Mexican Wolf Romance Bodes Well for the Species
It’s an exciting time for wolves and the Wolf Conservation Center (WCC) — it’s the season of romance! Hormones are racing and at least one courtship has already begun. Yesterday afternoon we witnessed via webcam Mexican gray wolves F1143 and M1059 engage in a copulatory tie!
The Species Survival Plan (SSP) management groups for both the Mexican gray wolf and the red wolf determine which wolves should be bred each year by using software developed for the population management of endangered species. Today’s Mexican wolf population descended from just 7 founders, and the red wolf only 14. Thus, genetic health is the primary consideration in pairing.
We won’t know the outcome of any of these unions until “pup season” in April or May. So until then we’ll be keeping our eye on all three breeding pairs – one red wolf pair (F1367 & M1566) and two Mexican wolf pairs (F1143 & M1059 and F1226 & M1133) – in hope that we’ll see more promising behavior soon. Join us by tuning in to our live webcams to watch the elusive lovebirds!