World's rarest wolf species to call Colorado home

According to the Colorado Wolf and Wildlife Center, two of the world's rarest wolves are making a new home in Colorado.

"The Red wolves are coming! The Red wolves are coming!" reads a post made to the wildlife refuge's Facebook page, also noting that the wolves will be visitable at the destination after September 21.

The two wolves are 10-year-olds that have been retired from a breeding program meant to save the species – a male named Van Gogh and a female named Shawnee. Their last home was at the Fossil Rim Wildlife Center in Glen Rose, Texas and they were previously part of the SAFE (Saving Animals from Extinction) program, which is operated through the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.

According to the Colorado Wolf and Wildlife Center, Red wolves (Canis rufus) are native to the United States and have never been found elsewhere. Wild populations of the species have declined by 85 percent in the last decade, with the wildlife refuge hoping that the new wolves' presence at their center will raise awareness about the critically endangered species.

The US Fish and Wildlife Service operates a Red Wolf Recovery Program that seeks to increase the population of the species. Though once declared extinct in the wild in 1980, a captive breeding program and reintroduction effort have resulted in a known population in eastern North Carolina. It's estimated that 19 to 21 members of the species exist in the wild, but only 10 have been collared. Meanwhile, 243 captive wolves are involved in the species survival plan.

Find more information about visiting the Colorado Wolf and Wildlife Center in Divide here.

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