Female Mexican Wolf Captured and Paired with Mate in Captivity

Female Mexican wolf 2754 (aka Asha) was captured on Saturday, December 9, 2023, north of Interstate 40 near Coyote, NM.  The New Mexico Department of Game and Fish used a helicopter to locate and capture the wolf, after which she was transferred to the Sevilleta Wolf Management Facility. F2754 has been paired with a male to increase her odds of successful pup production in the coming year. Plans are to translocate her back to the wild in the spring or summer of 2024, potentially with pups.

“Our decision to capture F2754 was made out of concern for her safety and well-being,” said Brady McGee, Mexican Wolf Recovery Coordinator. “Dispersal events like this are often in search of a mate. As there are no other known wolves in the area, she was unlikely to be successful, and risked being mistaken for a coyote and shot. By pairing her with a carefully selected mate in captivity, we are hoping she will breed and have pups this spring. The best outcome for her is to be released back into the wild, where she and her offspring can contribute to Mexican wolf recovery.”

F2754 was documented leaving the Mexican Wolf Experimental Population Area in late October 2023. She spent several weeks moving between the San Pedro Mountains and the Valles Caldera National Preserve. After showing no signs of returning to the Mexican Wolf Experimental Area, the decision was made to capture F2754 before breeding season began.

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The decision to capture and transfer F2754 was made in accordance with the Service’s current recovery permit, which states that “Authorized Permittees may capture and at the direction and discretion of the USFWS Mexican Wolf Recovery Coordinator, return to the Mexican Wolf Experimental Population Area or transfer to captivity or Mexico, any Mexican wolves that have dispersed from the experimental population and that establish wholly outside of the MWEPA in Arizona, New Mexico, or Texas.”

This is the second time F2754 has been captured north of Interstate 40. She was born in the Rocky Prairie pack in Arizona in 2021 and fitted with a radio collar in the fall of 2022. Later that year, she dispersed from her natal pack and crossed out of the Mexican Wolf Experimental Population Area in January 2023. Later that month she was captured near Angel Fire, New Mexico, and temporarily held in captivity until June 2023, when was translocated back to the wild in Arizona.