![]() In the case of Mexican wolves, those unrelated mates are increasingly hard to come by because of the level of inbreeding in the population and the narrow band of Arizona and New Mexico where wolves are allowed to be,” said Greta Anderson, deputy director of the Western Watersheds Project. “I think what we can say is that we know wolves are driven towards dispersing as a way towards mating with non-related wolves. They also pointed out that the wolf’s movements were evidence that the recovery boundaries were insufficient to meet the needs of the expanding population. There is also a small population in Mexico.Įnvironmentalists had pushed federal managers to let the solo female wolf be, pointing out that previous efforts to relocate her were unsuccessful following her first attempt to head northward last winter. The recovery area spanning Arizona and New Mexico is currently home to more than 240 of the endangered predators. ![]() Officials said the goal is that the match-making efforts net pups in the spring and more wolves can be released to boost the wild population. As there are no other known wolves in the area, she was unlikely to be successful and risked being mistaken for a coyote and shot,” he said in a statement. “Dispersal events like this are often in search of a mate. It was about the wellbeing of the wolf, said Brady McGee, the Mexican wolf recovery coordinator. A helicopter crew working with the New Mexico game and fish department shot her with a tranquilizer dart and then readied her for the trip south to the Sevilleta Wolf Management Facility. Their opportunity came on Saturday near the rural community of Coyote, New Mexico. US Fish and Wildlife Service shows game camera footage of wolf F2754 before her epic journey. After showing no signs of returning to the wolf recovery area, officials decided to capture her before the start of the breeding season. She spent weeks moving between the preserve and the San Pedro Mountains. Her journey began in the mountains of south-eastern Arizona and crossed the dusty high desert of central New Mexico before reaching the edge of Valles Caldera national preserve. Through captive breeding and targeted releases, wildlife managers have been able to build up the population of what is the rarest subspecies of gray wolf in North America.ĭespite fits and starts, the numbers have trended upward, with last year marking the most Mexican gray wolves documented in Arizona and New Mexico since the start of the program.įederal and state wildlife managers had been tracking the lone female wolf for months, waiting for an opportunity to capture her again. It has been 25 years since Mexican gray wolves were first reintroduced into the south-western US. It could be late February or early March before biologists know if their efforts are successful. ![]() Hopefully, she does show interest in one or the other.” “We’re going to be observing her and waiting to see. “We wanted to bring her in earlier so that she has a longer chance to bond with a mate and then hopefully successfully breed,” said an agency spokeswoman, Aislinn Maestas. The newly captured wolf will be offered a choice among two brothers that are also housed at the federal government’s wolf management facility in central New Mexico. But only time will tell whether the US Fish and Wildlife Service can succeed in finding a suitable mate for the female wolf numbered F2754. ![]()
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