New Mexico Wolf Pup Introduction

As the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and environmental groups supporting the reintroduction of the Mexican gray wolf in the Southwest U.S. gushed enthusiastically over last week’s report that captive-born wolf pups had been “successfully integrated” with a wild litter in New Mexico’s Gila National Forest, the state wildlife department, along with at least two counties, were contemplating legal action against the federal agency for its continued release of the predators in the state.

The FWS said two 9-day-old Mexican wolf pups raised at a conservation center in Missouri were placed with a wild wolf and its existing litter of five in Catron County, NM, in hopes the female would raise the animals as its own.

“The intent is for these newly released pups to be raised in the wild by experienced wolves and ultimately contribute to the gene diversity of the wild population by becoming successful, breeding adults,” the FWS said in a statement.

The announcement came just days after lawyers for the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish announced plans to take legal action against the federal government after FWS quietly revealed its intention to release the additional Mexican gray wolves into the wild without assistance or compliance with the New Mexico agency and its biologists.

The department said in a statement it would not remain idle and permit the federal agency to ignore laws and regulations, noting that the Endangered Species Act (ESA) requires cooperation with states when working to recover threatened and endangered species.

“The department has a long-standing and proud tradition of responsible recovery of wildlife species in New Mexico. Recovery efforts cannot be successful without the support of all impacted stakeholders,” the department said in a statement.

A subspecies of the gray wolf, the Mexican wolf was added to the federal endangered species list in 1976, with the first captive-raised animals released into the wild in Arizona and New Mexico beginning in 1998. Since that time, a majority of ranchers, hunting interests and residents of the rural portion of the Southwest have vigorously opposed the federal reintroduction program, while urban-based and litigious environmental groups have generally worked toward expanded releases and territory.

In the meantime, leaders in at least two New Mexico counties, Catron and Socorro, have indicated they would support any legal action brought against the federal government by the state game department or, they may move independently, enforcing local ordinances prohibiting the further release of wolves in their counties.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has reached a tentative settlement with wolf advocacy groups and Western states to develop a plan by 2017 that would drastically expand the reintroduction area in New Mexico and Arizona, but New Mexico has declined to accept the terms. The settlement awaits approval by U.S. Judge Jennifer Zipps in the District of Arizona.