ethiopian-wolf-conservation-programme

Reflecting on 30 years of EWCP

Mon, 29 Sep 2025 21:18:45 GMT

Ethiopia’s landscapes have changed quite remarkably over these few decades, and the tasks to protect Ethiopia’s nature and wildlife are enormous and as urgent as ever. While we can boast that the 10% of Ethiopian land set aside as protected areas is a clear national commitment to the conservation of nature, it is not enough. Many of these special places and the wildlife that live there are struggling - their protection is simply not effective. It’s not just that wildlife populations are shrinking, but many of the ecological functions of these landscapes are under threat. As highland swamps and bogs dry out, they lose their ability to soak up and release water downstream. These are not just issues for nature-lovers and conservationists, but for all Ethiopians.

EWCP’s chief aim remains the protection of the charismatic endemic Ethiopian wolves. But species conservation can’t happen in isolation. We must deliver better habitat protection, not just for wild species but to enable sustainable livelihoods for the people living hand-in-hand with nature. We must continue to work with local people to protect the local ecology and support the health of people, livestock and the environment, while providing a home to these magnificent animals.

This 30th anniversary is quite a remarkable achievement, and it also coincides with the 60th anniversary of the Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authority, the body responsible for wildlife conservation in the country. I recently met with my good friend Zelealem Tefera to reminisce about the close ties that we have shared between EWCP and EWCA for so long. We remembered and paid homage to a few of our most remarkable colleagues in our 30th Anniversary Annual Report .

We have formally been in the business of protecting Ethiopian wolves for 30 years. The team may be getting older, but we are still going strong.

Built on the shoulders of some long-standing EWCP allies and employees, the establishment of Dinkenesh Ethiopia as a key player in Ethiopian wolf conservation marks a new era, contributing to our resilience and building a more sustainable future for EWCP.

Claudio and Edriss meet with Oromo elders in 1993

“Dinkenesh in Amharic means ‘you are marvellous, one of a kind’,

vividly reflecting the special nature of Ethiopia’s wildlife and wild spaces”

Last year had a special significance for us, with Dinkenesh formally joining in two EWCP projects. In partnership with Oxford’s Department of Biology, they are implementing the Biodiversity Friendly Futures project with funding from the Darwin Initiative Biodiversity Challenge Fund, scaling up this important work across the wolf habitats of the Amhara region (page 14). Secondly, the One Health project in Bale – helping to safeguard wolves and people from the threat of disease – is now formally implemented by Dinkenesh.

Thank you for working together all these years, and for your ongoing support. The wolves won’t be here without all of you!

Monitoring Ethiopian wolves: The reward of a successful breeding season

Mon, 08 Sep 2025 19:59:07 GMT

The monitoring of Ethiopian wolf packs is the backbone of EWCP’s long-term conservation work. With in-person observations from our skilled monitoring teams, our aim is to detect changes in the status and threats to Ethiopian wolf populations. From gathering data on pack composition and breeding success, to sounding early warnings about disease and human-wildlife conflict, this information allows us to develop evidence-based solutions to current and emerging conservation challenges.

Last year, from April 2024 to March 2025, EWCP monitored 41 separate wolf packs in 17 different locations across 6 populations. We gathered a staggering 8,900 observations of wolves during a mammoth 10,400 monitor-hours of fieldwork. In rain and sun, high winds and freezing temperatures, wolf monitoring is a labour of love for these iconic animals. A truly impressive undertaking!

The breeding season this year brought notable changes in pack dynamics and territories, particularly in the Bale Mountains. In the Web Valley, we witnessed a significant shift as two new packs emerged from the large and well-established McKenna pack, each claiming territories previously held by the smaller Habele and Gata packs. Similarly, on the Sanetti Plateau, a new pack separated from the core BBC pack, adding another pack in this critical wolf population.

Despite these territorial shifts, breeding success in the Bale Mountains was moderately positive. A total of 52 pups were recorded across 14 packs within the Web Valley, Sanetti, and Morobawa East regions. Encouragingly, 37 pups survived through the end of the breeding season, demonstrating the resilience and adaptive capacity of these wolf packs in the face of environmental pressures.

EWCP Wolf Monitors in Web Valley, the Bale Mountains. ©Abdi Samune

A litter of Ethiopian wolf pups recently emerged from the den. ©Rebecca Jackrel

The breeding season in the Simien Mountains brought encouraging news, as small litters were observed in 3 out of 5 focal packs. This is a significant improvement compared to the previous year when no pups were found in any of the Simien packs. This positive development highlights the effectiveness of ongoing conservation efforts and the importance of sustained monitoring and adaptive management to support reproductive success.

Unfortunately, regular monitoring in other wolf populations, including Abuna Yosef, Menz-Guassa, and Wollo, was hindered by armed conflict in the highlands. As a result, we gathered limited data from these regions. Nevertheless, we recorded another noteworthy pack split in Menz-Guassa, where the Beri Ginbar pack divided into two new groups, both of which successfully produced litters of 3 pups. This highlights the ongoing dynamic nature of wolf social structures, even in less frequently monitored populations.

Wolf monitoring remains at the forefront of our work to protect this spectacular species from extinction. Up-to-date population estimates and early detection of threats are vital for swift and effective conservation action. Whilst the work is never done, the birth of a new generation of Ethiopian wolves is always a moment to take stock - with renewed hope for the future.

Two Ethiopian wolf pups sighted in the Simien mountains. ©Getachew Assefa

Condolences to Niassa Carnivore Project and the families of Domingos Daude & Fernando Paolo

Tue, 06 May 2025 20:22:22 GMT

We are extremely saddened to learn of the armed attack on Mariri Environmental Centre and Niassa Carnivore Project Headquarters in Niassa Special Reserve, Mozambique, last week.

Two of the NCP scouts, Domingos Daude and Fernando Paolo, have lost their lives, another was severly injured and two more are missing. Our condolences to their families, and to everyone at NCP during this difficult time.

The full NCP Mariri press release is availble here .

Notes from the field: Vaccinating and collaring Ethiopian wolves on Sanetti

Wed, 26 Mar 2025 14:09:20 GMT

What does the word caring mean to you? I found myself asking this question after spending 3 weeks in the remote Bale Mountains, a significant part of it capturing, vaccinating, and GPS-collaring Ethiopian wolves. It’s the dry season in Ethiopia — this year, it’s even crackingly drier than usual.

For many long days, our team of 14 people camped in the most rudimentary conditions, enduring freezing cold nights, scorching daytime heat, and relentless winds that carried fine dust everywhere. We were fetching precious water from small streams or natural waterholes. We were covered in dirt from setting up camp and wolf traps, wearing the same clothes without showering, and running on barely any sleep between wolf captures, VHF tracking, and relocating camp every two or three days. With more than 15 years of field experience, I have faced my fair share of challenges. But this was something else.

The discomfort was real. Yet at camp, despite our exhaustion, no one complained. Because this isn’t just a job — it’s a choice. Really, what makes someone endure all of this when they could be working in an office or leisurely sit on a beach with a drink in hand?

To me, caring means putting your own wants and needs aside to wholeheartedly prioritise that something or someone you say you care about. And it’s not about showing up only when it’s convenient for you. Rather, it’s especially when it’s inconvenient for you that genuine care shines through.

During captures, you wake up in the middle of the night. It’s -8°C outside. You quickly pull yourself from a short sleep and a tight, cosy sleeping bag to get ready for a trap check or for a wolf capture. It’s pitch dark. There are frost crystals on the ground and on your tent flysheet. The merciless cold wind cuts through you, biting your skin and making your eyes water. You disregard the physical pain and go. Yes, it’s hard work. But then, the magic begins. You release a wolf, now vaccinated against rabies and canine distemper. You watch it run, and you quietly breathe out a sigh of relief and gratitude. Because in that moment, you know: this animal is now protected for years against these diseases. It will have a better chance at life because you came here.

Why do we care about these wolves? How many of you, reading this, will ever see an Ethiopian wolf? Likely only a few people would — if any. So why does it matter? Why would you want to conserve something you might never see in the wild, be it a polar bear, a snow leopard, a pangolin?

I think French author Antoine de Saint-Exupéry captured this feeling beautifully in his famous book The Little Prince:

"What makes the desert beautiful," said the little prince, "is that somewhere it hides a well."

There’s something about the idea of a fiery red and black wolf roaming the Roof of Africa that captures the human imagination. Maybe one day, you too will have the chance to catch a glimpse of this mysterious wolf. Or maybe, one day, it will find you. That’s what happened to me, to Edriss, Claudio and Jorgelina, to so many in the Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Programme... The Ethiopian wolf found us.

Most captures occur in the dark of the night © Jorgelina Marino

Words carry meaning but just saying you care is never enough, sincere care demands action. Otherwise, it's just empty words.

The challenges to overcome to protect this wolf are many, from aggressive tourism developments implemented without consultation with park experts and conservationists, to ongoing human encroachment in protected areas, to the constant struggle to secure funding that keeps this long-term conservation initiative alive.

In wildlife conservation, it often feels like one step forward, two steps back. But with these newly approved wolf preventive vaccination campaigns — kick-started by this expedition — for once, it feels like three or four steps forward. At the end of this 10-day trip, we vaccinated 13 wolves (plus one honey badger) from four areas near the Sanetti Plateau: Chafadalacha, Agicho, Lakota and Batu. Males from five packs were GPS-collared, allowing a closer tracking of wolf movements and activities in these difficult-to-access places. Wolf vaccination campaigns will continue throughout this year.

There will surely be setbacks ahead. All I can say is that we were there, in the thick of it, pushing forward despite the hardships. Maybe, thanks to those sleepless nights in the cold and dark, a slender wolf will continue to make its fleeting appearance in the vastness of the highlands — keeping it beautiful, evermore.

Our expedition team, composed of members of the Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Programme, Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authorities, and Bale Mountains National Park © Abdi Samune

To learn more about EWCP’s research and conservation activities, follow us on X/Twitter @KyKebero @ClaudioSillero @MarinoJorgelina @Arctic_paws and visit our website: https://www.ethiopianwolf.org/programme

Help protect the wolves with us: https://www.ethiopianwolf.org/donate

In Memoriam: Ambaye Fenta

Mon, 17 Mar 2025 21:22:28 GMT

His tragic death is a painful reminder of the bravery and devotion of wildlife practitioners across Ethiopia and beyond, who put their lives at risk for the protection of wild species and their habitats.

A fund has been set up to support Ambaye’s family during this difficult time: https://gofund.me/cb280399

Notes from the field: Dinsho 2024

Tue, 17 Dec 2024 21:25:58 GMT

My name is Henry, and I'm the new Programme Assistant at EWCP. I started back in August, based in Oxford with Claudio and Jorgelina, assisting with any and all aspects of project operations.

Earlier this month, Jorgelina and I returned from a trip to our HQ in Dinsho. Along with teams from throughout the country, we arranged a week-long schedule of meetings and planning sessions across all our projects. The aim was not only to strengthen the new EWCP structure, but set the agenda for the new 6-months of our work.

It was wonderful to meet so many people who I have been working closely with for the past few months, and the week was also a rare opportunity for EWCP staff members from Amhara and Oromia to get together for in-person discussions and socializing.

Not only was this my first time in Dinsho, but it was also my first time travelling to Ethiopia, and I was immediately struck by the extraordinary beauty of the Bale Mountains. From the peaceful woods of juniper and Hagenia surrounding the lodge to the breathtaking expanses of the Sanetti plateau, it was a landscape unlike any I have seen.

However, the greatest impression was made by the hospitality and dedication of our teams. Their work and their devotion to our shared cause, often in the face of substantial obstacles, is remarkable. It is a pleasure to be a part of this family.

The week ended with a spectacular encounter with two Ethiopian wolves in Sanetti. As we slowly drove homewards, the alpha male from the BBC2 pack walked alongside us, only 10ft from our window, stalking a hare nestled down between the mounds of 'everlasting' Helichrysum flowers.

It will live long in my memory.