Mexican Wolf Pair

One of the seriously endangered groups of wolves in this country is the Mexican Gray Wolf, with only 42 of them left in the Southwest.  Tragically, another one of these wolves was found shot to death in Arizona.  That makes three of them recently and 31 of them shot over the last eleven years by poachers.

Because of the small size of this group, every member of the family is vitally important to ensure the continuation of these wolves in the wild.  The cost to this group of murdering one of its members is mind boggling. It takes one more family members DNA from the ever shrinking pool and there is really no way to measure the amount of damage that does to the family as a whole.

The chances of catching the shooter of this wolf are practically nil.  There is a lot of open area in Arizona, which makes witnesses unlikely.  Unless the bullets can be traced or someone comes forward with solid information, this crime will  remain unsolved.

Ignorant and unthinking individuals wish to see the wolf in all forms eliminated.  Educating and changing the minds of these people will take time.  Unfortunately, it is likely that this is time the Mexican Gray Wolf does not have.

From our friends at Care2;

The radio receivers were loaned to the ranchers by government officials. Environmental groups wrote a letter to Secretary Salazar saying they believe the devices should be taken back: “Given the high rate of illegal shooting of Mexican wolves, as well as the large number of wolves disappearing under suspicious circumstances, wolf-frequency-programmed receivers should only be in the hands of government employees responsible for protecting and recovering the wolves, and in the hands of scientists studying them.”

A spokesperson for the cattle association said the notion that a rancher or ranchers are abusing the technology’s capacity is ridiculous.

Killing the endangered wolves is illegal and subject to fines of up to $50,000 and one year in jail.

Anyone with information can call Operation Game Thief — a 24/7, toll-free, anti-poaching hot line for the public: 1-800-352-0700.

You can read more here.

Gee, isn’t it just impossible to believe that big ranchers would use these devices to track down wolves? We already know how humane and compassionate they are toward wild horses.  Cruelty just isn’t in them….NOT!

What really chaps my hide is that our government, charged with protecting these animals would turn over the means to find them to the people they need to be protected from.  Maybe it is time for a big change of personnel at the Department of Interior?