Almost 12 years after red 

wolf reintroduction efforts 

began in northeastern North 

Carolina, numbers of wild 

wolves have increased as has 

the land base on which they 

roam. However, coyotes are 

now present in the area and 

hybridization again threatens 

the Nation’s only population 

of wild red wolves. Coyotes 

are an exotic (non-native) 

species in North Carolina, 

probably arriving in the last 

20 years. Initial estimates 

indicate that the red wolf 

population in northeastern 

North Carolina would be unrecognizable in as few as 3-6 

generations (12 to 24 years) if 

hybridization was not controlled. 

Hybridization in wolves and 

similar species is poorly understood. It seems to threaten 

a species when they occur in 

small populations at the same 

location as a similar species 

such as the gray wolf 

in eastern Canada 

with coyotes, the red 

wolf with coyotes, 

the Ethiopian wolf 

with dogs, and kit fox 

with swift fox, for 

example. 

To better understand 

hybridization the Service has begun collaborative projects 

with experts at several universities, 

which so far includes: 

The College of Veterinary 

Medicine at North Carolina 

State University, Duke University, Trent University, and 

the University of Idaho. 

Dr. Paul Wilson at Trent University and Jennifer Adams, a 

graduate student of Dr. 

Lisette Waits at the University of Idaho, are working to 

insure proper identification of 

wolves, coyotes and hybrids 

via genetic analysis. 

Karen Beck (DVM), a PhD 

student of Dr. Michael 

Stoskopf (DVM, PhD, Dipl. 

ACZM) at NCSU will be examining several aspects of 

coyote and red wolf biology 

and medicine. 

Debbie Hahn, a graduate stu-

(Continued on page 2) 

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Wild wolf population 

in Northeastern 

North Carolina 

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Red Wolf News 

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service 

	


February of each year marks 

the height of the breeding 

season in red and gray wolf 

populations. After 63 days of 

gestation, wolf pups are usually born in April. This year, 

14 groups of wolves exhibited denning behavior. Of 

these, five have been confirmed with at least 21 pups 

known to have been produced. 

Wolves were also involved in 

eight more litters, most of 

which were probably hybrid 

in origin. 

Efforts to radio collar pups 

will begin in October. At that 

point, the pups’ necks have 

grown enough to ensure that a 

radio collar can be appropriately fitted. The collar must 

be loose enough for some 

growth, but not so loose that 

it can slip over the wolves’

heads. 


	





Wolves in captivity 

and on islands: 

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May and June 1999
techniques, including sterilizing coyotes 

and hybrids, and increasing the wolf 

population, to establish red wolf territories that will exclude coyotes. If this is 

successful, not only will we save the red 

wolf, but in doing so will control an exotic species that traditionally has caused 

problems and been trouble to manage. 

Details and updates of these collaborative efforts and additional collaborations 

will be presented in future issues of Red 

Wolf News. 

The North Carolina Zoo Society, 

with support from the Red Wolf 

Coalition, is sponsoring an educational, interactive website that focuses on the red wolf and it’s habitat in North Carolina. 

The site will use crosscurriculum educational 

materials and programs developed by 

professional educators 

from the Chatham 

County, NC School 

District. 

What separates this 

site from many other 

educational sites will 

be the interactive connection between users and distant teachers 

and biologists that will create a 

“virtual” research project. Students 

will be encouraged to ask relevant, 

online questions and will receive 

prompt answers from the 

biologists. More importantly, students will be 

challenged to answer 

questions by using data 

collected from the field. 

The data is not limited to 

numbers; users will also 

have access to audio and 

video updates of the 

workdays of wolf biologists. 

This project will not just expose users to red wolf biology. It will provide opportunities for students to 

write about and discuss the human’s historical, cultural, social, 

and economic roles in the red wolf 

and other complex conservation 

programs. 

This red wolf site will be modeled 

after the highly successful and 

award-winning “The Elephants of 

Cameroon” (www.nczooeletrack.

org). 

The location of the site is www.

nczooredwolf.org and the tentative 

start date is September 15, 1999. 

See you there! 

HEY 

KIDS! 

What two prey species do 

wolves eat the most often 

in the wilds of North 

Carolina ? 

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This newsletter is a publication of the 

US Fish and Wildlife Service. Comments or questions can be addressed to: 

Jennifer Gilbreath, Wildlife Biologist/

Outreach Coordinator 

Red Wolf Recovery 

PO Box 1969 

Manteo, North Carolina 27954 

Email: Jennifer_Gilbreath@fws.gov 

	




Red Wolves Online with the North Carolina 

Zoological Park 

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(Continued from page 1) 

dent of Dr. John Terborgh at Duke University, will be studying habitat preferences of red wolves using GIS analysis. 

Habitat differences are suspected as a 

contributing factor in hybridization between gray wolves and coyotes in Canada. 

Dr. Dennis Murray at the University of 

Idaho will be modeling red wolf coyote 

interactions to help the Service focus data 

collection and recovery efforts. 

When the red wolf was first recognized 

as being endangered in the 1970’s there 

were too few wolves to study the hybridization phenomenon. Through the efforts 

of the Service to reintroduce this species, 

we currently have a population of red 

wolves that afford this opportunity. What 

is currently underway on the red wolf 

program may not only save the red wolf, 

but provide valuable information upon 

which the management of other hybridizing species can be based. The current 

management plan will use a variety of 

Answer: white-tailed deer and raccoons