IUCN Species Survival Commission (SSC), Canid Specialist Group

Twenty-eight biologists, managers, and decision makers attended a Population Viability Assessment (PVA) Workshop at the Fossil Rim Wildlife Center, Glen Rose, Texas on 22-24 October, 1990 to apply these recently developed procedures to the captive and wild populations and the reintroduction of the Mexican wolf.

This publication represents the latest stage in the efforts toward conservation of Africa's rarest canid, the Ethiopian wolf.

The new Canid Action Plan synthesizes the current knowledge on the biology, ecology and status of all wild canid species, and outlines the conservation actions and projects needed to secure their long-term survival.

Over the last 30 years the African wild dog population has declined dramatically. Dogs have disappeared from 25 of the 39 countries in which they were previously found, and only 6 populations are believed to number more than 100 animals. Today it is believed that between 3,000 and 5,500 dogs remain in 600-1,000 packs only and most of these are to be found in eastern and southern Africa.

The Ethiopian wolf is one of many species endemic to the highlands of Ethiopia but with only about 400 adults remaining, it is also the most endangered canid in the world. The main threats to this creature are loss of habitat to subsistence farming and livestock over-grazing, human development with all its subsidiary effects whereby human activity encroaches on the wolf's territory.