The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (F&W) recently proposed a rule (FWS-R4-ES-2018-0035) that, if adopted, could decimate the only population of wild red wolves now in existence (currently estimated at 30 or fewer wolves). The proposed rule would diminish the red wolf recovery area to ten percent of its current territory, limiting red wolves to the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge and adjacent Dare County Bombing Range—an area that can support fewer than 15-20 wolves by F&W’s own assessment.

The rule further proposes to allow any wolves that leave these boundaries and move onto state or private land to be shot, poisoned, or trapped without penalty. Even with the protections of the current recovery program in place, estimates place the number of red wolves poached in the last ten years at nearly 100, so losing any of these protections would be devastating to the population.

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