Red Wolves

As in my last post, red wolves play a particularly big role in southeastern United States. Unfortunately, they are the world’s most endangered canidae, and also natives to southeastern United States.

Historically, red wolves used to roam from central Texas to Pennsylvania and parts of the mid-west. Now, they live in only a fraction of their historical range. The red wolves lost approximately 99.7% of their territory; which is more than any other large carnivore, including lions, tigers and snow leopards.

Red wolves are carnivorous mammals that prey on smaller mammals such as raccoons, rabbits and rodents. They also prey on white-tailed deer. Although their diets mainly consist of meat, depending on what prey is available in their territory, they are known to eat insects and berries.

With a population of fewer than 50 wolves, the red wolf is the world’s rarest wolf. The wild population was almost completely wiped out in 1969. In 1980, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) rounded up about 20 red wolves to be bred in captivity. And in 1987, red wolves were reintruduced into the wild in eastern North Carolina.

From approximately 14 to 20 red wolves, their population grew to 130 in 2006. Six years later (2012), the red wolf population shrunk to 90-100 wolves, mainly due to gunshot mortality and ‘coyote night time hunting’ in North Carolina.

Now, with insufficient explanations, the FWS reports the total number of red wolves in the wild to be fewer than 25. Red wolves are now the world’s most endangered canidae, and the world’s rarest wolf breed.