There are only 400 individuals of the Ethiopian wolf species left in the world, according to researchers.
Credit: Wikimedia
An Ethiopian wolf in its natural habitat, Bale Mountains National Park, photographed in August 2011.
Credit: IBREAM
The remoteness of the location where the wolves reside - a campsite at Sanette at 4,200 m in altitude.
Credit: IBREAM
SYDNEY: Efforts to save the world's rarest wolf from extinction are being led by a team of scientists who hope to save the last 400 through semen cryopreservation.
The Ethiopian wolf (Canis simensis) is a rust-coloured, coyote-sized canid that diverged from other wolf species around three or four million years ago. A small population of the native African species is found at an altitude of 4,300 m in Ethiopia's Bale Mountains, which form the continent's most expansive high mountain plateau.
One of the biggest threats to the Ethiopian wolf is rabies, a highly contagious disease that is being passed on by domestic dogs that live nearby the wolves natural habitat. A rabies outbreak can severely reduce the remaining population and interrupt breeding patterns.
An international team of scientists is working with local Ethiopian vets with the aim to collect and store valuable genetic material from the endangered wolf and ramp up the vaccination effort.
"Rabies outbreaks are happening quite regularly, there has been one every couple of years lately. One outbreak can decrease a population of 400 to 200 individuals, which means genetic diversity disappears very quickly," said Monique Paris, co-founder and research director from the Institute for Breeding Rare and Endangered African Mammals (IBREAM) and the University of Western Australia in Perth. "This disease risk could wipe them out rapidly."
Troubled breeding seasons
From as far back as 1989, researchers have noticed cyclical outbreaks of rabies in the wolf population. In 2008, scientists from Britain and Ethiopia announced a plan to vaccinate whole packs of Ethiopian wolves, particularly in time for the breeding season, which sees many wolves wander outside their packs to mate with domestic dogs. This plan is hoped to be given full national endorsement soon.In the meantime, while 10,000 of the domestic dogs are being vaccinated every year, the transmission rate of the disease to the wolves remains strong.
Ethiopian wolves are the national symbol of Ethiopia, which means conservationists are not permitted to remove any individuals from the country to be bred in captivity overseas. And according to Paris, climate change is also having an effect on the breeding capacity of the population. "They breed well, but because of climate change, one year we found out that the breeding season was delayed for a couple of months and never found out why," she said. "These factors are threatening animals, including the wolf worldwide."
Not the next dodo
Together with semen collecting and freezing experts, Wenche Farstad from the Norwegian School of Veterinary Science and Linda Penfold from the South-East Zoo Alliance for Reproduction and Conservation in the U.S., Paris is working with Ethiopian vets to train them in new cryopreservation techniques. "It's a novel conservation tool, but measures like this are now needed to play an additional role in making sure the wolf does not become the next dodo," she said.
The team also hopes in time to establish a captive breeding station in Ethiopia to assist in the conservation of the species.
Whether or not the cryopreservation technique can be applied to other endangered animals, such as the Northern white rhino, is yet to be seen. "Each animal is unique, and you should never leave it till you have the last four animals, that's far too late. There are so few [Northern white rhinos] left in the wild, we're not even sure if there are any left," said Paris. "Even with assisted breeding technologies, there is very little we can do. Some say that they've already gone extinct in the wild. We're really worried about the current pressure of poaching for the remaining animals, and we will try to do what we can."
