Mexican Wolf Found Dead on Arizona-New Mexico Border

A two-year-old female Mexican gray wolf was found dead on Sunday October 18, 1998, east of Escudilla Mountain in the Apache National Forest on the Arizona-New Mexico border. The wolf, #493 from the Hawks Nest pack, had dispersed from its pack a little over two months ago and was living in remote areas north and east of Alpine, Arizona, and portions of extreme western New Mexico.

This loss is extremely disappointing because the wolf was doing so well in the wild, said David Parsons, Wolf Recovery Leader for the Fish and Wildlife Service. It appeared to be in good condition and was demonstrating all the appropriate behaviors for survival in the wild.

The wolfs body is today being shipped to the Fish and Wildlife Services forensics laboratory for necropsy to determine the exact cause of death.