The Mexican wolf is the rarest subspecies of gray wolf in North America. Once common throughout portions of the southwestern United States, the Mexican wolf was all but eliminated from the wild by the 1970s. In 1977, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service initiated efforts to conserve the species. In 1998, Mexican wolves were released to the wild for the first time in the Blue Range Wolf Recovery Area within the Mexican Wolf Experimental Population Area. Missing from the landscape for more than 30 years, the howl of the Mexican wolf can once again be heard in the mountains of the southwestern United States.

Mexican Wolf 10j revision information and updates can now be found at our new 10j Revision site.

A Mexican wolf is returned to its territory in the National Forest during the 2019 count and capture Credit: Evelyn Lichwa/Mexican Wolf Interagency Field Team.

Wild Population of Mexican Wolves Grows for Fifth Consecutive Year

March 2021
The wild population of Mexican wolves in the United States saw its fifth consecutive year of growth in 2020. According to the recent count, the U.S. population of Mexican wolves has increased by 14% since last year, raising the total number of wolves in the wild to a minimum of 186 animals.

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News Releases for Mexican Wolf

2018 Mexican wolf Count Cause for Optimism

Service and Partners Mark 20th Anniversary of Release of Mexican Wolves in Wild

For additional USFWS Mexican Wolf News Releases visit the Newsroom and search for Mexican wolf.

The mission of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is working with
others to conserve, protect, and enhance fish, wildlife, plants and
their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people.

All images Credit to and Courtesy of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service unless specified otherwise.