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Red Wolf Woods

Back from the brink

Hidden in dappled shade, two bright eyes are looking at you. You stare back. Then their owner ducks and turns, loping easily over fallen logs to settle into the sunshine. Our red wolves aren’t just beautiful – they’re part of an award-winning program that has saved this iconic species from extinction.

Discover the Woods

Meet our keepers.
(Part of the pack.)
Come find out what it's like to care for these beautiful animals, and how our Zoo helped save them from extinction. Our keepers give chats daily.
Daily Presentations
We love pups!
Adorable, and vital to the species.
Five critically endangered American red wolf pups were born at our off-site facility in May 2022. The healthy pups are the latest success in the story of recovery for this iconic American species.
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Find it
in the zoo
Inside the covered viewing area you can get a close look at a real wolf skull, pelt and tracking radio collar.

Protecting Red Wolves

Saving a native species.

THE THREAT: By the 1970s, very few red wolves existed on the planet, due to ceaseless hunting. By the 1980s, Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium, in cooperation with USFWS, established a zoo-based breeding program using 14 wolves from the wild to restore the population.

TAKE ACTION: Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium joined with other zoos and agencies to save the red wolf, breeding and reintroducing them in the wild. There are now fewer than 20 wolves in the wild, and about 250 at zoos and other partner facilities participating in the Species Survival Plan. They still need our protection if they are to survive.

Animal Stories

The Health of Puget Sound

Checking in on Puget Sound’s Health How healthy is Puget Sound? What areas are showing declines, and which are holding steady? Those are the questions divers at Point Defiance Zoo … Continued

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The tiniest buffalo

If the tiger is the king of the jungle, then the anoa would be the gardener. They’re not iconic like an elephant or acrobatic like a siamang. They don’t star … Continued

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The Future of Arctic Sea Ice & Polar Bears

Arctic Sea Ice Day is July 15. It’s a day to draw attention to the rapidly melting Arctic ecosystem, why it matters, and how we can all help slow this … Continued

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Come meet the cousins
At our sister zoo Northwest Trek you can meet the red wolf's cousin: the gray wolf. Watch the Trek pack in their forested habitat.