Endangered red wolves born at St. Louis Zoo are ‘thriving’

FRANKLIN COUNTY — Only around 20 red wolves are known still to exist in the wild. The St. Louis Zoo just added four more to the 290 that live in captivity.

Four red wolves were born this spring at the St. Louis Zoo Sears Lehmann Jr. Wildlife Reserve in Franklin County.

They were the first wolves ever born at the facility. “When you consider how few red wolves remain, each birth is an achievement,” said Sabarras George, director of the St. Louis Zoo WildCare Park, which oversees the Wildlife Reserve.

A highly endangered red wolf pup is examined in June 2024 at the St. Louis Zoo Sears Lehmann Jr. Wildlife Preserve in Franklin County.

The pup is one of four born this spring at the zoo’s facility in its first breeding season. Otter, a female, was born April 26 to Lava, who is 8, and 9-year-old Tyke. The parents came to the Wildlife Reserve last year from the Wolf Conservation Center in New York.

Molly and her brothers Finn and Obi were born May 4. Their parents are Ladybird, 3, and Wilber, who is 8. These are the first offspring for Ladybird and Wilber.

All the pups are healthy and thriving, according to Zoo officials. The animals had their first medical checkups in June. Ladybird came to the Wildlife Reserve from the Endangered Wolf Center in Eureka.

Wilber came from the Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park in Florida. Red wolves, which are smaller than gray wolves and often have red fur on their head and legs, once roamed the eastern and southern United States, from Ne.