FWS Focus

Overview

Characteristics
Overview

The red wolf is the worldโ€™s most endangered wolf. Once common throughout the Eastern and South Central United States, red wolf populations were decimated by the early 20th century as a result of intensive predator control programs, as well as the degradation and alteration of the habitat that the species depends upon. When the red wolf was first designated as a species that was threatened with extinction under the Endangered Species Preservation Act in 1967, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service initiated efforts to conserve and recover the species. Today, about 15 to 17 red wolves roam their native habitats in eastern North Carolina as a nonessential experimental population, and approximately 241 red wolves are maintained in 45 captive breeding facilities throughout the United States.

Scientific Name

Canis rufus
Common Name
Red Wolf
FWS Category
Mammals
Kingdom

Location in Taxonomic Tree

Identification Numbers

TSN:

Characteristics

Characteristic category

Habitat

Characteristics
Habitat

In the late 1970s, red wolves in the wild were found only in southeastern Texas and southwestern Louisiana in coastal prairie and marsh habitat. However, any habitat in the southeastern United States of sufficient size, which provides adequate food, water and cover, could be suitable for the red wolf. Telemetry studies in eastern North Carolina indicate that red wolf home range requirements vary from about 20 to 80 square miles, depending on availability of prey.

Characteristic category

Food

Characteristics
Food

Although the exact diet of red wolves varies depending on available prey, it usually consists of a combination of white-tailed deer, raccoons and smaller mammals like rabbits, rodents and nutria. The red wolf is an opportunistic feeder and can travel up to 20 miles a day or more to find food, which can be consumed at a rate of two to five pounds daily.

Characteristic category

Behavior

Characteristics
Behavior

Red wolves are social animals that live in close-knit packs. Typical packs consist of a family group that is comprised of five to eight animals, including a breeding adult pair and their offspring of different years. Older offspring will often assist the breeding pair in pup rearing. Almost all offspring between one and two years of age will leave the pack or disperse to form their own pack.

Red wolves tend to form pair-bonds for life and mate once a year in February. Pups are typically born in April or May in well-hidden dens that may be located in hollow trees, stream banks and sand knolls. Dens have also been found in holes that have been dug in the ground near downed logs or forest debris piles. Fewer than half of wolf pups born in the wild survive to adulthood. Survival rates are affected by disease, malnutrition and predation.

Red wolves have specific territories that they actively defend against other canids, including other wolves. Most active at dusk and dawn, red wolves are elusive and generally avoid humans and human activity.

Characteristic category

Physical Characteristics

Characteristics
Size & Shape

Red wolves have wide heads with broad muzzles, tall pointed ears and long, slender legs with large feet. Red wolves stand about 26 inches at their shoulder and are about 4 feet long from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail.

Weight

Adult red wolves range in weight from about 45 to 80 pounds. 

Color & Pattern

Red wolves are mostly brown and buff colored, with some black along their backs and often with a reddish color on their ears, head and legs. 

Geography

Characteristics
Range

The range of the red wolf once extended from Texas to New York. Today, they are found in eastern North Carolina.

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Timeline

Explore the information available for this taxon's timeline. You can select an event on the timeline to view more information, or cycle through the content available in the carousel below.

25 Items

Listing

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

4d

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

Delisting

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

Delisting

Notice

Notice

Notice

Five Year Review

Five Year Review

Five Year Review

NEPA - Scoping

Notice

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

Notice

Notice

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

Five Year Review

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Listing

Mar 11, 1967

Mar 11, 1967 Listing (Endangered)
Endangered Species List - 1967
  • Publication type: Final
Item 1

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

Jul 24, 1986

Jul 24, 1986 Experimental Pop Designation (10j) (Non-essential)
Proposed Determination of Experimental Population Status for Introduced Population of Red Wolves inโ€ฆ
  • Publication type: Final
Item 2

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

Jul 24, 1986

Jul 24, 1986 Experimental Pop Designation (10j) (Non-essential)
Proposed Determination of Experimental Population Status for Introduced Population of Red Wolves inโ€ฆ
  • Publication type: Proposed
Item 3

4d

Nov 19, 1986

Nov 19, 1986 4d
Determination of Experimental Population Status for Introduced Population of Red Wolves in North Carโ€ฆ
  • Publication type: Final
Item 4

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

Nov 19, 1986

Nov 19, 1986 Experimental Pop Designation (10j) (Non-essential)
Determination of Experimental Population Status for Introduced Population of Red Wolves in North Carโ€ฆ
  • Publication type: Final
Item 5

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

Nov 19, 1986

Nov 19, 1986 Experimental Pop Designation (10j) (Non-essential)
Determination of Experimental Population Status for Introduced Population of Red Wolves in North Carโ€ฆ
  • Publication type: Final
Item 6

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

Aug 7, 1991

Aug 7, 1991 Experimental Pop Designation (10j) (Non-essential)
ETWP; Proposed Determination of Experimental Population Status for an Introduced Population of Red Wโ€ฆ
  • Publication type: Proposed
Item 7

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

Nov 4, 1991

Nov 4, 1991 Experimental Pop Designation (10j) (Non-essential)
ETWP; Determination of Experimental Population Status for an Introduced Population of Red Wolves inโ€ฆ
  • Publication type: Final
Item 8

Delisting

Jan 13, 1992

Jan 13, 1992 Delisting (Not Substantial)
ETWP; 90-Day Finding on a Petition to Delist the Red Wolf, Canis rufus; 57 FR 1246 1250
  • Publication type: 90 day petition finding
Item 9

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

Apr 13, 1995

Apr 13, 1995 Experimental Pop Designation (10j) (Revision)
Red Wolves in North Carolina and Tennessee; Revision of the Special Rule for Nonessential Experimeโ€ฆ
  • Publication type: Final
Item 10

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

Apr 13, 1995

Apr 13, 1995 Experimental Pop Designation (10j) (Revision)
Red Wolves in North Carolina and Tennessee; Revision of the Special Rule for Nonessential Experimeโ€ฆ
  • Publication type: Final
Item 11

Delisting

Dec 9, 1997

Dec 9, 1997 Delisting (Not Substantial)
ETWP; 90-Day Finding for a Petition To Delist the Red Wolf
  • Publication type: 90 day petition finding
Item 12

Notice

Oct 8, 1998

Oct 8, 1998 Notice
Notice of Termination of the Red Wolf Reintroduction Project in the Great Smoky Mountains Nationalโ€ฆ
  • Publication type: Determination - Historical
Item 13

Notice

Oct 8, 1998

Oct 8, 1998 Notice
Notice of Termination of the Red Wolf Reintroduction Project in the Great Smoky Mountains Nationalโ€ฆ
  • Publication type: Determination - Historical
Item 14

Notice

Nov 5, 1999

Nov 5, 1999 Notice
Notice of Three Public Open Houses Prior to Proposing a Revision to the Special Rule for a Nonessentโ€ฆ
  • Publication type: Public Hearing
Item 15

Five Year Review

Sep 20, 2005

Sep 20, 2005 Five Year Review (Information Solicitation)
5-Year Review of 14 Southeastern Species
  • Publication type: Notice
Item 16

Five Year Review

Oct 31, 2016

Oct 31, 2016 Five Year Review (Information Solicitation)
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; 5-Year Status Review of the Red Wolf
  • Publication type: Notice
Item 17

Five Year Review

Oct 31, 2016

Oct 31, 2016 Five Year Review (Information Solicitation)
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; 5-Year Status Review of the Red Wolf
  • Publication type: Notice
Item 18

NEPA - Scoping

May 23, 2017

May 23, 2017 NEPA - Scoping
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Nonessential Experimental Population of Red Wolves (Cโ€ฆ
  • Publication type: Notice
Item 19

Notice

May 23, 2017

May 23, 2017 Notice
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Nonessential Experimental Population of Red Wolves (Cโ€ฆ
  • Publication type: Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
Item 20

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

Jun 28, 2018

Jun 28, 2018 Experimental Pop Designation (10j) (Non-essential)
Proposed Replacement of the Regulations for the Nonessential Experimental Population of Red Wolves iโ€ฆ
  • Publication type: Proposed
Item 21

Notice

Aug 13, 2018

Aug 13, 2018 Notice
Proposed Replacement of the Regulations for the Nonessential Experimental Population of Red Wolves iโ€ฆ
  • Publication type: Comment Period Reopening
Item 22

Notice

Aug 13, 2018

Aug 13, 2018 Notice
Proposed Replacement of the Regulations for the Nonessential Experimental Population of Red Wolves iโ€ฆ
  • Publication type: Comment Period Reopening
Item 23

Experimental Pop Designation (10j)

Nov 15, 2021

Nov 15, 2021 Experimental Pop Designation (10j)
Withdrawal of Rule Proposing Replacement of the Regulations for the Nonessential Experimental Populaโ€ฆ
  • Publication type: Withdrawal
Item 24

Five Year Review

May 13, 2022

May 13, 2022 Five Year Review (Information Solicitation)
Initiation of 5- Year Status Reviews for 35 Southeastern Species; Request for Information
  • Publication type: Notice
Item 25