Red+Wolf

__** ﻿ Red Wolf (Canis lupus rufus) **__ Alyssa Goodin

wolves are slightly smaller than grey wolves; on average, they weigh 45-80 pounds. They have reddish fur around their heads, ears and legs with other colors ranging from light tan to black.They live in mated pairs in groups of fifteen to twenty wolves. Their pups stay with the parents until they are about 2 or 3 years old.
 * Description: **



Red wolves eat mainly small mammals such as rabbits, rats and muskrats. The reintroduced red wolf population of North Carolina eats mainly white tailed deer, raccoons and rabbits. They tend to hunt at night, dawn or dusk.
 * Diet **

Red wolves are currently located in Florida, Tennessee, North Carolina, and South Carolia. Red wolves tend to live in forested areas, coastal plains, praries, brush and swamps. The wolves typically live in a territory that is 10-100 square miles.
 * Habitat **

As the US Fish and Wildlife Services action plan states, ([] ) Red wolves have become endangered primarily because of habitat fragmentation. One of the two experimental red wolf populations that were established in NC and TN were discontinued in 1998 due to poor pup survival caused by domestic dog disease. The other population in the Outer Banks is they only population of red wolves that are currently known to exist in the wild.
 * Problems **

It is important to maintain and evaluate existing wild populations and begin to establish new populations in the wild. Expanding captive-breeding capabilities would also help maintain the species and get them removed from the endangered species list. There has been progress on reintroducing the species into the wild. A successful reintroduction of wolves has occured at the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge. The captive-born- and raised animals are adusting to the wild environment and have reproduced in the wild.
 * Solutions **
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US Fish and Wildlife Service: [] Tallahassee Museum: []
 * References **