Red Wolf by artists Gillie and Marc

LOCATIONS

EDITION 1 - SINGAPORE - 19 May 2023 - 18 May 2024
Gardens By The Bay, 18 Marina Gardens Dr, Singapore 018953
Visit the sculpture, click for map >

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NAME
Junieta Rose

TITLE
Love The Red Wolf

GENDER
Female

AGE
3

FOUND
Southeastern USA

CONSERVATION STATUS
Critically Endangered

This 3-year-old red wolf is very excited to start her own pack and her own family, however it's no easy task to find a mate when the population is so low. She knows some wolves have resorted to mating with coyotes which are terrible for the health and progression of the species. She is grateful that she can roam in her park. Her ancestors had it much harder with humans sending them right to the brink of extinction. Some of them want to help her now, she just hopes they will all protect her.

The most endangered member of the dog family, the red wolf needs a lot of help, it is estimated that less than 30 remain in the wild. The only place they can now be found in the wild is the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge in eastern North Carolina. They once roamed throughout the Southeast but were intensely hunted in the 19th and early 20th centuries - their habitat was severely degraded. In 1980, the species was declared extinct in the wild, but through intense conservation efforts, they have started to come back.

Wolves are incredibly social and form very close packs. The Red Wolf pack is usually made up of a breeding pair who will mate for life and their offspring will come from various litters in their lifetime, forming a pack of 5-8 wolves. The parents will breed once a year, producing a litter of 2-6 pups. The pups are completely helpless for the first few weeks of their life and need constant supervision. They are kept safe in hidden dens near stream banks, downed logs, sand knolls or drain pipes. The older offspring will help their parents with their new pups, keeping an eye on the den. When they reach the age of 1-3, they will leave the pack and head out to find their own mate.

Red wolves are very shy animals and fiercely territorial. They will defend their territory from many animals, including other wolves. They are mostly nocturnal and communicate with each other by using scent marks, vocalizations such as howling, facial expressions, and body postures.

These wolves were saved in the 1970s thanks to the efforts of a captive breeding program. 14 surviving wolves were taken to the Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium between 1974 and 1980. With the success of this program, conservationists were able to successfully reintroduce the wolves to the wild. The population grew to 100-120 individuals in 2012. Sadly, regulations such as releasing captive-bred wolves and sterilisation of coyotes to prevent hybrid animals from hurting their gene pool were not enforced, and the population plummeted to just 30 known individuals by 2019. Another big threat to their survival is the shooting and poisoning of wolves by landowners, which is why it's so important to educate and drive awareness that these creatures are in fact not "pests". 

HOW TO HELP 

Inspired by animals that Gillie and Marc met on their travels, we invite the public to discover and interact with these beautiful creatures up close and personal – this allows audiences to connect, take photographs and share their favourite species with friends and family.

With more exposure comes more awareness and builds on the love we already have for animals around the world. With love comes a greater sense of urgency to create a change and save all endangered animals. 

​The sculpture will be aligned with the hashtag #LoveTheLast to raise unparalleled awareness about the sculpture’s cause across the globe.

To help protect these animals, please donate to the WWF: https://www.wwf.sg/

PARTNER