Goings…
Aug 5th 2008
wolfmoonsleddog
Southeast
Location: Northwest GA
Time - 10:28pm
Temperature: 86 degrees F
Conditions: Mostly clear, warm
Forecast: Mostly clear tonight and tomorrow. Humid. Lows in the 70s, highs in the upper 90s
It is SO hot here. I’ve been sleeping with my window open most nights but not tonight. It’s just too darn hot.
Here is a newspaper article on the conference at the Chattanooga Nature Center last week. This is off-topic for this blog but I feel it’s worth mentioning as it’s another side of my life that I don’t usually write about here.
From: http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2008/aug/01/chattanooga-experts-heed-call-red-wolves/
Friday, Aug. 1, 2008 , 12:00 a.m.
Chattanooga: Experts heed call of red wolves
By: Tom Faure
(Contact)
Only 300 red wolves are left in the world, according to estimates, and 10 of them live in Chattanooga, which explains why about 25 conservationists have come to town in the past couple of days.
The Chattanooga Nature Center on Thursday hosted a Red Wolf Species Survival Plan conference, bringing representatives from about 20 of the 40 red wolf facilities in the country. The two-day conference, making its first trip to Chattanooga, is focusing on methods to ensure the survival of the species, which Nature Center Wildlife curator Tish Gailmard said is one of the most endangered animals in the world. Of the slightly more than 300 red wolves in the world, all are located in North America, she said.
“It’s really a great opportunity for the other co-operators to see our enclosures and see how we do things here,” she said. “It’s also a great opportunity to show off our beautiful property and to show off Chattanooga.”
At the conference today, attendees will map out breeding pairs for the next year, she said.
Red wolves usually stand about 15 inches tall, are about 5 feet long and weigh 40 to 80 pounds.
“They’re larger than a coyote, smaller than a gray wolf,” she said. “They do have a lot of tan and black and a lot of red markings. They’re red on the backs of their ears and on their haunches.”
Ms. Gailmard said red wolves once were native to the region.
The Nature Center also houses red-tailed hawks, snakes, turtles and 50 or so other animals, she said.
The 29-year-old center has worked since 1996 with the Survival Plan, overseen by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. About 100 of the red wolves, or “apex predators” as Ms. Gailmard called them, are in the wild, with many in North Carolina at the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge, located on the Atlantic Coast near Nags Head.
“Considering the grave challenges red wolves faced when first listed as endangered in 1967, efforts to restore, recover and conserve them have been remarkably successful,” according to a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s 2007 report. The population has grown from 14 in the 1970s to a captive population of 208 and a restored wild population of up to 130, the report said.
“The red wolf was pulled back from the brink of extinction and given a fighting chance for survival,” the report said.
Five pups were born at the Chattanooga Nature Center last year, the offspring of a 6-year-old male and 5-year-old female who came to the center at the end of 2006. The Nature Center also has a 15-year-old male, a 14-year-old male and a 14-year-old female, all quite old for red wolves, whose lifespans are about 12 years in captivity and seven to eight years in the wild.
Ms. Gailmard said conservationists have only two weeks after a pup is born before they must decide whether to release them into the wild or keep them in captivity for life.
“What’s really great is when the captive population produces some pups, and we can foster them into the wild, and then we’re introducing the captive blood line into the wild blood line,” Ms. Gailmard said. “That makes the whole bloodline stronger, which is what the whole goal is.”
Keeping red wolves in captivity is important to help the species grow, Ms. Gailmard said, and those who’ve come to the Red Wolf Species Survival Plan hope to expand on early successes in fostering captive-born pups back into the wild. The facilities monitor the wolves closely, tracking their genealogies to diversify breeding as much as possible, she said.
“We’re trying to prevent in-breeding and increase the genetic diversity,” she said. “We’re trying to make stronger genes.”
All in all it was a good conference. Below is one of my pictures.
From left, Jenny Nicely (CNC assistant wildlife curator), Will Waddell (coordinator of the Red Wolf Species Survival Plan), Tish Gailmard (CNC wildlife curator), me (CNC wildlife docent), Hope Howard (CNC staff member*).
I am going to miss the Nature Center - it’s been a big part of my life for the last few years and I am thankful to have been a part of so much that has happened there. Thanks to all of you for everything you have done!
*I’ll look up her official title tomorrow when I can think properly
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3 Comments »
3 Responses to “Goings…”
david lukosik on 06 Aug 2008 at 11:03 am # edit this
Hi Alice, Great article on the red wolves. I have followed their recovery here in North Carolina. Its an uphill battle to keep the public’s interest in their recovery. Happy to see your interest in them. Look for a Priority Mail Package that I sent yesterday. Info on wolves inside plus sled dog stuff, enjoy! Dave and the Southern Siberian Fur Kids
david lukosik on 06 Aug 2008 at 6:39 pm # edit this
Hi Alice, The Siberian Nationals will be from Sept 27 to Oct 3, 2009 according to an e-mail I got today from a SHCA member. They have not posted much on the 2009 show yet. The 2008 Show is in Gettysburg, PA. this Fall. Dave
wolfmoonsleddog on 06 Aug 2008 at 7:16 pm # edit this
Hi David!
I have always been fascinated with wolves - especially the red wolves. In 2004, my parents and I went to Alligator River and went on a wolf howl. It was amazing to be where there were wild red wolves. I’ve also spent time on St. Vincent Island in Florida, where there is a wild pack. I rode all over the island doing telemetry work one day with one of the rangers.
I started going to CNC because of the red wolves. It was great to work with them and exciting last year when a litter of 5 pups was born there. I did a lot of filming of the pups as they grew and put together a 15-minute documentary which was shown at the conference last week.
I’ll try to go check my PO Box tomorrow or Friday. Thanks much!
I probably won’t be able to attend the Siberian Nationals if they are that late in the year - I’ll only be in GA for a little while next Summer.
Take care and hope you are keeping cool!
Alice
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