Red wolf  (Canis rufus)

Range

Red wolves formerly ranged throughout the southeastern USA, from the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts, north to the Ohio River Valley and central Pennsylvania, and west to central Texas and southeastern Missouri. Zoologist Ronald Nowak believes red wolves historically occurred as far north as Maine in the northeastern USA (7). Following a massive decline during the 20th Century, the species was declared extinct in the wild in 1980 after the last 17 wild red wolves were taken into captivity to begin a captive breeding program. A highly successful recovery programme has since reintroduced the red wolf to a remote, five-county area of northeastern North Carolina, in and around the Alligator River, Mattamuskeet, and Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuges. As of 2003, the free-ranging red wolf population numbered around 100 individuals in 20 family groups (3).

View a distribution map for this species at UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre.

Habitat

The red wolf inhabits swamps, forests, wetlands and bushlands (2).

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