#red wolf

"The full documentary, “ᏩᏯ Waya, Saving Our Red Grandfather,” is now streaming!

Our productions team created this documentary in partnership with Cherokee Nation’s Natural Resources Office and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. It explores the historical and cultural significance of the Red Wolf, along with efforts by conservationists, governments and other partners to save the species from extinction.

Also referred to as our “Red Grandfather,” Red Wolves are sacred in Cherokee culture because of their connection to our tribe’s largest clan, the Wolf Clan. We’re proud to help bring this powerful story of resilience and conservation to the spotlight.

Artists creating derivative or transformative works (without AI) have blanket permission to use this and all photos in the repository as references, including works that will/may be sold.

The Animal Photo Reference Repository is an independent, permanently open-access project and funded entirely by donations, please consider contributing if you can!

Helping protect Galveston’s ghost wolves

On a quiet stretch of FM 3005, something rare crosses the road — a coyote with the genetic legacy of a vanished species. They’re called “ghost wolves” — elusive, rare and hiding in plain sight on Galveston Island. Local wildlife experts, in partnership with TxDOT, have installed wildlife crossing signs along FM 3005 to help raise awareness and reduce vehicle collisions with wildlife in the area. Ghost wolves are coyotes that harbor DNA from the critically endangered red wolf that used to thrive in southeast Texas until the late1900s. As the red wolf populations declined, they crossbred with coyotes. As a result, DNA remnants from the red wolf can be found in the genetic code of this isolated, island coyote population.

Read more: Helping protect Galveston’s ghost wolves

Don Balke (American, b. 1933). Red Wolf, Bald Cypress, Louisiana, 1980. Gouache and watercolor on paper.

Y’all wanna see some rare puppies?