Mexican Gray Wolves, Nearly Extinct, Born in Captivity in Sonora

Six Mexican gray wolves, a species on the brink of extinction, were born in a nature reserve in the northern state of Sonora, a state environmental official said.  “The birth of these pups is a big accomplishment for the conservation of an extinct species in its natural habitat,” Sonora Environmental Commission director Oscar Tellez told Efe.  The Mexican gray wolf (Canis lupus baileyi) is a subspecies that has “difficulty reproducing in captivity,” Tellez said.  The pups are the offspring of “Wuera,” who was brought to the park in 2008 from a zoo in the central state of Guanajuato, and “Federiko,” who arrived at the reserve in 2012 from a state park in New Mexico.  The pups were probably born last month, but no one spotted them until the female moved them to a new den, experts said.  Nine pups were born, but three “died from natural causes,” Tellez said...more