NEW MEXICO (KRQE) – The United States Fish and Wildlife Service announced the Mexican Wolf population in the southwest is growing. The population grew from 196 wolves in wild last year to now at 241, according to U.S. Fish and Wildlife.

136 of the wild wolves are currently in New Mexico. The wolves were reintroduced into the wild 25 years ago. While the population growth is being celebrated, activists warn the wild population is still fragile. Efforts to foster wild wolves in the United States remains a controversial subject for many ranchers.