THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has confirmed it’s investigating the death of a Mexican gray wolf.
An agency spokesman declined to release any details about how the wolf died or when and where the animal was found.
The agency’s latest survey shows there are at least 58 wolves in the wild in Arizona and New Mexico.
The federal government’s effort to reintroduce the endangered animal to the Southwest has been hampered over the years by everything from illegal shootings and problems with livestock to court battles over management of the program.
In December, the agency found a wolf in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest in eastern Arizona that had been shot. It died before it could be taken to a veterinarian. A $10,000 reward is being offered for information in that case.