Day 690: May 30th, 2021. It's always great to see critically endangered animals be released in the wild with the intent of bringing the population back from the brink. The 8 red wolves released in North Carolina earlier this year are no different, and help bring genetic diversity to a struggling species (the world's most endangered wolf species, for that matter!). They have a long, twisted history with locals and government agencies, but conservationists aim to ensure the wolves' survival. . Red wolves once roamed much of the Southeast, but by 1980, they were declared extinct in the wild. Reintroduction efforts began and quickly, the population grew to around 120 by 2012. Things were looking up for the animals, but by 2015, the growth turned to a sharp downward spiral. Locals had long opposed the protections, but a widespread anti-government view only caused the hate for the wolves to grow. A 2014 court case outlawed night hunting of coyotes (in an effort to protect young red wolves that are easily mistaken for coyotes), which made locals feel like the government was overstepping and infringing on their rights. Then in 2015, the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission passed resolutions that gave locals some of what they wanted, ending wolf pup fostering and coyote sterilization in the area (which compete with the wolves for food). Locals continued to request the wolves to be removed, leading the U.S. Fish and Wildlife to allow the wolves to be shot if they entered private land. It only took 5 years for the conservation efforts to be decimated, and only 20 remained. . Though the agency failed to protect the wolves, conservation groups (with the help of the Southern Environmental Law Center) held them accountable. A court case found that Fish and Wildlife did indeed fail to uphold the Endangered Species Act, which now not only reinstates wolf reintroduction programs, but will also attempt to enact landowner incentive programs to help create viable habitat. . . Read more about the red wolves: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/red-wolves-released-wild-north-carolina-hope-for-species . Graphic shows a wolf howling in front of the moon. The factoid reads: "8 red wolves recently released in the wild bring the species' total population to 25." . . #redwolf #redwolves #animalconservation #animalart #animalfacts #wolves #wolffacts #endangeredanimals #pixelplanet #pixelplanettoday #pixelart #planetfacts