Paid a visit to the Wolf Conservation Center in South Salem, NY last Saturday. Established in 1999, WCC is non-profit education facility that promotes wolf conservation by teaching about wolves, their relationship to the environment, and the human role in protecting their future. The Center is home to three "Ambassador" wolves, Atka (Arctic gray wolf), Alawa, and Zephyr (Canadian/Rocky Mountain gray wolves), that form the basis of their programs.

The Center also participates in the U.S. Species Survival Program (SSP) for the Mexican gray wolf (Canis lupus baileyi) and the red wolf (Canis rufus). I managed to catch a glimpse and get a (blurry) photograph of one their Mexican gray wolves, M807 (shown below). There are about 400 Mexican grey wolves left in the world and only 58 of these live in the wild. WCC has 16 Mexican gray wolves as part of their captive breeding program. And these live about 45 minutes from my house. [NOTE: Go here for a webcam feed of the two Mexican gray wolves, F810 and M807].