The young female Mexican gray wolf named Asha who has been roaming areas around I-40 in New Mexico was captured by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) officials on Jan. 22.
According to USFWS, the wolf first moved north of I-40 on Jan. 2 and since Jan. 9, showed no signs of returning to the Mexican Wolf Experimental Population Recovery Area (MWEPA) in western New Mexico.
The decision to capture the wolf was made in accordance with the recovery permit, which allows for the capture and return of a wolf to the MWEPA or relocation to Mexico. As it is breeding season and there are no other known wolves in the area, there was a high likelihood of a negative interaction or breeding with domestic dogs.
The wolf will be temporarily held in a facility, and plans are to pair Asha with a male wolf and relocate them to Mexico, where there is greater genetic diversity.
