Time to celebrate… WOLF AWARENESS WEEK

October 18, 2010

Are you wolf aware?

That’s right folks, today begins Wolf Awareness Week 2010!

Each day this week we’ll be sharing information about wolves to highlight the importance of protecting this imperiled animal. From the arctic wilds of Alaska and the timber forests of Minnesota, to the high desert plains of the Southwest and the coast of Carolina, wolves are beginning to re-establish their natural role in the ecosystem. Their continued recovery depends upon humans understanding and respecting these misunderstood predators. Let’s make sure they have a place to thrive in the future!

Wolves Around the Country: Where They Are and the Threats They Face

Gray Wolves

Alaska

Alaska is home to the largest remaining population of gray wolves in the United States. Some 7,000 to 11,000 wolves roam the state in habitats as diverse as barren arctic tundra and lush temperate rainforests. But Alaska classifies wolves as both big game animals and furbearers, which means they can be hunted and trapped. Each year, more than 1,000 wolves are trapped or hunted. Since the winter of 2003/2004, the state has conducted an extensive aerial predator control program employing the use of private hunters and pilots to shoot and kill wolves using airplanes.

Northern Rockies

Thousands of gray wolves once ranged throughout the Northern Rockies of Montana, Idaho and Wyoming, but were aggressively eliminated by the 1930s. It wasn’t until almost 50 years later that wolves became one of the first species listed under the Endangered Species Act, thus setting the stage for wolf recovery. Today, wolves once again roam the Northern Rockies including Yellowstone National park, with more than 1,600 wolves once again inhabiting this rugged landscape. In recent years, wolves have even started to re-colonize parts of Oregon and Washington, and wolves have been sighted dispersing into Colorado and Utah. However, their future remains uncertain as many states continue to pursue aggressive management that removes hundreds of wolves every year.

Great Lakes

Map of historic and current ranges of wolves in North America.

Gray wolves of the Great Lakes, referred to as “timber” wolves, once ranged throughout the eastern United States from Minnesota to the Atlantic Ocean and from southern Canada to the Ohio River. Years of state-sponsored bounty programs, habitat loss due to colonization and dwindling prey availability eliminated them from nearly the entire region, except for a small population located in northern Minnesota. Fortunately, wolves were protected under the Endangered Species Act in 1974, and wolf populations slowly repopulated northern Minnesota and dispersed into Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Today, the region holds the largest wolf population in the lower 48 states, with more than 4,000 wolves.

Mexican Wolves

Southwest

Only 42 Mexican wolves survive in the Southwest.

Mexican wolves, also known by their Spanish name lobos, are the most endangered wolf in the world, with a total wild population of less than 50 animals. They are smaller than northern grey wolves (but bigger than coyotes) and they have a mottled coat, mixing gray, black, tan and rust. Mexican wolves were saved from total extinction by a captive breeding and reintroduction program that began in 1998 with the release of 11 captive-bred wolves in the Blue Range Mexican Wolf Recovery Area in Arizona and New Mexico. Though 100 wolves have since been released in the wild, the population has struggled to take hold. By early 2010, only 42 wolves total survived in the wild—just two breeding pairs.

Red Wolves

Southeast

The Red Wolf, a smaller and more slender cousin of the timber wolf, originally roamed throughout the eastern United States as far north as Pennsylvania and as far west as central Texas. But the Red Wolf was persecuted relentlessly by people who mistakenly believed it posed a threat to livestock and humans. Although declared extinct in the wild in 1980, a handful of remaining animals were captured and successfully bred in captivity. Captive animals were first released into the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge in northeastern North Carolina in 1987, with later releases in nearby Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge. In addition, several of the area’s private landowners agreed to allow the wolves to live on their property. Today, more than 100 wild Red Wolves roam more than 1.7 million acres within northeastern North Carolina.

Got a Question About Wolves?

Email us your wolf questions any day this week, and we’ll respond with answers on Friday.

Give the gift that gives back

Give a Gift that Helps Save Wolves!

Wolf adoptions are a great way to share your appreciation for these magnificent American icons while helping to support Defenders’ work on their behalf. Visit our Wildlife Adoption Center to adopt a wolf today!