Mexican Wolf- Tori Fields

                                         

Mexican Wolf

Canis lupus baileyi
Tori Fields

Description and Ecology of Mexican wolf:

The Mexican wolf is the most genetically distinct subspecies of gray wolf living in North America. They are small in size, weighing 50-80 pounds and measuring about 5 1/2 feet from nose to tail. Don't be fooled though, while small in size, they still thrive as hunters. This is because of their incredible team work.  The Mexican wolf is a highly sociable animal for they live and survive in packs. Wolf packs have an interesting and complex social order. The alpha male, female and their offspring work together as a unit to hunt. Mexican wolves feed mainly off of ungulates— which are large hoofed mammals such as elk, white-tailed deer, and mule deer. To catch prey that are much larger than the Mexican wolf as an individual (such as the ungulates) says a lot about the species as a pack. Mexican wolves will also eat small mammals such as javelinas, rabbits, ground squirrels and mice (“Mexican Gray Wolves”).

If you find your self in habitats such as mountain forests, grasslands or scrublands you may be near the home of a Mexican wolf. They are found in environments such as these because as a top predator they need to be in environments with an adequate amount of prey (“Mexican Gray Wolves”). To spot a Mexican wolf you must pay attention to the color of their coat. You can distinguish them from other wolves not just by size, but from the  distinctive shades of gray,  rusty red, tan and black that speckle their coat (“2017 Mexican Wolf Recovery Plan” 1). 

Geographic and Population Changes:

Mexican Wolves once ranged wild and free from Central Mexico throughout the Southwestern United States. However, after being wiped out in the U.S and only a few remaining in Mexico they were bred in captivity and eventually reintroduced to the wild. The United States Fish and Wildlife service in New Mexico began releasing Mexican wolves in Arizona and New Mexico 1998. They chose to release the Mexican wolf to the Apache National Forest in southeastern Arizona. This location was chosen so that the species has the ability to geographically shift to the adjacent forest, Gila National Forest in western New Mexico. The Mexican wolf needs lots of space, so when the population expands the habitat must expand as well. These locations were chosen because they are predicted to support a viable Mexican wolf population. 


In Mexico, Mexican wolves have been reintroduced into two large blocks of high-quality habitat in the Sierra Madre Occidental. The Sierra Madre Occidental is a mountain range that runs northwest and southeast though Northwestern and Western Mexico. The reintroduction is focussed on the Northern part of Sierra Madre Occidental. This way the wolves can be monitored in a single area rather than a large span of land. Like the reintroduction in the United States, the reintroduction in Mexico takes into account the future population of Mexican wolves. When the population of Mexican wolves increases, there will be enough viable space to support the livelihood of the Mexican wolf. They would be able to disperse into the southern Sierra Madre Occidental and that environment would allow them to thrive. 

As of December 31, 2016 there is a population of at least 113 wild Mexican wolves that inhibit the United States. All of these were wild born with the exception of a few pups bred from captivity (“2017 Mexican Wolf Recovery Plan” 6-9).

Listing Date and Type of Listing:

The Mexican wolf, has been protected as an endangered subspecies of gray wolf since 1976 under the Endangered Species Act of 1973. In 1998 populations of the Mexican wolf were relocated in Arizona and New Mexico. These populations are listed as an experimental population. An experimental population is a member of a listed species, such as the Mexican wolf, that is geographically separated from other populations of the same species (U.S. Fish and Wildlife). 

Experimental population along with Endangered Species Location 

Experimental Population

Endangered Species Location

Cause of listing and Main threats to its continued existence:

In the mid to late 1800’s up until the mid 1900’s, predator eradication programs led to the near extinction of the Mexican wolf. Today there are a few threats to it’s continued existence. One being the destruction of their habitat. Wolves need plenty of space to roam and with our rapidly growing society we take their habitat due to our commercial, residential and recreational “needs”. Even if we are not directly destroying their habitat, humans still impose modification and threatened destruction to the places these wolves live. Since the reintroduction and careful watch on these animals, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service has began to grow populations. However, there is still one major problem. Genetics. Gene diversity is very low with in this species which makes them prone to disease. This is one of the main reasons that the Mexican wolf is still today considered an Endangered species and is closely watched (“2017 Mexican Wolf Recovery Plan” 9-10).

Recovery plan:

The recovery plan for the Mexican wolf is constructed with a few different strategies to ensure the survival of this species. By examining the cause of listing as well as the main threats to the Mexican wolf, the United States Fish and Wildlife service has constructed a plan for recovery that addresses each cause of existence. The recovery plan for the Mexican wolf boils down to three key ideas— resiliency, redundancy and representation. 

Resiliency describes the effort for populations to be able to withstand unpredictable events. This is measured by the size and growth of each population. With a higher amount of a species it is more unlikely that a whole species will be wiped out by an unexpected environmental event. 

Redundancy is based off of the idea of resiliency, but to a further extent. They want to make sure the Mexican wolf is not only able to survive one catastrophic event, but multiple. This is measured by the number of populations as well as distribution. By having multiple populations in different locations this allows the species multiple opportunities for survival. 

Last but not least is the idea of Representation. This is the effort for the species to be able to adapt to a changing environmental condition. This is measured by genetic diversity. Like I had mentioned earlier, when species have a higher genetic diversity their mortality rate decreases. Having gene diversity within a species allows for certain populations to be susceptible to disease, while others will be immune. This helps the species be even more resilient. 

Having said the three conceptual ideas behind the recovery plan, let me inform you of the primary components of the Mexican Wolves recovery plan. The plan is to expand the geographic distribution, increasing population abundance, improve gene diversity in the wild, and then monitor the wild populations. 

What can you do:

After learning about the Mexican Wolf and their endangerment to extinction, you may be wondering what you can do as an individual to help save the Mexican wolves. One major option to help save the Mexican wolf is to take action and get involved. There are members in congress that want to end recovery efforts for the Mexican wolf. They aim block federal funding for gray wolf recovery in the lower 48 states, declare them extinct and permit cruel predator control methods and undercut the foundations of the Endangered Species Act. To combat this you must write letters and demand your representatives in congress to oppose all anti-ESA efforts. 

A second thing you as an individual can do is spread the word! Speak up for the Mexican wolves and let people know what is going on. Creating a social movement to save the Mexican Wolf is a powerful way to create awareness for animal protection. Along with this idea it is important to stay informed! Keep up with how the recovery plan is doing and what you can do to help the efforts! (“Mexican Gray Wolves”).

One final thing you can do is donate to help these conservation efforts. On the Defenders of Wild Life website they have an area that allows you to become a “defender of wildlife”. Here you can chose an amount of money to donate each year depending on what you are able to give. With this yearly membership you will receive annual calendars with stunning wildlife photography, magazines and notecards. You will also receive the satisfaction that YOU are helping save imperiled wildlife for future generations!! If you are interested on becoming a defender against wildlife you can visit the link listed below. 

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

Works Cited

“2017 Mexican Wolf Recovery Plan.” U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 28 Nov. 2017, pp. 1–50., ecos.fws.gov/docs/recovery_plan/2017MexicanWolfRecoveryPlanRevision1Final.pdf.

“Mexican Gray Wolves.” Defenders of Wildlife, 30 Mar. 2016, defenders.org/mexican-gray-wolf/basic-facts.

“What Is a Mexican Wolf?” Official Web Page of the US Fish and Wildlife Service, 28 Apr. 2014, www.fws.gov/southwest/es/mexicanwolf/natural_history.cfm.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife. Species Profile for Mexican Wolf (Canis Lupus Ssp. Baileyi), ecos.fws.gov/ecp0/profile/speciesProfile?spcode=A00E.