The Woodlands Nature Station within Land Between the Lakes National Recreation recently welcomed a red wolf – the world’s most endangered wolf species – to their animal ambassador family.
Friends of Land Between the Lakes spokeswoman Jennifer Wheatley says Kaya came to the Nature Station from Tallahassee to be reunited with Jasper, a former mate of hers from another nature center. She adds they are happy to be back together after being widowed by other former mates. Wheatley says while Kaya is still shy and hard to see as she is acclimating to her new habitat, the Nature Station invites visitors to come out and see both wolves as she gets more comfortable.
According to Wheatley, red wolves are critically endangered species with less than 25 individuals remaining in the wild. She says red wolves were common throughout southern forests prior to European settlement. As farmsteads and agriculture changed the landscape, she says red wolves quickly disappeared from many parts of the south, including Kentucky and Tennessee. She says the Nature Station is proud to have been a part of their breeding and species survival program for 30 years.
For more information on red wolves and the Woodlands Nature Station, call 270-924-2299 or click here.
