News

An endangered wolf born at the Wolf Haven International in Tenino has been released into the wild and produced a litter of pups, according to a news release from the sanctuary.

In October 2023, critically endangered American Red wolf identified as M2191 was transported from Wolf Haven International in Tenino to the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge in eastern North Carolina.

The wolf was placed in an acclimation pen in the local territory of the Milltail pack in the hopes that he would be accepted into their family group.

After three months of positive interactions with the pack through the acclimation pen fence, M2191 was released and took his first steps into the wild on Jan. 26.

Shortly after his release, M2191 was seen traveling with the pack’s breeding female, F2225, on remote camera. He integrated well with her four 2-year-olds and four yearlings, and in mid-April, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) confirmed that F2225 and M2191 produced their own litter of eight pups, according to a news release from Wolf Haven.

The original American Red wolf range extended throughout the southeast, up and down the eastern seaboard, and as far west as Texas, Missouri and Arkansas. However, aggressive predator control, habitat loss and hybridization with coyotes reduced the wild American Red wolf population to a mere 14 wolves by the late 1970s, according to Wolf Haven.

The Endangered Species Act prevented the complete eradication of the American Red wolf, and a recovery plan was developed by USFWS to manage and oversee the recovery of this critically endangered species.

Today, American Red wolves remain one of the most endangered species in North America, with only 19 to 21 individuals estimated to be living in their native North Carolina habitat, according to Wolf Haven. This is the world’s only wild population of American Red wolves.

Wolf Haven, an internationally recognized wolf sanctuary and education center in Tenino, has participated in the American Red Wolf SAFE program since 2003 and the Mexican Wolf Aving Animals From Extinction (SAFE) program since 1994. Wolf Haven follows strict guidelines when caring for SAFE animals — interactions with humans are kept to a minimum and observations are done by remote camera.

M2191 (named Finch while in captivity) was born at Wolf Haven in 2016, and for more than seven years, Wolf Haven’s animal care team worked to ensure he remained as wild as possible while also preparing him for the possibility of release into the wild, the sanctuary stated in a news release.

At the annual SAFE meeting in July 2023, M2191 was recommended for release, and Wolf Haven’s Lead Animal Care Specialist Judah Jamison quickly began working with program leaders to develop a plan to relocate him from Washington to the recovery area in North Carolina.

“It is an incredible honor to be part of the SAFE program and the American Red wolf recovery effort,” Jamison said in the release. “Knowing that a wolf who lived seven years at Wolf Haven has integrated into a wild pack is overwhelmingly joyful and humbling.”

M2191 is the second American Red wolf from Wolf Haven to be released into the wild in North Carolina, following the release of F2216 (named Iris while in captivity) in 2021. In addition to these releases, five litters of American Red wolves have been born at Wolf Haven in the past 20 years. Sanctuary Director Pamela Maciel Cabañas, who has been with the organization for over ten years, said she is continually inspired by the work Wolf Haven is doing to conserve and protect wolves.

“To have any of these pups not only get a chance to live their full potential in their natural habitat, but to also potentially contribute to the growth and genetic diversity of the wild population by producing pups of their own, brings the work we do full circle,” she said.

For more information about Wolf Haven International’s American Red wolf and Mexican wolf conservation efforts, visit wolfhaven.org/conservation/SAFE. Updates from USFWS on the wild American Red wolf population can be found at fws.gov/project/red-wolf-recovery-program.  

While the free giveaway and clearing out of the vacant Yard Birds shopping center is ongoing, former tenants are lamenting the loss of possessions stolen from a locked area over the weekend.

The owners of BnT’s American Treasures — which was located in the gated outdoor area on Yard Birds’ northeast corner — sayid their former store was broken into and a trailer was stolen.

BnT’s, a family business, was an estate and retail store cleaning business that had been around nearly four decades, with the past 14 spent at Yard Birds.

It was run by brothers Blake and Cory McDrummond. Blake’s wife, Tana, contacted The Chronicle originally to ask for photos of the trailer to try to help find it.

“We used it for everything. It was old and beat up, but it still worked,” Tana said.

The break-in at BnT’s occurred sometime Saturday morning. Whoever broke in physically unbolted the gate and took it off its hinges. Once the gates were open, people flooded in and took what they pleased.

“Sometime after noon, someone decided they would hook up the trailer and steal it too,” Tana added.

While Yard Birds owner Darris McDaniel started the giveaway to clear out the old mall building as he continues trying to sell it, he was not letting anyone inside Yard Birds itself due to liability concerns. Items are instead being placed along the outside walls of the sprawling structure.

Some of the items in BnT’s were still the McDrummonds’ personal belongings they didn’t have time to remove after Yard Birds’ permanent closure at the end of 2022.

The trailer was legally registered. Tana said a police report has been filed, but she is asking the community for help recovering the trailer.

“It’s a 14-foot dual axle (trailer) with black fenders, 2-by-6 side racks with metal stakes,” Tana said. “It was a rough trailer but we used it every day”

Tana added a reward is being offered to anyone with information leading to the trailer’s recovery. Anyone with information is asked to contact her through her Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/tmcdrummond. 

The giveaway at Yard Birds continues.

“This is still going on and new items being added every day,” Shop’n Kart, which is also owned by Daniels, wrote in a social media post on Tuesday.