Galveston’s Beloved ‘Ghost Wolves’ Gain Support Amid Development Concerns

Rare coyotes with genetic links to the threatened red wolf, Galveston's elusive "ghost wolves," have come to represent local pride and preservation initiatives. However, recent events, notably a Margaritaville resort project on the island's East End, endanger their limited habitat and generate public outcry.

With item sales helping the Gulf Coast Canine Project (GCCP) and big turnout at community meetings, interest in conserving these unusual dogs has exploded. A Ghost Wolves Town Hall featuring the $2.1 million award from the National Science Foundation to research the population occurred earlier this month at Moody Gardens' 3D IMAX theater. Using the money for more research, researchers Bridgett vonHoldt and Kristin Brzeski intend to maybe relocate some ghost wolves to a St. Louis facility for investigation.

Moving the whole pack, though, seems improbable. One radio-collared ghost wolf showed great range and adaptability, as Josh Henderson, director of the Galveston Island Humane Society, noted: 731 miles in 184 days from Galveston's West End to Matagorda Bay.

A few developers are realizing their designs call for the phantom wolves. Within its 16-acre Sachs Avenue project on the West End, Royal Crown Enterprise has proposed a 200,000-square-foot natural park, hotel, apartment building, and restaurant.

Initially proposing a 150-foot passage to keep access for the ghost wolves to the beach and lagoon, the developers of the Margaritaville resort—a 600,000-square-foot project—have gone silent. Their quiet stands in contrast to the public support explosion following last June's terrible vehicle strike of a ghost wolf.

The quest to preserve Galveston's phantom wolves is front and center in the community's environmental issues as conservation initiatives gain steam.

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