Photo by: Wolf Conservation Center
Newly released records reveal that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) recently ordered the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to kill two genetically valuable Mexican gray wolves, one of whom was a 3-month-old female pup in New Mexico’s Gila National Forest, and was shot from a helicopter last week.
The second target, a young male residing in Arizona’s Apache National Forest, fortunately remains alive. Tragically, his mother, believed to be pregnant, was killed in an aerial attack in April. In a promising turn of events, he has found a mate and now roams with her, offering a glimmer of hope for a population struggling for survival.
“Gunning down a wolf pup from the air, whose precious genes could have helped save her entire subspecies, was cruel and will further stall recovery of these animals,” said Michael Robinson, a senior conservation advocate at the Center for Biological Diversity. “There’s still time to call off the helicopter gunmen and halt another unjust execution. One killing is too many, and the death of a second wolf would be heartbreaking.”
Wildlife conservation organizations are pressing USFWS and Arizona Game and Fish to revoke the kill order. With only 286 Mexican gray wolves remaining in the wild, this subspecies is one of North America’s most endangered mammals and far from achieving a stable population.
Both wolves carry underrepresented genes vital to the species’ future. Decades of mismanagement, including previous government-ordered killings and a long halt on the release of well-bonded packs, have eroded the population’s genetic diversity. Today, Mexican wolves already suffer from physiological and reproductive problems caused by inbreeding.
“The responsibility for preventing livestock conflict with native carnivores on public lands rests with the livestock operators,” said Greta Anderson, deputy director of Western Watersheds Project. “Wolves shouldn’t have to pay with their lives for taking advantage of the easy prey left unattended in wolf habitat, and nor should the recovery effort be driven by the livestock industry’s wolf removal agenda.”
“The aerial slaughter of a 3-month-old wolf pup is a despicable and unconscionable act” said Leslie Williams and Samantha Attwood, founding members of Team Wolf. “Rather than safeguarding one of the most endangered species in North America, federal officials are deliberately destroying the very animals they are sworn to protect. This is a campaign of extermination driven by special interests. Every genetically irreplaceable wolf killed further erodes this species’ survival and destroys public trust in wildlife stewardship.”
This tragedy is part of a dark history. Beginning in 1915, the U.S. government trapped, poisoned, and even destroyed wolf pups in their dens to appease the livestock industry. By 1950, the campaign extended into Mexico, nearly wiping the subspecies off the map. Only seven survivors were captured and bred, forming the basis of reintroduction efforts in 1998 in the U.S. and 2011 in northern Mexico.
In July, WAN reported on Rep. Paul Gosar’s reckless bill, H.R. 4255, which seeks to strip Mexican wolves of Endangered Species Act protections. If passed, it would undo decades of fragile recovery efforts and push these majestic creatures closer to extinction.
It is horrific and deeply disappointing that the very agency charged with protecting these critically endangered species is now calling for their slaughter. USFWS must immediately halt its kill orders and commit to safeguarding, not destroying, North America’s rarest wolves.
