Sam Harboldt Jackson, TN SHarboldt@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Sam, Thanks for your inquiry about a reported "red wolf" sighting during your recent birding visit to Pace Point of Henry County, TN. Red wolves were seriously considered for reintroduction on TVA's Land Between the Lakes during the 1980's. No red wolves were ever reintroduced there (or anywhere else in West or Middle Tennessee). Coyotes were already gradually migrating into the area from the west, and from an unauthorized hunter-transplanted population in the Huntsville, AL area. Coyote sightings quickly generated rumors of "red wolves" sightings as far to the east as Smith County, TN. Some of Tennessee's incoming coyotes had red wolf and dog genes, making it a little difficult to judge the difference without skull and other verification. Red wolves had historically fought with coyotes and were thought to be the primary barriers to coyote migration from western states to the east. However, whenever red wolf and/or coyote populations dwindled so low that they could not find their own species with which to mate, they chose the closest available options. Coyotes sometimes mated with dogs, producing hybrid, but sexually viable, young. Such historic hybridization contributes to a greater variety of coyote sizes and characteristics, compared to their pure strains. Much testing, concerning the relative genetic purities of coyotes in Tennessee, has been conducted by Dr. Michael Kennedy of the University of Memphis. Well before coyotes' gradual natural migration into Tennessee, coyotes and red wolves were badly hybridizing in the western states. By the 1970's, the last pure red wolves of eastern Texas were about hybridizing themselves out of existence as a separate species. The remaining pure red wolves of that Texas region were therefore removed from the wild, taken to a Tacoma, Washington Zoo site, and tested for true red wolf breeding characteristics. The pure red wolf offspring were re-introduced into their historic ranges of a few eastern states, where coyotes had not yet migrated from the west. In 1991, some pure red wolves were placed in Cades Cove of the Smoky Mts National Park, which was the only re-introduction of red wolves ever attempted in Tennessee. However, all young that had not been vaccinated, died in the wild, possibly from parvo disease, to which they had not been historically exposed and therefore had no natural immunity. In 1998, the US Fish and Wildlife Service announced cancellation of the red wolf project in Tennessee, By 1999, all remaining red wolves were removed from the wild in the Cades Cove area and transferred to captive breeding facilities and to the Alligator National Wildlife Refuge of NE NC, where red wolves had already been re-established. Ed Penrod, District Widlife Biologist of Columbia, TN, apparently found the first coyote in the wild in Tennessee. When I encountered him at VFW Lake in Lawrence County, TN in 1965 or 1966, he had just shot and killed, what he thought was a coyote, the night before in Franklin County, TN. A farmer had been complaining about the animal's (or animals') repeatedly destroying his commercial crop of watermelons, of all things. Ed Penrod suspected the dead canid was a coyote but needed to have it scientifically verified. Since I worked out of the Nashville office of the old Tennessee Game and Fish Commission (now TWRA), he asked if I could take the carcass to Nashville and send it to Dr. Michael Kennedy for analysis. It was indeed a coyote, and, as far as I know, the first verified one in Tennessee. There is a good article at http://www.chattoogariver.org/index.php?quart=Su2002&req=wolves concerning red wolf recovery efforts, including the aborted 8-year Cades Cove red wolf experiment. Bob Hatcher Retired TWRA Nongame & Endangered Wildlife Coordinator (1978 - 2001) Brentwood, TN *************** ----- Original Message ----- From: "Samuel Harboldt, M.D." <SHarboldt@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> To: <tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> Sent: Wednesday, January 02, 2008 10:12 AM Subject: [TN-Bird] 'Grizzly' Harboldt Sam Harboldt Jackson, TN 1/2/08 Am new to tn-bird, and don't know if this will send or not. My wife Susan and I birded often before kids (about 20 years ago). The kids have put plenty of gray hairs on my head since then, so looking pretty grizzly by now. Time has also given me a chance to forget what little I did know about birds. Short visit on brisk, windy, snowy, New Years Day at Pace Point, TN NWR in Henry County:. Barred Owl 1 - my first ever and the highlight of the day. Golden Eagle, immature, with underwing proximal primary white patch and slight dihedral. 1 Am Kestrel 1 R.T. Hawk 1 Killdeer 1 Tufted Titmouse 1 N. Cardinals ++ Blue Jays ++ Song Sparrow 1 W.T. Sparrows + one taking a frigid bath in a tiny roadside stream Hooded Mergansers ++ Gadwalls + Am Widgeons + N. Pintail + Mallards +++ P.B. Grebe + N. Shoveler + Canada Goose +++ Gulls ++ (distant) Crows +++ (distant) Wild canine (see below) It sounds crazy to me, so I suppose all will think so: could there be red wolves at TN NWR at Pace Point in Henry County? he other highlight was a wild canine crossing the gravel road less than a hundred feet in front of me. After crossing 20 feet or so into the cover of the woods, it stopped and looked back, not at my car but toward the direction from which it had come, as though concerned about kinfolks. This pause afforded me a very good look through my binoculars. It was about the size and texture of a Rough Coated Collie or German Shepherd-Collie mix, but clearly blockier and more muscular, and with it's splendid spiky coat appearing ruffed up as if in response to the cold wind. However, these were not Collie or German Shepherd colors, but those of coyote or wolf, and the facial physiognomy was not Collie. It's head looked rather broad. As I'm well aware that gray wolves don't run there, I concluded forthwith that it was an extra good-looking coyote, not even thinking of red wolf. A few minutes later I chatted briefly with a couple of older local men cruising the refuge in a pickup, who asked if I'd seen wolves. They maintained with great assurance that red wolves run there, which came as a great surprise to me. I told them that I understand that there is some (debatable) DNA etc. evidence for interbreeding between coyotes and red wolves (believe I read this is Scott Weidensaul's Mountains of the Heart), but they wouldn't budge on their theory. Then I was left to ponder - how red is red? It seemed a gorgeous mixed pelt of gray and tawny (red?) tones with subtle black highlights. This leaves me interested in hearing from any knowledgeable persons and/or needing to contact the refuge officials to learn if there has indeed been some reintroduction attempt. I have heard of spots in the Appalachians/Southeast where there are programs to reintroduce the red wolf. If only coyotes are known to be there, special protection wouldn't be necessary, but if red wolf is there I'd be concerned that ill-informed and prejudiced locals might enjoy cruising the area and taking down any reintroduced animals. In that case the support of outdoor-minded persons such as birders could be important, so I'll run the risk of appearing gullible. I want to stress that I'm not reporting a red wolf siting, however, I was quite struck with the rugged beauty of this beast, who had a bold erect stance and lacked the skulking posture and scrawny look I associate with coyotes. Perhaps it just looked bigger and better pelted because it was cold and I saw it so close. ________________________________ > Important Notice: This e-mail is intended for the use of the person to > whom it is addressed and may contain information that is privileged and > confidential. If you are not the intended recipient, any disclosure, > copying, distribution, or use of the contents of this message is strictly > prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, please destroy this > message and contact the Security Officer at PathGroup, Inc immediately at > 615-562-9255. Thank you > > =================NOTES TO SUBSCRIBER===================== > > The TN-Bird Net requires you to SIGN YOUR MESSAGE with > first and last name, CITY (TOWN) and state abbreviation. > You are also required to list the COUNTY in which the birds > you report were seen. The actual DATE OF OBSERVATION should > appear in the first paragraph. > _____________________________________________________________ > To post to this mailing list, simply send email to: > tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx > _____________________________________________________________ > To unsubscribe, send email to: > tn-bird-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx > with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field. > ______________________________________________________________ > TN-Bird Net is owned by the Tennessee Ornithological Society > Neither the society(TOS) nor its moderator(s) > endorse the views or opinions expressed > by the members of this discussion group. > > Moderator: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN > wallace@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx > ------------------------------ > Assistant Moderator Andy Jones > Cleveland, OH > ------------------------------- > Assistant Moderator Dave Worley > Rosedale, VA > __________________________________________________________ > > Visit the Tennessee Ornithological Society > web site at http://www.tnbirds.org > * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * > > ARCHIVES > TN-Bird Net Archives at //www.freelists.org/archives/tn-bird/ > > EXCELLENT MAP RESOURCES > Topographical Maps located at http://topozone.com/find.asp > Tenn.Counties Map at http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/states/tennessee3.gif > Aerial photos to complement google maps http://local.live.com > > _____________________________________________________________ > > > =================NOTES TO SUBSCRIBER===================== The TN-Bird Net requires you to SIGN YOUR MESSAGE with first and last name, CITY (TOWN) and state abbreviation. You are also required to list the COUNTY in which the birds you report were seen. The actual DATE OF OBSERVATION should appear in the first paragraph. _____________________________________________________________ To post to this mailing list, simply send email to: tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx _____________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe, send email to: tn-bird-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field. ______________________________________________________________ TN-Bird Net is owned by the Tennessee Ornithological Society Neither the society(TOS) nor its moderator(s) endorse the views or opinions expressed by the members of this discussion group. Moderator: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN wallace@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ------------------------------ Assistant Moderator Andy Jones Cleveland, OH ------------------------------- Assistant Moderator Dave Worley Rosedale, VA __________________________________________________________ Visit the Tennessee Ornithological Society web site at http://www.tnbirds.org * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ARCHIVES TN-Bird Net Archives at //www.freelists.org/archives/tn-bird/ EXCELLENT MAP RESOURCES Topographical Maps located at http://topozone.com/find.asp Tenn.Counties Map at http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/states/tennessee3.gif Aerial photos to complement google maps http://local.live.com _____________________________________________________________