Mexican Gray Wolf

Wolves are wild carnivore members of the dog family (Canidae). They are believed to be ancestors of the domestic dog, which evolved separately more than 20,000 years ago. Only two species of wolves remain today -- the Gray Wolf (Canis lupus) -- also called the Timber Wolf -- and the Red Wolf (Canis rufus).

The Gray Wolf is the best-known species and still inhabits some areas of the Northern Hemisphere. Some taxonomists contend there are as many as 30 subspecies of the Gray Wolf. One of these, the Mexican Wolf (Canis lupus baileyi) is the only wolf indigenous to the Southwestern Deserts.

The Red Wolf (C. rufus) is a smaller species almost extinct from the south-central United States. The extinct Dire Wolf (C. dirus), was half again as large as the modern Gray Wolf and was common in western North America during the Pleistocene, until about 10,000 years ago.

Range

The Gray Wolf has a larger natural distribution than any other mammal except humans. It once ranged through all of North America from the Arctic Circle to central Mexico. But because of human persecution and habitat destruction it has been eliminated from much of its original range.

In North America, the Gray Wolf is now found primarily in Canada and Alaska, with much smaller numbers in Minnesota. In 1995 wolves were reintroduced in wilderness areas of the northern Rocky Mountains. A small population of the sub-species Mexican Wolf once existed in higher elevations of the Sonoran and Chihuahuan deserts of Mexico but is now extinct in its native habitat.

Habitat

Wolves can live in a great variety of habitats, ranging from arctic tundra to forest and prairie, if adequate prey is present. They are absent from tropical forests, desert floors and the highest mountains.

Mexican Gray Wolf