolves are responsible for dozens of livestock deaths each year and remain concerned about an expansion of the wolves' range. Rural residents in Colorado echo these concerns, as authorities there plan to release gray wolves in the coming weeks.
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