Red Wolves Recently Born in the Wild

By: Aimee Turcotte
​Conservationists are ecstatic about the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (FWS) announcement on August 8th, 2025, about the birth of as many as 20 wild Red Wolf pups across four litters in eastern North Carolina (1, 3).
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Currently, up to 16 wolf pups remain, with 10 wolf pups confirmed to be in the area (2). The pups are a new hope for the Red Wolf population, as there were only 7 known wolves in the wild in 2020 (1). Thankfully, since 2020, there are now 18 known adult red wolves in the wild, representing a 150% increase in population. The FWS estimates that there are 28 to 31 Red Wolf individuals currently in the wild.

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Recent highlights regarding the expanded wild Red Wolf population include:

· Red Wolves 2503F (female, wild-born) and 2191M (male, SAFE program) are part of the Milltail group at Alligator River NWR. They had 8 pups (4 males, 4 females) in April 2025.
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· Red Wolves 2359F and 2443M (SAFE program) were paired in an acclimation pen in February 2024 at the NWR, but they did not end up breeding that year. They were released into the wild and successfully bred in early 2025, giving birth to 3 pups (2 females, 1 male) in April 2025.

· Red Wolves 2409F and 2371M were born at the Endangered Wolf Center in May 2023. Wolf 2409F was released with her parents in spring 2023, received medical care due to an injured leg in October 2024, and was later paired with 2371M. They had 3 pups in April 2025 and were released with their pups into the wild in May.

· Wolf 2412F, born in 2022 to the Milltail group at NWR, mated with 2500M (born 2023, Milltail group) due to a lack of unrelated males. They had 6 pups (3 males, 3 females) in April 2025. Two female and two male pups born from 2412F and 2500M were cross-fostered to the North Carolina Zoo, and one male pup from the zoo was introduced into the wild litter to boost genetic diversity.

Why are the births of these Red Wolf pups important? Red Wolves are currently critically endangered in the wild (5). Unfortunately, the wild population of these wolves has significantly decreased due to threats such as hunting and competition against Coyotes for resources (6). Although Red Wolves do compete against Coyotes, occasionally, these species will mate, resulting in the birth of Coyote–American Red Wolf hybrids that reduce the genetic diversity of Red Wolves.

At Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo, we have been proud to play a direct role in the reintroduction of Red Wolves in North Carolina. Since 1987, we have raised 8 Red Wolf pups at the Zoo under the SAFE American Red Wolf program to be released as part of the experimental resettlement initiative (7). By contributing these wolves, the Zoo supported the efforts to increase the Red Wolf population in the wild.
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Currently, Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo has two Red Wolves, Ranger (male) and Taylor (female). Although Taylor is an older female, Ranger and Taylor have the potential to breed. If these wolves decide to breed, the Zoo will be directly contributing to the conservation of Red Wolves by increasing the ex-situ (under human care) population of Red Wolves.

​(1) https://www.selc.org/news/hope-for-red-wolves/
(2) https://ncwf.org/blog/red-wolf-updates/
(3) https://reflectionriding.org/nature-center-news-updates/red-wolf-update-2025
(4) https://www.fws.gov/project/red-wolf-recovery-program
(5) https://www.beardsleyzoo.org/american-red-wolf.html
(6) https://ncwf.org/blog/red-wolf-science/
​(7) https://www.beardsleyzoo.org/press/connecticuts-beardsley-zoo-announces-arrival-of-new-red-wolf-named-for-the-flower-moon