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The newest residents at the Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park—Florida's premier park for seeing and learning about native species—are three red wolves. These rare creatures' arrival provides an ideal opportunity to learn about them.
Like black bears, red wolves may not fit into the popular mind's idea of Sunshine State wildlife, but these cinnamon-colored canines once lived throughout Florida. The red wolf has a long and noble history in the southeastern United States, and despite its current endangered status, is set through preservation efforts to be howling far into the future in Florida and beyond.
Species and Classification
Red wolves (Canis rufus) are part of the Canidae family, which includes dogs, wolves, jackals, coyotes and foxes. Within Canidae, they form part of the Canis genus, along with dogs, other wolves, jackals and coyotes. Survivors from the Ice Age of the Late Pleistocene epoch, red wolves are generally thought to share a common ancestor with the coyotes (Canis latrans) and gray wolves (Canis lupus) found in many areas of North America. All of these canines are very closely related; dogs, coyotes and all forms of wolves are capable of interbreeding.
Red wolves' genetic similarity to other species is so great that scientists often disagree in how to classify them. Over the last three decades, the status of red wolves as a distinct species has come under increasing scrutiny. Many now consider red wolves as a subspecies of the gray wolf (Canis lupus rufus). There also appears to be genetic evidence suggesting that the red wolf is a hybrid between the gray wolf and the coyote: Testing found that only 5 percent of the red wolf's alleles—different versions of a specific gene—are unique from coyotes or gray wolves. Mitochondrial DNA research also seems to suggest an origin in coyotes. However, a 2002 study of tooth morphology argued that red wolves represented a distinct intermediate stage between wolves and coyotes that warranted recognition as a full species. Both sides continue to use genetic and fossil records to argue for and against the independent status of the red wolf species. (A similar debate continues for the related eastern wolf.)
Appearance, Food and Behavior
Whatever the classification, the red wolf does indeed possess a combination of traits from both coyotes and gray wolves. Red wolves exhibit a much more coyote-like body shape; they look leaner, have larger ears and have a less shaggy coat than the more familiar image of the gray wolf. Indeed, they may easily be mistaken for coyotes to the untrained eye. Yet, red wolves are larger than coyotes—about 50 and 80 pounds, 2 feet high and four feet long—and possess the characteristic cinnamon pelt that gives them their name. (Black-colored members of the species once existed, but are believed to be completely extinct.)
Like all canines, the red wolf is a carnivore. They eat rats, rabbits, nutria, deer and raccoons, as well as many forms of carrion (dead meat). Unlike gray wolves, no attacks on humans by red wolves have been documented. Mostly nocturnal, dusk, dawn and night are their most typical hunting times. Red wolves are social animals and may hunt in packs.
Often, a pack consists of a breeding pair and their offspring, plus occasionally a second male wolf. Mating season for red wolves is between February and March, with the mother wolf giving birth to a litter of up to 10 pups about 60 days later.
From Extinction to Reintroduction
Red wolves once roamed throughout the Southeastern United States and even as far north as New York. They were a frequent sight in the region's marshes, coastal plains and forests when explorer William Bartram first described them in 1791. By the early 1960s, the population had shrunken considerably—due largely to extermination by ranchers protecting their livestock—and the species was listed as endangered in 1967. The animals began being taken into captivity for breeding to keep the species in existence and avoid hybridization of the few remaining wild red wolves with coyotes.
Thirteen years later, the species was essentially extinct, with only captive pure-blood animals known. From the captive populations came the wolves that have been used in reintroduction efforts that began in 1987 at the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge in North Carolina. The reintroduction there has proven very successful: As of 2008, approximately 100 red wolves lived in the wilds of North Carolina. Today, wild populations also exist on two barrier islands near Apalachicola in Franklin County, Florida: St. Vincent Island and St. George Island. There in the relative isolation of the islands, the wolf populations can be carefully monitored.
A population of about 250 or 300 total red wolves lives today, most of them in captivity. Captive red wolves like those found at the Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park play an important role in the rehabilitation of the species by maintaining the genetic diversity needed for a healthy population. The Wildlife Park also helps the ongoing success of the species by promoting education and conservation through providing park guests with the rare opportunity to see red wolves in person.
With the continued effort of government agencies, advocacy organizations and wildlife lovers everywhere, the red wolf can once again enjoy a healthy population and a robust future.
Red Wolf Links