Animal identifier ยท Dogs and foxes
Canis rufus
The only wild population is in eastern North Carolina. A canid track elsewhere in the East is a coyote or a dog. Oval canid track between coyote and gray wolf, often 3 to 4 inches.
What does a red wolf look like?
Lanky, reddish-gray, longer legged than a coyote.
What do red wolf tracks look like?
Size overlaps coyote and dog. Treat a large straight canid trail in the Albemarle Peninsula country as possible. Elsewhere, do not.
- Oval canid track between coyote and gray wolf, often 3 to 4 inches
- Long legs and a reddish coat if seen
- Straight trail, longer stride than a coyote
- Scat is a tapered cord with hair
- Do not assume a red wolf outside the known North Carolina range
What does red wolf poop look like?
Tapered, with hair, left on roads and trails. Do not handle droppings. Several species carry parasites that stay in the soil around a latrine.
Where you find it
The only wild population is in eastern North Carolina. A canid track elsewhere in the East is a coyote or a dog. Typical places: woods, wetland. Year-round where the species lives. Tracks show best in mud, sand, and snow.
What to do next
- Watch from a distance
- Do not handle droppings
- If the animal is injured or inside a building, call a local wildlife officer
This page is a field guide, not a permit to approach wildlife. If an animal is injured, aggressive, or inside a house, call a local wildlife officer.
Animals it is confused with
- Coyote identification
- Gray wolf identification
- Domestic dog identification
- All animal identification pages
- Identify an animal from a photo, track, or description
Where can you actually see a red wolf?
Eastern North Carolina is the wild population. A similar-looking animal elsewhere is almost always a coyote.
How to tell a red wolf from similar animals
Use the track, the dropping, and the place together. One print is not enough.
- Coyote. More oval and compact than a typical dog of the same weight. Slim canid, gray-tan, pointed muzzle, tail down.
- Gray wolf. A big canid print. Large canid, long legs, broad head.
- Domestic dog. Claw marks and four toes like a coyote, but the trail behavior gives it away. Any pet dog.
Red wolf field marks
- Oval canid track between coyote and gray wolf, often 3 to 4 inches
- Long legs and a reddish coat if seen
- Straight trail, longer stride than a coyote
- Scat is a tapered cord with hair
Where the sign shows up
The only wild population is in eastern North Carolina. A canid track elsewhere in the East is a coyote or a dog. Typical places: woods, wetland. Year-round where the species lives. Tracks show best in mud, sand, and snow.
Size overlaps coyote and dog. Treat a large straight canid trail in the Albemarle Peninsula country as possible. Elsewhere, do not. Tapered, with hair, left on roads and trails.
Common questions
Where can you actually see a red wolf?
Eastern North Carolina is the wild population. A similar-looking animal elsewhere is almost always a coyote.