BINGHAMTON, N.Y. (WIVT/WBGH) – The Ross Park Zoo has more than doubled its pack of Red Wolves.

For the first time in several years, on October 25, the Zoo welcomed a family of four new Red Wolves. The group consists of one older male wolf named Sam and his three sons, Max, Notch, and Hunter who are 6, 5, and 5 years old.

The group comes to the Zoo from the Wolf Conservation Center in Salem, N.Y. and will join long-time Ross Park Zoo resident Karma in the newly renovated Wolf Wood Habitat.

Karma and 13-year-old Sam will be companions in the lower yard and the three brothers will form a “bachelor pack” in the upper yard. The upper yard is visible from the outside observation deck as well as inside the newly refurbished Wolf Woods building. The new wolves will be “out on habitat” and available for the public to see during the Zoo’s Halloweekend events on October 28 and October 29.

Karma’s previous companion, Chaco, moved to his new home earlier this month at the Trevor Zoo in Dutchess County. He was cleared to participate in the Species Survival Plan with the hopes of establishing a breeding pair to increase the numbers of this critically endangered species.

With the addition of the four new animals as well as the Autumn die-off of ground vegetation, the wolves are said to be more easily spotted in their habitat by visitors.

The newly renovated Wolf Woods indoor viewing facility was completed earlier this year. Guests can now enjoy climate-controlled comfort year-round as they visit the zoo and observe the new pack through large, tinted glass windows.

Red Wolves were listed as endangered in 1967. As a result, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service caught 14 of the remaining population to be housed in a captive breeding facility. They were declared extinct in the wild in 1980, making them one of the rarest canids in the world. As of February, there were approximately 235 Red Wolves in 49 Red Wolf SAFE facilities across the country. 28 breeding pairs were established in the 2021-2022 breeding season and 46 pups in 13 litters were born, with 29 surviving.

To visit the pack at the Ross Park Zoo’s family-friendly Halloween event, Halloweekend, visit thediscoverycenter.org for more information and to purchase tickets.