Filming My First Wild Mexican Gray Wolf: A Dream Come True
A little over a decade ago, I had a crazy idea—to make a film about the Mexican gray wolf, one of the most endangered canids in the world. That idea consumed seven years of my life, pushing me through countless challenges, but ultimately, I completed a full-length documentary on this elusive predator. Despite all my time in the field, I had never seen a wild Mexican wolf without the help of a biologist. Until now.
This is the story of my first truly wild encounter.
A Return to the White Mountains
Determined to finally see a wolf on my own, I headed to the White Mountains of Arizona, an area with known historical wolf activity. Using publicly available data from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, I carefully researched locations where wolves had been previously documented. My plan? Set up, wait, and hope for the best.
As a wildlife filmmaker, waiting is just part of the job. I carried about 70 pounds of gear into the field, found a good vantage point, and settled in. With fewer than 100 wolves in all of Arizona, I knew my chances were slim, but I was ready for whatever the day would bring.
Hours of Waiting, Then—Success!
I spent hours filming the landscape, some cattle, and even a raven hopping through the grass, hunting grasshoppers—a fascinating behavior I hadn’t seen up close before. Just as I was starting to wonder if the day would end without a sighting, something bolted across the open meadow.
At first, I thought it was a coyote—Arizona is full of them. But as I zoomed in, I saw the telltale sign of a radio collar around its neck. My heart pounded as I realized what I was looking at—a Mexican gray wolf. My first wild wolf, seen with my own eyes, completely by chance.
For seven years, I had worked on my film Gray Area: Wolves of the Southwest, documenting the struggles of these incredible animals. Yet, I had never seen one like this, running wild across the land it was born to roam. It was an overwhelming moment.
The Pack Appears
I decided to stick it out until sundown, hoping for another glimpse. And then it happened again.
A pair of canids moved across the landscape. At first, I thought they were more coyotes—until I spotted the collars. These were more Mexican wolves, part of the pack. They moved steadily across the valley in front of me, and just as I had hoped, they crossed into clear view.
The moment was exhilarating. To simply sit under a tree and wait, and to have the wolves come into view—it was a surreal experience. I filmed them as they moved with purpose, blending into the landscape that has been their ancestral home for thousands of years.
A Species on the Edge
Mexican gray wolves were once functionally extinct in the wild. By the 1970s, the last known individual in Arizona had been shot, and only a handful remained in captivity. Their survival hinged on a desperate effort in the late ‘70s to trap the last remaining wild wolves in Mexico and start a breeding program.
Today, thanks to conservation efforts, they are slowly reclaiming their place in the wild. But their future is still uncertain. Policies prevent them from dispersing beyond a certain range, and human-wildlife conflicts remain a challenge. Even so, seeing them move across the landscape was a powerful reminder of why protecting them is so important.
The Reward of Patience
Wildlife filmmaking is a game of patience, persistence, and sometimes, luck. This encounter reminded me why I fell in love with this craft in the first place.
I came to the White Mountains hoping to see a wolf. I left with footage of not just one, but multiple wild Mexican gray wolves—something I once thought impossible. This moment will stay with me forever, and I hope it serves as a reminder that the wild is still out there, waiting to be seen, if only we take the time to look.
Want to see the footage for yourself? Watch the full video here:
