DurhamThe Museum of Life and Science is howling with excitement — a critically endangered red wolf has given birth to pups for the first time at the museum since 2002.On Friday, April 28 the Museum’s 6-year-old red wolf gave birth to three male and three female pups. All pups and their mother were found to be in good health by the museum’s animal care team and are currently on exhibit in the museum’s Explore the Wild exhibit.Once a top predator throughout the southeastern United States and one of only two apex predators native to North Carolina, the red wolf (Canis rufus) is critically endangered with captive and wild populations totaling less than 300 individuals. The red wolves living at the Museum are a part of the US Fish and Wildlife Service’s Red Wolf Recovery Program as well as the Red Wolf Species Survival Plan (SSP), a collaborative breeding and management program developed by the Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA) to ensure the sustainability of endangered animal populations.
Month: April 2017
Wyoming wolf hunts to start again after US court decision | Idaho Statesman
CHEYENNE, Wyo.Wyoming will hold a wolf hunt for the first time in four years this fall now that a federal court has lifted endangered species protection for wolves in the state, the Wyoming Game and Fish Department said Wednesday.Planning is now underway for the hunt in northwestern Wyoming, which will probably be similar to the state’s last wolf hunting seasons in 2012 and 2013, officials said.In 2013, the department allowed hunters to kill as many as 26 wolves in an area outside Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks and northwest of the Wind River Indian Reservation.
Source: Wyoming wolf hunts to start again after US court decision | Idaho Statesman
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Court Lifts Injunction Blocking Mexican Gray Wolf Releases | Defenders of Wildlife
Court Lifts Injunction Blocking Mexican Gray Wolf Releases
DENVER (April 25, 2017) – The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled today to lift a preliminary injunction blocking further releases of highly endangered Mexican gray wolves into the wild within New Mexico. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) can now resume wolf releases within the state.Bryan Bird, Southwest program director for Defenders of Wildlife, issued the following statement:“Today’s ruling is a victory for the Endangered Species Act, the Mexican gray wolf and everyone who cares about endangered species recovery. Now that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service can again release Mexican gray wolves into the wild in New Mexico, we hope that their numbers will continue to climb and that their genetic diversity in the wild will improve. Defenders will continue to work with local communities by providing them proactive strategies and tools to peacefully share the landscape with Mexican gray wolves. We can coexist with these icons of the Southwest.”
Source: Court Lifts Injunction Blocking Mexican Gray Wolf Releases | Defenders of Wildlife
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Wolves can be shot on sight in most of Wyoming after state takes over management | Open Spaces | trib.com
Wyoming assumed management once again of wolves within its borders on Tuesday, and those apex predators wandering outside the northwest corner of the state can be shot on sight.The Circuit Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C., entered its final order in favor of Wyoming in a lawsuit that landed wolves back on the endangered species list in 2014. The court announced in early March that it had upheld the state’s plan but had not issued its final order.Tuesday’s decision is what Wyoming wolf managers hope is the last legal battle in a roller-coaster legal process.“All indications are that this decision shows once again that Wyoming’s plan is a sound management plan,” said Brian Nesvik, chief of the Wyoming Game and Fish Department’s wildlife division. “They will remain in the hands of state management. For Wyoming this is, again, this is a time for us to celebrate. This is a good thing for Wyoming to be able to take on another wildlife resource.”No changes were made to Wyoming’s wolf management plan from when the state oversaw the carnivores between 2012 and 2014, Nesvik said.That means Wyoming will manage the 100 wolves and 10 breeding pairs outside of Yellowstone National Park and the Wind River Reservation.
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House Mistakenly Passes Bill That Would Allow Drones to Fire Bullets at Wolves, Other Wildlife Predators – Willamette Week
The Oregon House yesterday passed House Bill 3047, which explicitly expands the permitted use of drones in Oregon airspace and, according to the bill summary, allows the “use of unmanned aircraft system capable of firing bullet or projectile.”In previous sessions, acting on concerns that drones were invading people’s privacy and potentially being used as weapons, Rep. John Huffman (R-The Dalles) sponsored legislation prohibiting the use of a drone “as a dangerous weapon.”But this session’s bill, sponsored by Huffman, would loosen some of those restrictions, allowing drones that fire bullets or other projectiles, provided the user gives prior notice to the Oregon State Police and Department of Aviation. The bill sailed through the House by a 50 to six margin yesterday.
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Officials confirm deaths of 2 endangered wolf pups | KRQE News 13
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) – Wildlife officials have confirmed that two endangered Mexican gray wolf pups died last month.The Arizona Department of Game and Fish detailed the cases in a monthly report released Thursday.The agency says a female pup with the Hoodoo Pack was found dead in Arizona in March. The cause remains under investigation.A male pup with Arizona’s Bluestem Pack died after being captured for a medical evaluation. Officials say testing confirmed the animal had canine distemper.The most recent survey conducted by federal and state officials involved in the reintroduction program showed at least 113 wolves spread between Arizona and New Mexico. That marked an improvement over the previous year.The survey also showed that 50 wild-born pups survived in 2016 compared with half that the previous year.
Source: Officials confirm deaths of 2 endangered wolf pups | KRQE News 13
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Update on Mexican Gray Wolf population – KVOA | KVOA.com | Tucson, Arizona
There’s good news and bad news regarding the Mexican Gray Wolf population. Although numbers are increasing for the endangered species, two young pups died last month, according to a report from the Arizona Department of Game and Fish.The most recent survey, on the reintroduction program, shows at least 113 wolves roaming across Arizona and New Mexico, an improvement from last year.The survey also showed that 50 wild born pups survived in 2016, compared to 25 the previous year.
Source: Update on Mexican Gray Wolf population – KVOA | KVOA.com | Tucson, Arizona
