Five wolf pups inspire howls of hope for survival of Mexican species

Mexico City, Jun 11 (EFE).- Five wolverines of the endangered Mexican wolf species, until recently considered extinct in the wilderness, have increased hope in the animal’s prospect of survival.

Slowly followed by their mother, two wolf pups playfully scamper out of their den to the area reserved for them in Chapultepec Zoo, modelled around their natural habitat, according to the zoo’s technical deputy director Alberto Olascoaga.

One wolverine runs after the other under the close watch of their father Rhi, a Mexican wolf born seven years ago in that same place and living together with Seje, a female 9-year-old specimen.

The other three pups snooze in the comfort of their burrow, building energy to later follow their siblings in storming the area to continue the inspection of their newly-discovered home.

The baby wolves were born on April 24 and they are Rhi and Seje’s second litter.

The pups are yet to be named, as their genders are still unknown but will be determined during their first clinical examination in a few days.

A few days before giving birth, the female wolf enters her den and stays inside with the pups to nourish them for months after birth, explained Olascoaga.

“About a month or month and a half after birth, they start to explore their surroundings, for a bit longer every passing day,” he said. “It is the learning stage, they need to learn by observation and imitation of their parents.”

The wolverines, each of them displaying different combinations of grey and beige fur, run in circles, hop around, and follow their parents, unaware of the great step they made to preserve their endangered species.

This and other institutions in Mexico are hoping to increase the number of Mexican wolves, with the mission to eventually return the animals to the wild.