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Habitat and Range: The range of the Mexican wolf is believed
to have included central and southeastern Arizona, southern New
Mexico, southwestern Texas and in the Sierra Madre and adjoining
highlands of Mexico. Their habitat includes oak forests, oak/pine
forests, or pine forests adjacent to open areas at elevations
ranging from 4500-9000 feet above sea level. Unconfirmed reports
persist from Durango and Chihuahua, with biologists attempting
to confirm actual wolf presence in these areas.
Diet: Wolves evolved as a predator of large hoofed mammals,
with a tightly organized social structure, which enables them
to work cooperatively to bring down preys much larger than themselves.
They will usually kill what is easiest to catch such as the weak,
sick, injured, old and very young. Wolves will also scavenge carrion,
and will take healthy, strong animals when possible. Living in
a "feast or famine" world, wolves often go several days
without successfully making a kill, but can gorge themselves and
consume over 20 lbs. when the hunt has been successful. The Mexican
wolf's major prey species were believed to include elk, mule deer,
whitetail deer, pronghorn, javalina, and other small mammals.
Zoo diet: Mazuri exotic canine dry and beef knuckle bones.
Habits and Adaptations: The wolf pack is one of nature's
most sophisticated social orders, as well as one of the most intensively
studied throughout the world. It is believed that Mexican gray
wolf's general behavior is similar to other subspecies of gray
wolf by having a complex social hierarchy maintained through vocalizations,
body postures, and scent marking. Wolves have keen senses of sight,
hearing, and smell and can travel at ~ 5 miles per hour for long
periods of time while hunting or traveling within their territory.
Breeding and Maturation: The pack's social structure generally
determines which wolves will breed, usually only the "alpha"
pair, and produce a single litter of pups. However when prey is
abundant, a wolf pack will occasionally have multiple litters
born that spring. The breeding season is usually late January
through early March, with a litter of 2-6 pups born 63 days later.
After 4-6 weeks, the pups usually leave the den and begin to investigate
their surroundings. As the pups mature, the pack will move to
a "rendezvous" site within their territory. Wolves generally
reach adult size by 10 months of age, and live 10-14 years in
captivity.
Conservation: Intensive efforts by both private individuals
and government agencies led to the eradication of the Mexican
wolf through most of its historic range. In 1976, the Mexican
wolf was listed as an endangered species under the Endangered
Species Act. Between 1977 and 1980, five Mexican wolves were captured
in Mexico under a joint agreement between the United States and
Mexico. These original wolves, and two additional lineages of
captive wolves added in 1995, make up the captive breeding population
that is now managed by the Mexican Gray Wolf Species Survival
Plan (SSP) for the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.
In March 1998, the howl of the Mexican wolf could once again
be heard echoing through the hills of the Blue Mountain Range
in Arizona. Wolves that are potential candidates for release are
evaluated on several factors including their genetic make-up,
breeding history, and enhanced fear of humans. Wildlife biologists
use a "soft release" method, which allows the wolves
to adjust to the release area for a period of time before the
pen doors are opened. The plan is to release about 15 pairs or
family groups over a period of five years into the Blue Range
Wolf Recovery Area until a self-sustainable population of at least
100 wolves exists in the wild. Reintroduced wolves are designated
as a "nonessential experimental population" under the
ESA. This will allow for greater management flexibility relating
to livestock depredation issues, major land use restrictions translocations,
captures, and other monitoring needs. International wolf experts
rate the recovery of the Mexican wolf as the highest priority
of gray wolf recovery programs worldwide. The Minnesota Zoo joined
the Mexican wolf SSP in the fall of 1994 and currently maintains a non breeding pack of 4
males and 3 females. In July 2006, there were 296 Mexican wolves in the captive breeding program and 59 wolves in the wild population.
Miscellaneous: Mexican wolves are occasionally preyed
upon by bears or mountain lions, and continue to face conflict
with humans. Wolves may also occasionally kill one another within
the pack or be killed by neighboring wolf packs.
Learn more:
List of wolf web sites
Information about gray wolf & red wolf educational materials (opens pdf file)
Mexican wolf recovery video
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