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Steady Growth in Mexican Wolf Population Is Cause for Optimism Isle Royale Steady Growth in 4 Mexican Wolf Population is Cause for Optimism Isle Royale: the 62-Year 9 Wolf Study Begins WolfQuest: Virtual Wolves, 12 Real Wolf Ecology What Fate Awaits 16 Wild Wolf Pups? Steady Growth in Mexican Wolf Population is Cause for Optimism By AISLINN MAESTAS ust as the sun begins to peek from of the Interagency Field Team (IFT), behind the mountains, trucks begin a group comprising federal, state, tribal Jpulling off the highway onto a dirt and international partners, gather for a road. They make their way to a trailer briefing promptly at 0630. Crews and that sits nestled in a forest clearing, locations are confirmed. Radios are given converted to workspace for biologists. one last check for batteries. By 0700, The morning air is cool and brisk; yes- crews roll out to their destinations. terday’s mud has turned to ice, and It’s time to go count, and maybe boots crunch against it as people begin capture, wolves. to organize for the day. Up the hill from the clearing, a pilot An Upward Trend prepares his helicopter for the day’s flight. The annual Mexican wolf count is Fuel is loaded and checks are completed. an integral part of the Mexican Wolf The crew conducts a safety briefing and Recovery Program. By providing infor- reviews targets for the day. The gunner mation about the minimum number of (who darts animals with tranquilizer), wolves, packs, breeding pairs and pups the mugger (who subdues the animals in the wild, the count tracks progress for collaring) and the pilot load into the toward the recovery goals for the endan- aircraft. The radio tower gives them the gered subspecies. Since reintroduction okay—and up they go, eventually dis- efforts began in 1998, the population appearing from the horizon. has grown from zero wolves in the wild Back at the clearing, utility task vehi- to a minimum of 163 in 2019. cles (UTVs) and crates are loaded onto “The latest count shows we have flatbed trailers and truck beds. Bags more wolves, more breeding pairs and of supplies are checked, re-checked more pups born in the wild than ever and then loaded into four-wheel-drive before,” says Amy Lueders, regional trucks. Inside a small office, dart mak- director for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife ers carefully measure out exact doses of Service in Albuquerque, New Mexico. the tranquilizing drug Telezol. Members “This is the second year we have seen a 4 Fall 2020 www.wolf.org The latest count shows we have more wolves, more breeding pairs and more pups born in the wild than ever before. Adobe Stock / Richard International Wolf Fall 2020 5 significant increase in the wild popula- survival of both adults and pups. However, “Recovery of a top predator like the tion of Mexican wolves, a success directly as John Oakleaf, field project coordinator Mexican wolf is complex, controversial tied to the science-based, on-the-ground for the service’s Mexican Wolf Recovery and challenging,” says Oakleaf. “Most of management efforts of the Interagency Program explains, long-term trends what I do is work with people to reduce Field Team.” matter more than individual years. challenges and find solutions to conflicts. Between 2018 and 2019, the num- “Yearly variation in population growth Just as we are working to increase the ber of wolves in the wild grew by 24 rates is inherent in all wildlife, but what number of wolves in the wild, we must percent. According to the IFT, the 163 is important for Mexican wolf recovery also work to increase support for the wolves are distributed with 76 in Arizona is that the overall pattern is a growing wolves in Arizona and New Mexico.” and 87 in New Mexico. At the end of population of wolves that leads toward 2018, the IFT documented a minimum the recovery goal of 320 [Mexican] The Loss and the of 131 wolves—a 12 percent increase wolves in the United States.” Return of Mexican from 2017. The population has increased In comparison to other wolf recovery an average of 15 percent annually over efforts, a minimum of 163 wolves in the Wolves in the Wild the last 10 years. wild may not seem like much progress The Mexican wolf, the smallest and The 2019 count also showed increases after 22 years, but when species are rarest subspecies of gray wolf, once in the number of breeding pairs and reintroduced from captivity, like these roamed throughout portions of Arizona, pups. A minimum of 21 packs had pups Mexican wolves, populations often grow New Mexico, Texas and Mexico. As (compared to 18 in 2018); 19 of these more slowly than when reintroduction human settlement intensified across the packs had pups that survived to the end of wild wolves or natural recolonization Southwest in the early 1900s, wolves of the year. In addition, at least 90 pups takes place. increasingly came into conflict with were born in 2019 (compared to 81 in This is due to several factors. One is livestock operations. Extermination cam- 2018), and at least 52 survived to the the lack of learned knowledge in animals paigns were waged against the wolf, and end of the year—a 58 percent survival. reintroduced from captivity. Skills like by the 1970s, the Mexican wolf had This exceeds the average rate of about caring for young and fearing humans are been all but eliminated from the United 50 percent. difficult to teach to captive-born wolves. States and Mexico. The 2019 jump in Mexican wolf It takes generations for wild wolves to In 1976, however, a new era dawned numbers is not unique. In 2001, there was learn and pass on the knowledge they for the Mexican wolf when it was listed a 36 percent increase in the population; need to survive in the wild. A second as endangered under the Endangered 2015 saw a 27 percent increase. It is challenge has been educating humans Species Act. Between 1977 and 1982, not clear why greater growth occurs in within the Mexican Wolf Experimental recovery of the Mexican wolf began as some years than others. It is likely due Population Area. to a combination of higher-than-average In 1998, 11 captive- raised Mexican wolves were released to the wild for the first time. In 2002, the birth of the first wild-born litter from a wild-born parent occurred. From that point forward, Mexican wolf recovery entered a new phase. USFWS Jim Clark 6 Fall 2020 www.wolf.org During the wolf count, an anesthetized wolf is carefully transported for examination, vaccination, blood testing, measurements and fitting with a tracking collar before being returned to its territory for release. Each morning, target packs and target wolves are identified for count and capture. At the top of the list are packs with no GPS/VHF collars, followed closely by wolves with failing collars. GPS/VHF collars are one of the most essential tools in the management of wild wolves. Not only are they used to track the movements of individuals and packs, but they also let the IFT know when wolves are denning (and pups are being whelped) and when a mortality has occurred. GPS/VHF collars also Mexican Interagency Wolf Field Team help the IFT manage wolves to prevent depredations of cattle through a variety of non-lethal techniques (e.g., hazing wolves The Anatomy of a Wolf Count and providing diversionary food caches to avoid depredations). The Mexican wolf count has been conducted in some form since Two aircraft are used in the count and capture. A spotter plane 1998. However, more comprehensive efforts were initiated in locates the day’s target wolves. Once the spotter plane has a 2006 to make every year-end population count more accurate, location, it is relayed to the helicopter. When the helicopter consistent and repeatable. finds a pack, the helicopter crew counts the number of wolves in the pack from the air. If a target wolf is located, and if the The year-end population count is derived from data gathered surrounding terrain accommodates a capture, the gunner will through a variety of methods over several months. From attempt to dart the wolf from the air. November through January, members of the IFT conduct ground counts in Arizona and New Mexico. During this phase, After a wolf has been darted and anesthetized, the helicopter wolf sign (i.e. tracks, scats) are documented by driving roads will land and the gunner and mugger will retrieve the and hiking canyons, trails or other areas closed to motor anesthetized wolf. There is a quick check of vital signs before vehicles. Confirmation of non-collared wolves is achieved via it is carried back to the helicopter to be loaded. Once crew visual observation, remote cameras, howling, scats and tracks. and wolf are safely secured, the helicopter transports the wolf Ground-survey results for suspected packs having no collared to the nearest ground crew for processing. The processing members are documented using GPS and GIS software and crew works quickly to examine the wolf, administer vaccines, hardware. GPS locations are recorded and downloaded into draw blood, take body measurements and fit it with a tracking GIS software for analysis and mapping. Survey data are also collar. The wolf is then crated and monitored while the drug recorded daily on forms and compiled in a database. wears off. Once the animal is ready to be released, it is loaded onto a truck, UTV or even a snowmobile to be taken back to In January and February, aircraft are used to document and its territory.
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