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5 New Mexico animals on the endangered species list

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Grace Dougan, volunteer with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife, carries a tranquilized female Mexican gray wolf from the helicopter during the annual Mexican wolf count near Apache Creek in southwest N.M., Friday, Jan. 27, 2023. The female wolf was found with a bite wound on her neck. Vets treated her wound, administered antibiotics and vaccinations, drew her blood, measured her weight and length, and fitted her with a radio collar before she was released back into the wild. As part of the Mexican Wolf Recovery Plan, each year federal, state and tribal agencies across New Mexico and Arizona track and record the progress of population growth and overall health of the endangered species.

Cathy Cook
Cathy Cook Staff Writer
Published Modified

New Mexico is home to many desert dwellers, large and small. Some of the state’s most distinctive creatures are also endangered or threatened. Here are five standout characters that are also on the Endangered Species List in New Mexico.

1. The Mexican gray wolf, Canis lupus

The Mexican gray wolf has perhaps the most press of any endangered mammal in New Mexico. The Mexican wolf is the rarest gray wolf subspecies in North America.

For the first time since the wolves were reintroduced to the wild, the Mexican gray wolf population in Arizona and New Mexico passed 200 in 2022.

2. Gila monster, Heloderma suspectum

Poisonous and shy, Gila monsters are not a good party date. The desert lizards are the largest lizards native to the United States. Gila monsters live in the desert mountain foothills and brushy arroyos of Arizona, California, Nevada, Utah and New Mexico.

Male lizards establish dominance with ritual combat, winning access to female lizards for mating. The lizard can grow to three pounds and can live past age 20.

3. Mexican long-nosed bat, Leptonycteris nivalis

This endangered bat is found in three southern New Mexico counties: Grant, Hidalgo and Luna. New Mexico listed the species as endangered back in 1990. The Mexican long-nosed bat also lives in Mexico and Texas.

As its name suggests, the bat species’ nose is long with a leaf-like projection. The long-nosed bat lives on nectar and pollen. Similar to a hummingbird, the long-nosed bat can hover while it feeds from flowering agave.

4. Whooping crane, Grus americana

Whooping cranes can only be found in Canada and the U.S. With white feathers and black-tipped wings, the whooping cranes cut a striking figure in the sky. The cranes are North America’s tallest bird. Whooping cranes used to migrate south to the middle Rio Grande Valley in the fall.

These days, whooping cranes are a rare site in New Mexico. According to New Mexico’s Biota Information System, the whooping crane might still be found in Los Alamos, Sandoval and Roosevelt counties.

5. Silverspot butterfly, Speyeria nokomis nokomis

The latest creature on this list is a subspecies of the silverspot butterfly. U.S. Fish and Wildlife announced on Wednesday that the silverspot will gain Endangered Species Act protection as a threatened species.

The silverspot gets its name from the silvery-white spots on the underside of its wings. Silverspots can be found in Colorado, Utah and Northern New Mexico.

9 images of endangered animals

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Grace Dougan, volunteer with U.S. Fish and Wildlife, carries a tranquilized female Mexican gray wolf from a helicopter during the agency’s annual wolf count in southwest New Mexico on Friday, Jan. 27, 2023. As part of the Mexican Gray Wolf Recovery Plan, each year federal, state and tribal agencies across New Mexico and Arizona track and record the progress of population growth and overall health of the endangered species.
Mexican Gray Wolf
A female Mexican gray wolf looks to avoid being captured for its annual vaccinations and medical checkup at the Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge in 2011.
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A Mexican gray wolf walks in an enclosure at Wildlife West Nature Park in Edgewood in 2002.
APTOPIX Louisiana Whooping Crane Hatches
In this photo provided by Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, a whooping crane chick stands by its parents at a nest in Jefferson Davis Parish, La., Tuesday, April 12, 2016. For the first time since 1939, a whooping crane chick hatched in the wild Monday, said biologist Sara Zimorski.
Houston Zoo Wetlands
This May 21, 2019 photo shows Whooping cranes Heiden, right, and Angel, a female, inside of the Houston Zoo's new Texas Wetlands exhibit in Houston.
Gray Wolves Pups
This June 3, 2020, file image released by Colorado Parks and Wildlife shows a wolf on a state game camera in Moffat County, Colo. Colorado wildlife officials say the first gray wolf pups since the 1940s have been spotted in the state. Gov. Jared Polis' office said in a news release June 9, 2021, that a state biologist and district wildlife manager each spotted the litter of at least three wolf pups.
Whooping Cranes
In this Dec. 17, 2011 file photo, a pair of whooping cranes walk through shallow marsh water looking for food near the Aransas Wildlife Refuge in Fulton, Texas.
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A keeper wearing a "crane suit," to resemble a parent whooping crane, feeds a recently born chick, a critically endangered species, with her hand in a puppet, at the Audubon Nature Institute's Species Survival Center in New Orleans, Thursday, June 21, 2018.
Whooping Cranes Virus Outbreak
Aurora, a 36-day-old endangered whooping crane chick created by artificial insemination and stepfather Peep stand in their enclosure at the Audubon Nature Institute's Species Survival Center, Tuesday, July 13, 2021, in New Orleans.
nevada utah southern new mexico rio grande valley rare species north america news new mexico texas mexico hidalgo habitat gila environmental conservation endangered species california arizona united states
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