Critically Endangered Red Wolf Pups Born in Great Plains Zoo, Officials to Decide Future Relocation

The Great Plains Zoo welcomed six red wolf pups, which are extremely endangered; but they won't stay in the same zoo for long.

Future relocation plans for breeding are still under consideration by officials.

At the Sioux Falls Great Plains Zoo, things are really exciting right now. The zoo is not only commemorating its 60th anniversary but also the birth of six new red wolf pups.

Six Critically Endangered Red Wolf Pups

Early in May, the six red wolf pups were born in Great Plains Zoo.

Dad Uyosi marches back and forth keeping watch over his new puppies, which are holed up inside this man-made burrow on Friday as mom Camellia naps in the shade.

Red wolves are rare, according to animal care director Joel Locke.

He said that there are currently well over 200 red wolves either in human care or captive.

Additionally, he emphasized how enjoyable it is to have this species at the zoo and how important it is to inform the people about how rare the species is.

There may only be 20 to 30 of them in the wild, and only in North America, according to experts.

Possible Future Relocation

According to Locke, the Red Wolf Safe group manages red wolves in the US and makes decisions on their care.

The pups are healthy and should all live, according to Locke, but despite how adorable they are, it's unlikely that they will remain in Sioux Falls.

Locke made the observation Red Wolf Safe, together with US Fish and Wildlife, who are the ones who decide where pups go, so that's kind of out of our hands.

Visitors will have the opportunity to observe them after they are a bit older and begin to venture outside of their den to start exploring the environment since the zoo will retain them for a short period.

But ultimately, the goal would be to move them to other breeding facilities so that there would be more red wolves in the US.

Red Wolf Conservation

However, Camellia and Uyosi will remain in this area and may continue to produce puppies.

According to Locke, who also wants the wolves to breed once more, both wolves are first-time parents.

However, as he said, this decision is not his to make.

According to Locke, red wolves are the zoo's most endangered species, KELO Land reports.

The US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFW) calculated that as of May 2023, there were 278 red wolves in captivity and around 23 to 25 red wolves living in the wild.

The red wolf was on the verge of extinction, but captive breeding prevented that from happening.

The wild red wolf population peaked in 2012 at 120 individuals thanks to previous releases of red wolves from the population kept by humans into the ENC RWP.

Despite being housed in many Red Wolf SAFE facilities around the nation, captive red wolves are maintained as a single population.

To preserve the health and variety of an expanding population, they are frequently moved between the sites to breed following genetic management goals, according to Great Plains Zoo.