Mexican gray wolf numbers in the US soared in 2019

A Mexican wolf pup. | Photo: US Fish and Wildlife Service

The US population of endangered Mexican gray wolves jumped by 24 percent last year, the US Fish and Wildlife Service announced yesterday. That’s exciting news for conservationists who haven’t seen a leap in numbers that high since 2014. The recent census found 163 Mexican wolves in the wild in New Mexico and Arizona, compared to 131 in 2018.
At least 21 of the 28 packs being monitored had pups last spring. The survival rate for those pups was higher than usual, reaching 58 percent last year compared to an average of 50 percent.
“more pups born in the wild than ever before”
“The count shows we have more wolves, more breeding pairs and more pups born in the wild than ever before,” Amy Lueders, a regional director for the US Fish and…

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