The Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Programme (EWCP) is located in Ethiopia. It consists of people doing all of the hard day to day work of education, monitoring, vaccinations, research etc., for the Ethiopian wolf. It is a very costly venture so the Ethiopian Wolf Project was begun in order to fund-raise money for this conservation program so that they could be the end beneficiary of any money raised. The problem lies in getting the money to them in an extremely remote location in a country with unreliable internet connection.

The Ethiopian Wolf Project began in February 2011 when a trip by 2 photographers was made to the Bale Mountains with famed zoologist and canid researcher Dr. Claudio Sillero-Zubiri. It was considered to be a scouting trip with a group of 13 people from 5 different countries. This diverse group embarked on the trip into the Ethiopian Highlands and was united by their passion for conservation and wild canines. Dr. Sillero introduced them to the afro-alpine region and the amazing animals that are dependent on this fragile habitat.

It was with this knowledge that the two then later returned to the same area to begin the difficult job of documenting the Ethiopian wolf story. They then spent five weeks working with local guides to capture a very intimate view of the lives of the wolves during the heart of birthing season. Their hope is to bring awareness of the Ethiopian wolf to a global audience and to raise support for the ongoing conservation efforts to protect this endangered species.

Their expedition was funded thanks to generous donations made through Kickstarter. It also resulted in a wealth of photographic material. In the coming months 'Project Ethiopian Wolf' will be rolling out a series of prints, lectures and gallery shows about the Ethiopian wolf. Their ultimate goal is a book on this enigmatic species. The money raised from the sale of their products will be donated to the Wildlife Conservation Network to directly help the boots on the ground fight against rabies and disease. Rabies is currently the main threat for this wolf species as it is spread by the unvaccinated dogs in the area.

The Ethiopian Wolf Project (EWP), is a wonderful collaboration of these two photographers, who hope that by using their skills and passion to tell the world about these amazing wolves, that their work will inspire people to make direct donations through the WCN (Wildlife Conservation Network) with a tax-exempt donation. But people can also purchase a beautiful print and other merchandise from the Ethiopian Wolf Project and the money will also go to help the Ethiopian wolves. Either way the wolves win!

Fewer than 500 of Africa's only wolf species are thought to survive.

Now a 12-year study of Ethiopian wolves living in the Ethiopian highlands has found there is little gene flow between the small remaining populations.

That places the wolves at greater risk of extinction from disease, or habitat degradation.

In a study published in the journal Animal Conservation, Dada Gottelli of the Zoological Society of London and colleagues in Oxford, UK and Berlin, Germany, quantified the genetic diversity, population structure and patterns of gene flow among 72 wild-living Ethiopian wolves.

The team sampled wolves living within six of the remaining seven remnant populations, as well as from one population at Mount Choke, that has since become extinct.

They found that genetic diversity was relatively high for a species that has declined to fewer than 500 individuals.

That may be because discrete populations of wolves survived in Africa after the last glaciation period, which ended 18,000 years ago, and a number of rare gene types became fixed and maintained in these separate groups.


However, this isolation is now working against the wolves.

Researchers studied gene types at 14 separate locations on the wolf genome. They found that there is now weak gene flow between the Ethiopian wolf groups.

That could be because, like other canids such as grey wolves and red foxes, Ethiopian wolves prefer very specific habitats and are unlikely to travel long distances.


That makes it unlikely that the wolves will join other groups, which would provide an opportunity to mix their genes.

More worryingly, the researchers also found that sub-populations within each population are also isolated.

Fresh blood

The Ethiopian wolf separated from its wolf-like ancestor 100,000 years ago when it colonised the Ethiopian highlands.

Today it is adapted to life above altitudes of 3,000m, where it preys almost exclusively on high-altitude rodents.

But only six populations survive, with a further three having become extinct over the past century.

Ethiopian wolves are particularly vulnerable to outbreaks of rabies, a fatal disease that has reduced some populations by up to 75% within a few months.

Another major threat to their future comes from habitat loss and fragmentation, which may be accelerated by climate change.


The concern raised by the study is that the limited gene flow between Ethiopian wolves makes them increasingly vulnerable, as they might not have the genetic diversity needed to fight off disease or adapt to new habitats.

The limited migration of wolves also increases the risk of inbreeding.

The scientists say that efforts must be made to reconnect these isolated populations, by creating habitat corridors linking them.


"It may be necessary in the near future to artificially increase population size and restore gene flow between nearby populations," the researchers write.

That could mean moving male wolves between populations to trigger fresh breeding.

Studies on other species of wolf have showed that moving just one or two males in this way can dramatically increase genetic diversity.
Source BBC Nature

More efforts are being taken to help keep the Ethiopian wolf from becoming extinct. It is currently the world's rarest wolf. The Ethiopian wolf is a rust-coloured, coyote-sized canid that diverged from other wolf species around three or four million years ago. Today there exists a small population of the native African species that is found in Ethiopia's Bale Mountains.

Many obstacles stand in the way though. Rabies outbreaks continue to be the number one threat to this endangered wolf species. Just one outbreak can decrease a population in half, thereby causing genetic diversity to disappear very quickly. Currently there is an ongoing program to vaccinate the country's 10,000 dogs which is the main reason that these rabies outbreaks are occuring. There is also a program to try to vaccinate the wolves through an oral method rather than injection.

Another obstacle is that the wolf is the national symbol of Ethiopia. This means that conservationists are not permitted to remove any individuals from the country to be bred in captivity overseas. Scientists from all over the world are working on other possible solutions to help keep this rare wolf from becoming the next dodo bird of extinction.

Because this wolf breeds easily another step to preserve them will soon be taking place. 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. are working with Ethiopian vets to train them in new procedure of cryopreservation. This involves the technique of collecting and freezing semen from the wolves to use for insemination at a later time. The team also hopes to eventually establish a captive breeding station in Ethiopia to assist in the conservation of the species.

This is a very novel approach that has not been used before with preserving wild and endangered animals. Possibly it could become the saving grace of other extremely endangered animals such as the White Rhino or the Bengal Tiger. Hopefully so, but for now it will be used to stop the Ethiopian Wolf's last cry in the wilderness.

Many people are not aware that there is wolf species that is specific to Africa. It looks very different than the typical gray wolf that everyone is so familiar with. Some have described it's looks as resembling that of part wolf and part coyote. They live in the high altitude areas of Ethiopia and are very rare. There are currently only 450 wolves that live in small populations. They are currently in danger of being wiped out.

The main threat to their existence is the transmission of disease from domestic dogs - and in this case, rabies. Many Ethiopians have herds of goats and sheep and use dogs to help them work the herds. Most of these dogs are unvaccinated and can and do come down with rabies. Since the wolves share the same land that is being use for grazing they can come into contact with these domesticated dogs. Being exposed to rabies not only means death to the one wolf but also to the entire wolf population of that area.

To stop this from happening, there is an organization called The Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Program that is working against great odds to eliminate this threat. They have gotten approval from the Ethiopian government to begin several programs to help eliminate this threat to this wolf population.

The first step was to try to vaccinate the country's domestic dogs against rabies. Not an undaunting task to say the least since there are 65,000 dogs in the country. This involved educating the herders, raising the funds to get the vaccinations and then actually getting to the thousands of dogs. But this was only the beginning.

The second step was to vaccinate the wolves themselves without really disturbing them during the process. In order to do this the method of baiting had to be used. Since the rabies vaccinations can be given orally, the plan was to leave out bits of the drug with the hope that at least 40% of the pack would be vacinated in case an outbreak would start. The vaccine is also effective for up to 3 year.

The last step in protecting this rare wolf is to protect it's environment so that it can continue to thrive. But also by protecting the environment for the wolf including their fresh water supply, the human population of 85 mllion also benefited from this.

Finally the Ethiopian Wolf Project is teaming up with the Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Program and will be documenting these beautiful and rare wolves this November and the efforts made by the EWCP to protect them from becoming extinct. With a little bit of luck and and a whole lot of work, the hope is that the Ethiopian wolf will be around forever.