Space use of red wolves and coyotes-guest blogger, Dr. Joey Hinton

***Guest Blogger!***

This week, Dr. Joey Hinton, a recent graduate from the University of Georgia, joins us to describe some of his research focused on interactions between red wolves and coyotes in northeastern North Carolina.

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Like many endangered species, we know very little about red wolf ecology because they were reduced to a single remnant population before scientists could study their behaviors. Human-caused mortality and red wolf hybridization with coyotes threaten red wolf recovery efforts. Despite these challenges, successful restoration of red wolves will occur in human-altered landscapes with the presence coyote populations. Therefore, understanding red wolf and coyote ecology is fundamental to successful recovery. Conducting studies on large endangered carnivores is challenging and I was fortunate to collaborate with the

Red Wolf Recovery Program.  This study was conducted in part during my doctoral graduate work at the University of Georgia.

Photos by J. Hinton.

 From 2009 through 2011, I assisted Red Wolf Recovery Program biologists with trapping red wolves and coyotes and radio-collaring individuals with global position system (GPS) radio-collars. GPS collars allowed us to collect locations on red wolves and coyotes 5-12 times/ day. With these data, I calculated the size and habitat composition of red wolf and coyote territories. These data provide insights into how red wolves and coyotes use and move through the landscape. 

 

Dr. Hinton and RWRP biologist fitting an animal with a radio collar.

Both species were mostly nocturnal with approximately 80% of all their movements occurring between sunset and sunrise. We found red wolves and coyotes to use similar habitats and preferred open, treeless agricultural areas over forested areas. Typically, red wolves and coyotes seek cover in agricultural crops (when available), fallow fields with high vegetation, and forested areas during the day. Once night came, both species leave cover and use open fields, forest edges, and dirt roads to hunt and defend territories.

Red wolf with GPS collar. Photo by J. Hinton.

We also found red wolves and coyotes to have two space use statuses: residents and transients. Residents are breeders and their offspring that maintain territories, whereas transients are typically young dispersing individuals with the intent to establish territories and reproduce. Transients rarely have breeding opportunities because they are solitary and nomadic until they find a mate. As a result, transients traverse over larger areas than residents do. For instance, transient red wolves and coyotes commonly traversed areas of 30 to 300 mi² before establishing territories with a mate. This period can be between 2 weeks to 2 years. Once transients became residents, they establish territories that are much smaller. Red wolves typically defend areas about 19 mi² whereas coyote territories are smaller at approximately 10 mi².

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Thank you to Dr. Hinton for sharing! Stay tuned for more research updates soon from our partners!

Adaptive Management Techniques: How coyote sterilization can work towards red wolf recovery efforts

A frequently asked question here at the Red Wolf Recovery Program is “Do red wolves breed with coyotes?” The short answer is yes, they can. Red wolves, gray wolves, domestic dogs, and coyotes are capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring.  While social structures and territoriality usually prevent such interbreeding, the combination of a small red wolf population, a large coyote population, and limited space in the recovery area can result in a breakdown of the natural barriers.

  Coyote. Photo by B. Bartel/USFWS.

During the initial site selection process for the red wolf restoration program, the northeastern North Carolina (NENC) Red Wolf Recovery Area was uninhabited by coyotes.  However, coyotes have expanded their range eastward; individuals were observed in NENC beginning in the early-1990s.  As a result, an adaptive management plan was needed to eliminate the threat of hybridization.  Research has demonstrated that sterilized coyotes remain territorial and continue to defend space. It is this concept of holding space that is being applied to manage hybridization by providing managers time, information, and a higher degree of control over the recovery landscape, while simultaneously providing reproductive advantage to the red wolf.   Ultimately, sterilization is a method that allows territorial space to be held until that animal can be replaced naturally or by management actions. Sterile “placeholder” coyotes are then naturally replaced when the larger red wolves displace or kill the coyote.  Occasionally, we may remove a coyote from an area when we have the opportunity to insert a wild or translocated red wolf into that territory or if we have a red wolf dispersing into that area.  

The bottom line is that space is limited in the recovery area. Ideally, within the restored red wolf population in NENC, that space is initially best occupied by breeding pairs of red wolves, non-breeding mixed (red wolf/coyote) pairs, and non-breeding coyote pairs.  By sterilizing coyotes, introgression of non-wolf genes will be controlled and territories will be unavailable for colonization by breeding coyote pairs or red wolf-coyote pairs.  As the red wolf population grows, having space available for dispersing red wolves becomes increasingly important, and this space is provided through natural interspecific competition and/or management actions.

Currently, in addition to the ~65+ radio-collared red wolves, we are actively tracking and monitoring 50 sterilized, placeholder coyotes.  They are captured, processed, and released similar to red wolves (with the additional step of sterilization at a local veterinary hospital).  

 A coyote being processed and fitted for a radio-telemetry collar. 

Photo by B. Bartel/USFWS.

Views from telemetry flights

Currently the Red Wolf Recovery Program is monitoring ~65 red wild wolves and ~50 sterile coyotes in the field.  To track these radio-collared individuals, we use both aerial and ground telemetry techniques.  Telemetry flights are typically performed 2-3 times/week weather-permitting.  These efforts allow us to identify where collared animals are (and who they're with) on the landscape.  Our field coordinator, Art, snapped a few interesting photos last month during flights: Photo 1) shows the congregation of migratory tundra swans (Cygnus columbianus) on Pungo Lake (Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge) for the winter. At some points during the season, this lake and surrounding area (including Lake Mattamuskett) serves as vital feeding areas for 30,000+ swans.  Photo 2) shows an adult male wolf (shown in red square) resting near a white-tailed deer kill (shown in red circle).  These are tricky to see, but go to show how vigilant and alert the wolf biologists are to monitor from the air!

Photo Credits: A. Beyer/USFWS

There’s More Than One Way To Catch a Wolf!

The first attempt at finding a den this year offered the Red Wolf Recovery Program biologists a new challenge. Finding this particular den was going to be easy….it already had been spotted from the air during a telemetry flight. The challenge in this case was that we wanted to get our hands on the mother as well as the pups.

[Red wolf den. Photo credit: D. Rabon/USFWS]
Female wolf 1686F was wearing a radio-collar that was near the end of its battery life. We needed to change her collar to prevent losing radio contact with her. The conventional method for catching a wolf to change its collar is to set modified leg-hold traps. For a mother with young pups, however, that’s not an option because there is always some risk involved (albeit small given the design of the trap). Instead, we decided our best option would be to sneak up to her den without being detected and capture her in a net as she exited. As you can see from the photo every once in a while a plan comes together!

[Red wolf captured. Photo credit: A. Johnson/USFWS]
Once her collar was replaced, we processed her pups, placed the pups back in the den, followed by mom, and moved on to our next den search.

[Replacing a radio-telemetry collar. Photo credit: A. Johnson/USFWS]

Where there's a Will, there's a way.

Having the chance to ride along with the Red Wolf Recovery Program biologists a few weeks ago as they began their annual search for red wolf dens, I can back up Ryan’s recent blog postings that finding dens takes a great deal of patience and effort. After the first few days I wondered if the biologists were setting me up by looking for dens in locations that could test the abilities of a triathlete. However the reward of finding a litter was well worth the briar scratches and tick plucking, and it was apparent that these kinds of areas provided the wolves needed cover and security as they go about the business of rearing their young.

[Will tests his "sixth sense" in finding a den. Photo credit: A. Beyer/USFWS]
With the miles of dirt roads, fields, and drainage ditches it’s easy to get disoriented as the biologists rattle off the name of this or that pack, road, or location. Radio telemetry no doubt helps, but when combined with their experience, knowledge of the area, and an uncanny sixth sense, the crew has remarkable success locating dens.

[Will finds his very first red wolf pup in the wild. Photo credit: A. Beyer/USFWS]
As coordinator for the Red Wolf Species Survival Plan, being able to help search for wild dens gave me the opportunity to take a step back and look at the Red Wolf Recovery Program from a “big picture” perspective. It also underscored that there are many individuals, agencies, and organizations committed to ensuring that red wolves will continue to thrive. -- Will

Pack Intact

Just prior to red wolf whelping/denning season last April (2010), biologists with the Red Wolf Recovery Program were alarmed at the sudden disappearance of female red wolf 1470F, the breeding female of the Northern Pack. 1470F was then just short of four years old, and had recently formed a new pair bond in her natal territory with male red wolf 1628M. Program biologists were hopeful she would have her first litter that year.

During whelping season, biologists conduct radio telemetry flights three times a week in an effort to pinpoint when and where each breeding female is denning. When a female restricts her movements to a particular place it is assumed that she is denning. Biologists then use ground radio telemetry to track to her and the den. Just as it appeared that 1470F was beginning to restrict her movements and establish a den, her radio telemetry signal was lost. Had something bad happened to her? Or was it simply a malfunctioning radio telemetry collar. We had hoped for the latter.

The only way to know for sure what had happened to 1047F was to set traps in an effort to capture her. Trapping would have to wait, though. If she was still around, and if she had a litter of pups, it would be too risky to capture her while she was raising a litter. Attempts to capture her would have to wait until the pups, if there were any, were large enough to be trapped and fitted with a radio telemetry collar.

Then, in June, a graduate student conducting research on red wolves was working in the Northern Pack’s territory when he happened to see three wolf puppies. As luck would have it, we were able to capture one of the puppies. A blood sample was taken, and genetics results confirmed the pup to be the offspring of 1470F and 1628M. This was great news! We now knew that 1470F had indeed given birth to her first litter. But we still weren’t sure of her presence. The pup, of course, was released right away to rejoin his pack.

In January (2011), we decided the pups would finally be big enough to be safely captured and fitted with a radio telemetry collar. Traps were set, and three pups were quickly captured, including the pup we had captured the previous June; they were in perfect health. Soon after, 1628M, the breeding male, was captured along with a fourth pup. But there was still no sign of mom. Finally, about a week later, our lucky day arrived. A strong, healthy 1470F was caught in our trap. The radio telemetry collar she was wearing had malfunctioned. We replaced it with a new one, and released the entire family back into their territory. -- Ryan

The life of 904F

Back in September (2010), the Red Wolf Recovery Program lost one of the longest-lived, wild red wolves in the program’s history. Female red wolf, known as 904F, who spent most of her life as the matriarch of the Milltail Pack on Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge, was discovered dead on the west side of the refuge near the community of East Lake, Dare County, North Carolina. It appeared as if she died from natural causes.

904F was born on the west side of the refuge in the spring of 1997. She became the breeding female of the Milltail Pack when she was just two years of age, and held that position for many years raising several litters of pups. In late 2006, 904F was pushed out of her natal home range by a younger, stronger female red wolf.

[904F at 10 years of age, showing off her facial scars]
904F was captured again in 2007, and at 10 years of age she appeared to be weakening and wasn't expected to live much longer. However, she continued to surprise Red Wolf Recovery Program biologists with her resiliency, surviving three more winters and establishing a new territory for herself on private property well south of her natal range. It remains a mystery why she came back to her place of birth on the refuge just before she died.

Female red wolf 904F lived a full life, and will continue to be well represented by her offspring for generations to come. In fact, her son, 1544M, now nearly five years of age, is the breeding male of the Milltail Pack. -- Ryan

[1544M at 8 months of age, showing off his new radio telemetry collar]

Management Techniques: Processing a Red Wolf

Once a red wolf has been captured, it is placed in a kennel and transported to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Red Wolf Education and Health Care Facility, where it is “processed” before being released.

Wild red wolves are instinctively fearful of humans and are generally docile when handled. A wolf is typically restrained by placing a muzzle over its mouth, tying its hind legs together, and keeping a hand on its shoulder to hold it down. Occasionally a wolf may resist being muzzled to the extent that it must be sedated for the processing. Either way, all precautions are taken to maximize the safety of the wolf as well as the biologists handling the wolf.


Processing involves recording the wolf’s weight and body measurements, drawing a blood sample for future research, administering vaccines to prevent rabies and other common canid diseases, assessing the overall health of the wolf, and finally, fitting it with either a GPS or VHF radio telemetry collar so that it can be monitored upon release. After the processing is complete, the wolf is transported back to its home range and released.

Abdominal Transmissions

Biologists with the Red Wolf Recovery Program occasionally target capturing a juvenile red wolf in a trap, in which case it can be impossible to safely and effectively fit the young wolf with a radio telemetry collar. If the collar is fitted for the young wolf's current size, the wolf may continue to grow causing the collar to become too tight, and possibly even embed itself into the wolf’s neck. If the collar is attached too loose, the wolf may slip out of it and radio contact will be lost. The solution? Abdominal radio transmitters.


Three young siblings, born in the spring of 2010, were recently captured when they were just seven months old. Even for a seven-month-old red wolf pup they were a bit on the small side, weighing in at just over 30 pounds each. An adult red wolf can weigh anywhere from 45 pounds to 85 pounds. Knowing that they could still put on a considerable amount of weight before reaching adult size, we decided to implant them with abdominal transmitters rather than fit them with a radio telemetry collar.


The young wolves were transported to a local veterinarian, where they were sedated and prepared for surgery. A sterilized transmitter was inserted in the abdominal cavity of each wolf through a small incision. Each transmitter emits a pulse signal at a unique frequency which enables biologists to track the animal. After a short recovery period, the pups were transported back to their natal territory and released near their parents. -- Ryan

A Notable Capture

The fall trapping season began with a notable capture. This male wolf was born in 2009 at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago, IL. He and his sister were fostered into a wild litter when they were just two weeks old.


Until his capture in late October we were uncertain if he had survived that first year as a pup. Having dispersed from his natal home range sometime last year, he was caught using a soft-catch trap in a territory belonging to a 2-year-old female wolf.


Radio-collared and released, our hopes are that he will remain in this area and pair-bond with the female wolf, forming a new breeding pair and possibly producing pups in 2011. -- Art

Red Wolf Pup-Naming Fundraiser Takes Flight

A fundraiser at Miller Park Zoo has netted some new equipment that will help conserve red wolves in the wild.

Four red wolf pups born at Miller Park Zoo in April were named with a fundraising “contest.” Guests of the Zoo voted on four sets of names by placing a donation in bins located under each group of names. The group of names receiving the most donations was the winner.


The winning names -- Michael (male), Lily (female), Rose (female), and Anna (female) -- were selected in honor of the grandchildren of John Tobias, Miller Park Zoo's Superintendent for 19 years until his retirement in April 2009. John was responsible for bringing red wolves to the Zoo as part of the red wolf captive-breeding program.

100% of the funds raised by the naming contest was donated to red wolf conservation to purchase new antennae for the airplane used to monitor red wolves in the wild.


The Red Wolf Recovery Program and the wild red wolves are very grateful for the contribution of Miller Park Zoo, Miller Park Zoological Society, and everyone who participated by making a donation.

Management Techniques: Radio Telemetry

Restoring red wolves is a more involved process than simply opening a pen or kennel door and releasing wolves into the natural environment to find food, shelter, and a mate. Because red wolves are wide-ranging and secretive, field biologists with the Red Wolf Recovery Program need to employ various methods and techniques to monitor the wolf population. The primary method used to monitor red wolves is radio telemetry. Without radio telemetry it would be nearly impossible to monitor the location of a wolf, their movements and interactions with other wolves, their home range, territory, and the types of habitat they use, the location of their dens, and their ultimate fate.


But before we can monitor or track red wolves, we must first capture the wolf (see Management Techniques: Trapping and Traps) and fit it with a radio telemetry collar. Each collar emits a pulse signal at a unique radio frequency. When biologists wish to locate a particular wolf, they dial the unique frequency of that wolf’s collar on the telemetry receiver and listen for a signal through a headset. The signal becomes audible when the wolf is within range of the antenna, and stronger when the antenna is pointed in the direction of the wolf.


Radio-tracking wolves on the ground is done using a hand-held or a truck-mounted antenna. Wolves can also be radio-tracked from the air. Attaching radio telemetry antennae to the wings of an airplane allow field biologists to monitor the entire population of red wolves in the recovery area in a shorter period of time than when using ground telemetry alone.


Radio telemetry allows us to remotely monitor the free-ranging red wolves, collect important biological and ecological information on the population, and determine the overall success of the Red Wolf Recovery Program. -- Ryan