Also Read
The world’s most ancient wolf, the Indian wolf (Canis lupus pallipes), stands officially on the brink.
The first-ever IUCN Red List assessment for the species has listed it as Vulnerable (A2ae; C1), estimating that only 2,877-3,310 mature individuals are left in the wild. The IUCN projects a decline of at least 10 per cent over the next three generations.
Once found across the plains of Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, the species is now locally extinct in those regions. Strongholds like the Kachchh and Little Rann of Kachchh now host only a few individuals, if any.
In Gujarat's Bhal region, where long-term radio telemetry studies were conducted, wolf numbers have fallen by nearly 54 per cent between 2003 and 2024, leaving only three or four packs in a 1,500 sq km area.
“From long-term field experience, I can say that the accuracy of these estimates is more or less right,” wildlife scientist Yadvendradev Vikramsinh Jhala, a key contributor to the IUCN assessment, told The Telegraph Online.
“The margin of error is relatively lesser. The human factor contributing to the decline is mainly poisoning and road kills from high-speed highways across wolf habitats."
Jhala further highlighted that there are no animal passageways built as norm. There are forested habitat corridors, for example Kanha-Pench corridor, but none in agro-pastoral landscapes where wildlife like the wolf, caracal, blackbuck, chinkara and wild-ass reside.
The Indian wolf, first described as Canis pallipes in 1831 and later classified as a subspecies of the grey wolf (Canis lupus pallipes) in 1941, represents the most ancient and basal wolf lineage still existing.
Genomic studies confirm that Indian wolves diverged from all other wolf populations nearly 110,000 years ago, long before their Arctic and European cousins evolved.
"The decline is real," Jhala says.
Among the most urgent red flags in the IUCN report is the rapid rise of feral dogs.
These dogs transmit fatal diseases such as rabies and canine distemper, compete for food, and even interbreed with wolves, threatening to erase the genetic purity of the species.
"This hybridisation threat is serious," warns Jhala. "Right now, there is little to no feral dog management or vaccination program that could realistically work in Indian landscapes where wolves and humans overlap. Yes, there have been anti-rabies vaccination drives, but these are clearly not effective. In the 1980s and 1990s, feral dogs were removed but now, it is not being done."
His concern reflects the findings of the IUCN assessment, which reported genetic evidence of wolf-dog hybrids in Maharashtra.
While the Supreme Court has recently directed the sterilisation and vaccination of stray dogs in Delhi-NCR, Jhla fears that such urban guidelines will do little for wolves that inhabit India's semi-arid grasslands and rural belts.
"The dog population is leading to a threat for the Indian wolf," says Jhala. "It is hurting wildlife. Conservation can help, but there is no streamlined national policy."
Wolves are primarily found in India's central, western, and northern regions, living outside protected areas where they depend on domestic livestock goats, sheep, and poultry for survival.
This dependence frequently brings them into conflict with herders, often with deadly consequences.
The situation in Bahraich, Uttar Pradesh, best illustrates this conflict. Last year, a series of attacks left at least 10 people dead and dozens injured, prompting the government to launch Operation Bhediya, a hunt for the suspected wolves.
Forest officials eventually caught six animals, but one died in captivity.
At the time, Jhala had questioned the narrative.
"Where is the evidence that these wolves were involved in the attacks?" he asked. "This is not the work of a [wolf] pack but of a single animal. Wolves rarely attack humans, and when they do, it's never out of revenge."
In an earlier interview with The Telegraph Online, Jhala had mentioned that the real issue is socio-economic.
Bahraich remains one of Uttar Pradesh's poorest districts, its thatched mud houses and weak infrastructure leaving villagers vulnerable to wildlife encounters. "The main problem is poverty," Jhala had said. "They could be wolves, captive pets, wolf-dog hybrids, or feral dogs."
This year too, the attacks have continued.
In Manjhara Taukali, a woman named Vimala Devi was attacked while sitting in her courtyard. Two others and several goats were also injured in nearby villages this month. These are only a few incidents.
The Telegraph has reported how locals in Bahraich are disappointed with the forest department’s failure to catch the wolves. Some residents say that floods alone can rid them of the threat.
“Two wet seasons have passed without much flooding here, and we expect floods next year. If that happens, the wolves will move towards Kaisarganj town (20km away) because they cannot live in waterlogged areas,” one resident said.
“We (Nishads or fishermen) are comfortable during floods. We can survive on our boats and catch more fish than usual. We become victims of wild animals when the Ghaghara is in control.”
Feral dogs: the invisible predator
Globally, one billion domestic dogs exist today making them one of the world's most widespread carnivores.
Their ecological impact is immense. A 2017 study in Biological Conservation found that 188 wild species worldwide are threatened by free-ranging dogs, including nearly 30 critically endangered species.
According to a report by the Wildlife Conservation Trust, feral dogs "have no ecological role to play" in natural ecosystems. Evolved alongside humans, they now survive on waste, livestock carcasses, and hunting opportunities created by human settlements. "In their feral avatar, dogs reign as effective pack hunters capable of bringing down animals much larger than themselves including large carnivores," the report said.
This poses a unique threat to the Indian wolf, which shares the same hunting grounds and often loses access to carcasses or prey due to feral dog packs.
The policy paralysis
Despite being listed under Schedule 1 of the Wildlife Protection Act (1972, amended 2023) which grants the highest level of protection - India still lacks a national conservation plan for the species.
"Conservation cannot happen unless the government takes part," Jhala says.
"The government at the IUCN or in general has not bothered to make a streamlined national policy." "Finance is a big issue," he admits.
"But the Indian wolf is not an ordinary wolf. It is the most ancient of all wolves, a unique species that deserves our attention."
