Mexican Wolf Blog by Lucas Bartell

Lucas Bartell

177. 
     
     
     

     177.                The Mexican Wolf (Canis lupus baileyi)

     177. Listing: Endangered, 04/28/1976 
          Updated Listing: Experimental Population, Nonessential 01/24/1998                                                                                            

http://carnivoraforum.com/topic/10500620/1/

Description and Ecology 

The Mexican Wolf is an endangered top predator native to the Southwestern United States and Mexico. It hunts in packs in areas of dense forrest, and primarily prays on elk and deer. The Mexican Wolf is a subspecies of the gray wolf, and is easily distinguished by it's yellowish gray pelt and smaller build.  

grayareathefilm.com/wp-content/2012/10/wolf-range-map.jpg

Geographic and Population Changes

The Mexican Wolf's population dwindled to only a few wolves in Mexico in 1977. At this point, the wolves could not be found anywhere in the United States. Three wolves that were found in Mexico were put in to a captive breeding program, and in 1998 a group of wolves were released in to an area in New Mexico and Arizona known as the Mexican Wolf Experimental Population Area(MWEPA). Today, the wolf population found in the MWEPA exceeds 100 healthy individuals.  

Cause of Listing and Current Threats

https://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/0de7

During the late 1800's and through the mid 1900's, the Mexican Wolf was hunted to near extinction due to predator eradication programs. This is especially sad considering how very cute  Mexican Wolves are. Today the biggest obstacles for the Mexican Wolf are adapting to the wild after being in captivity, breeding successfully, and creating genetic diversity to ensure survival. Additionally, habitat loss affects the Mexican Wolf significantly and must be accounted for. The areas that the Mexican Wolf lives in are well managed, so poaching is essentially non-existent. 

Description of Recovery Plan 

The Mexican Wolf's recovery plan is based on three concepts that are paramount to the Mexican Wolf's survival: resiliency, redundancy and representation. The end goal is to establish two separate populations of Mexican Wolf, one in the United States and one in Mexico. These populations should be resilient, and indeed redundant, in order to increase their chances of survival. Additionally, these populations should be well represented by a high number of wolves. In the United States, the Mexican Wolf will be considered for delisting when the wolf population reaches more than 320 individuals. These wolves should be able to successfully reproduce without the help of a captive breeding program. In Mexico, the goal is to have a population of 170 wolves that can successfully reproduce. These numbers will be reached through effective management of the Mexican Wolfs territory, the use of a captive breeding program, tracking of the Mexican Wolfs progress, and the elimination of threats to the existence of the Mexican Wolf. The United States and Mexico are working in a joint effort to ensure the survival of the truly unique Mexican Wolf. 

What Can You Do? 

The first step to protecting the Mexican Wolf, and many other animals like it, is to simply help raise awareness about the danger these animals are in. Many individuals including hunters, do not know that the Mexican Wolf almost went extinct due entirely to human actions. An excellent resource to help raise awareness about these issues, and also to donate to to help protect endangered animals is defenders.org. This organization allows you to speak to government officials regarding endangered species, and they also raise money to protect these species.  The quote below embodies the mindset we should all have. 

 

Thank you very much for reading my blog. Please, remember what you have read and do your best to protect our worlds wildlife. In the words of the Lorax "Unless theres someone like you who cares a whole awful lot, nothing is ever going to get better, its not". 

Other Resources 

To Take Action: 

http://www.defenders.org/mexican-gray-wolf/what-you-can-do 

To Learn More: 

http://www.defenders.org/mexican-gray-wolf/basic-facts 

To Learn Much Much More: 

https://www.fws.gov/southwest/es/mexicanwolf/