Rediscovered Red Wolf Genes May Help Conserve the Species
From Scientific American:
The red wolf once roamed a huge swath of the eastern United States. The historic range of these rust-colored canines stretched from Long Island across to Missouri and down to the Texas-Mexico border. But by 1972 the population was reduced to only roaming a small area along the Gulf coast due to habitat loss and hunting.
To conserve the species, 14 individuals were captured as part of a breeding program. In 1980 their wild relatives were declared extinct—the captured wolves were all that was left.
