Wolves

FACTS:

-There are many colors of wolves. Some common colors are grey, black, chocolate brown, dark chocolate brown, and light or dark grey. Some very rare colors are True wolf (A very rare reddish brown), and Grey Blue. Wolves can range in color, from pure white in Arctic populations, to brown, gray, cinnamon and black.

-Wolves run in packs and each pack member follows the Alpha, which is the leader.

-Wolves have very sharp teeth and big fangs. They add a lot of pressure to their bite, probably more pressure than a lion or a tiger.

-Wolves are also fast runners, and are very tough.

-they are definitely stronger than a lion or even a pack.

The wolf is the largest member of the canine family. Gray wolves range in color from grizzled gray or black to all-white. As the ancestor of the domestic dog, the gray wolf resembles German shepherds or malamutes. Wolves are making a comeback in the Great Lakes, Northern Rockies and Southwestern United States.

Fast Facts:

Height: 26-32 inches (.7-.8m) at the shoulder.

Length: 4.5-6.5 feet (1.4-2m) from nose to tip of tail.

Weight: 55-130 lbs (25-59 kg); Males are typically heavier and taller than the females.

Lifespan: 7-8 years in the wild, but some have lived 10 years or more.

Diet:

Ungulates (large hoofed mammals) like elk, deer, moose and caribou. Wolves are also known to eat beaver, rabbits and other small prey. Wolves are also scavengers and often eat animals that have died due to other causes like starvation and disease.

Legal Action for Wolves:

Various conservation groups filed a lawsuit asking the courts to reverse the ill-timed and unwarranted removal of Endangered Species Act protections for wolves in the Northern Rockies. Defenders is also hard at work to end the brutal practice of aerial gunning, which has claimed the lives of over 1000 wolves since 2003.

Population:

There are an estimated 7,000 to 11,200 wolves in Alaska and more than 5,000 in the lower 48 states. Around the world there are an estimated 200,000 in 57 countries, compared to up to 2 million in earlier times.

Range:

Wolves were once common throughout all of North America but were killed in most areas of the United States by the mid 1930s. Today their range has been reduced to Canada and the following portions of the United States: Alaska, Idaho, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Wisconsin and Wyoming. Mexican wolves are found in New Mexico and Arizona.

Thanks to the reintroduction of wolves in 1995, Yellowstone National Park is one of the most favored places to see and hear wolves in the native habitat. See a wolf range map.

Behavior:

Wolves live, travel and hunt in packs of 4-7 animals on average. Packs include the mother and father wolves, called the alphas, their pups and several other subordinate or young animals. The alpha female and male are the pack leaders that track and hunt prey, choose den sites and establish the pack's territory. Wolves develop close relationships and strong social bonds. They often demonstrate deep affection for their family and may even sacrifice themselves to protect the family unit.

Wolves have a complex communication system ranging from barks and whines to growls and howls. While they don't howl at the moon, they do howl more when it's lighter at night, which occurs more often when the moon is full.

Reproduction:

Mating Season: January or February

Gestation: 63 days

Litter size: 4-7 pups

Pups are born blind and defenseless. The pack cares for the pups until they mature at about 10 months of age.

Threats:

The most common cause of death for wolves is conflict with people over livestock losses. While wolf predation on livestock is fairly uncommon, wolves that do prey on them are often killed to protect the livestock. Defenders is working with livestock owners to develop non-lethal methods to reduce the chances of a wolf attacking livestock. These methods include fencing livestock, lighting, alarm systems and removing dead or dying livestock that may attract carnivores like wolves.

Proactive Wolf Efforts:

Another serious threat is human encroachment into wolf territory, which leads to habitat loss for wolves and their prey species. Overall, the greatest threat to wolves is people's fear and misunderstanding about the species. Many fairy tales and myths tend to misrepresent wolves as villainous, dangerous creatures.

Reasons For Hope:

Conservation organizations have been working tirelessly on wolf conservation in North America from aerial hunting in Alaska to restoration efforts in the lower 48 States. Wolves are an integral part of an ecosystem as a top tier predator and Defenders will continue to make sure this iconic symbol of America always has a place here.

Legal Status/Protection:

• Endangered Species Act (ESA): Gray wolves are listed as endangered throughout the United States except for Idaho and Montana and parts of Washington, Oregon and Utah. Wolves in Minnesota are listed as threatened. In Alaska, wolves are not listed under the ESA
• In Wyoming and portions of the Southwest wolves are designated as nonessential experimental populations, which isolates geographically-described groups from other existing populations and offers broader management regulations.

• On May 4, 2009 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service removed the northern Rockies gray wolf from the endangered list. Although the regional population has rebounded to more than 1,600 wolves, the federal delisting plan allows 2/3 of current wolf population to be killed - down to only 450 wolves regionwide. Defenders of Wildlife and other conservation groups are challenging the delisting decision in court and seeking to restore endangered species protections for wolves in the northern Rockies until a sustainable delisting plan is adopted. Read more about Wolves and the Endangered Species Act.

P.S. the extinct Dire Wolf is the ancestor of wolves. They had longer fangs and smaller brains that today's wolves and shorter legs and larger heads.

They can run up to 25 mph, possibly faster They usually use carefully coordinated teamwork to take down large prey Wolves have a hierarchy in the pack - alpha being top, Omega being bottom.

1) Body - The average adult wolf is 127 to 164 cm long from nose to tail.An adults tail is 47 mm long. A pup's tail is about 27 mm long.The front paws are smaller than the back paws. Wolf paws are 2 times bigger than a coyote paws.

2) Wolf Pups - Mating season is from January to April. Pups are born about 63 days after breeding. The average litter is 6 pups. The mother stays close to the young for about 2 months. She eats some food then throws it up for her pups to eat. The pups start getting teeth in the third week. A wolf lives approximately 10 years.

3) Wolf Packs - There are 4 to 36 wolves in a pack. Two to six of them stay at the den. They have a territory that ranges from 130 to 13,000 km. They will defend it. They eat anything from a mouse to a moose, depending on what is available.

4) Hunting - Wolves either hunt in packs or alone. They follow their prey. They hunt elk, deer, sick animals and weak animals.

5) Communication - You can tell wolves are friendly, when they roll over and show their bellies. When they want to play, they put their paws down and wag their tail. When they want to fight, they show their fangs and start growling. When they want to stop they put their ears back and lay down.

A wolf has round ears. Wolfs have extremely strong jaws.
one interesting fact about a wolf is they are some times owned/ worshiped by Indian's
The wolf (Canis lupus ) Order: Carnivore, Family: Canidae

(2) The wolf is the largest in the wild canine family

(3) The coyote evolved separately from the wolf over 500,000 years ago

(4) The wolf has 42 teeth

(5) The wolf has rounded ears

(6) The wolf has a broad heavy muzzle

(7) The wolf has extremely powerful jaws capable of generating 1,500 psi pressure

(8) The wolf has one of the widest ranges of size, shape and color of any mammal in North America

(9) The wolf lives in a pack, family oriented social structure

10) Mating season for the wolf occurs in February and March.

11) The gestation period for the wolf is 63 days

(12) Wolf pups are born in April and May

(13) The average litter size for the wolf is 4 to 7 pups

(14) Litter size for the wolf depends on nutrition factors as well as fitness of the female

(15) Mortality rates for wolf pups can be as high as 50%

(16) Wolves have a vast communication repertoire including scent marks, vocalizations, visual displays, facial and body postures and rituals

(17) Wolves communicate with each other more by harmony and integration rather than by aggression and submission

(18) Wolves are territorial and defend their territory through vocalizations and scent marking

(19) If necessary, wolves will attack other wolf intruders to protect their territory

(20) There are two species of the wolf in North America, the Gray Wolf (Canis lupus ) and the Red Wolf (Canis rufus )

(21) In North America there are 10 recognized sub-species of the wolf

(22) The main threat to wolf populations is loss of habitat

(23) Predation is not violence, it is the act of obtaining food for survival

(24) The wolf is an ultimate predator at the top of the food chain

(25) The wolf is designed for running, catching and killing large animals

(26) The wolf is opportunistic and will attempt to catch the easiest and most vulnerable animal

(27) The wolf can kill healthy animals but naturally seeks out the sick, the weak, crippled, old and young animals

(28) The wolf primarily travels at a 5 mile per hour trot

(29) In chases, the wolf can achieve estimated speeds of between 28 and 40 miles per hour for up to 20 minutes

(30) Radio tracking wolves has been used in wildlife research since 1963

(31) Wolves are vulnerable to skull injury from kicking prey

(32) The canine teeth "interlock" so the wolf can grip and hang on to struggling prey

(33) The back teeth, or carnassial molars, are designed to crush bones and shear meat

(34) The wolf uses facial display in ritual aggression, dominance, submission or fear

(35) The wolf has 2 types of hair, "Guards and "Undercoat"

(36) The hair of the wolf is shed in the spring and summer and sheds out in sheets unlike most dogs

(37) The color of a wolf's pelt can be anywhere from white to black

(38) The wolf uses its hair to communicate anger, dominance and aggression

(39) The wolf's sense of smell is more than 100 times greater than a human

(40) A wolf 'scent rolls' to promote interaction with other pack members

(41) Dominance in a wolf pack is not necessarily established by brawn or direct attack

(42) A wolf 'scent marks' its home range. This serves as messages, and provides warnings

(43) The hierarchy in a wolf pack neutralizes aggression, reduces conflict and promotes social order

(44) There are two hierarchies in a wolf pack, one for females and one for males

(45) Change of rank in a wolf pack is more frequent in lower rank positions

(46) Wolf pups, while low in hierarchy, have many privileges and social freedom

(47) 'Ethology' is the study of animal behavior as a scientific counterpart to human psychology

(48) The "Alpha" wolf is the highest ranking individual within the dominance hierarchy

50) The "beta" wolf is the second ranking individual within the dominance hierarchy

(51) The "omega" wolf is the lowest ranking individual within the dominance hierarchy

(52) In the winter, the wolf's tail helps keep the face warm

(53) Wolves breed only once a year; most dogs breed twice

(54) In addition to the wolf (Canis lupus ), the genus Canis also contains the domestic dog, the coyote, the golden jackal, the black backed jackal, the side-striped jackal and the dingo

(55) Three (3) geographic races of the red wolf have been recognized; the Florida Red Wolf, The Mississippi Red Wolf and the Texas Red Wolf

(56) Wolves are often confused with Indian dogs, huskies, malemutes and German Shepherd Dogs

(57) Arctic tundra, taiga, plains or steppes, savannahs, hardwood, softwood and mixed forest were all originally inhabited by the wolf

(58) Adult male wolves average ninety-five to one hundred pounds and females about fifteen pounds less

(59) Wolves howl to greet one another, to indicate their location, to define their territorial boundaries, and to call the pack together

(60) Wolves can trot at five to ten miles per hour almost indefinitely

(61) A wolf may spend as much as a third of its time on the move

(62) The wolf is generally a docile animal with a strong aversion to fighting

(63) Submissive behavior plays a big role in maintaining peace within the pack

(64) A wolf's front feet are larger than their back feet

(65) Packs hunt in territories of up to 600 square miles

(66) A pack's home range will sometimes overlap the territory of another pack

(67) In addition to howling, wolves bark, yap, whine, and growl

(68) Litters of up to 14 pups are born in April through June

(69) Pups emerge from the den at about one month of age

(70) All members of a wolf pack take part in caring for the young

(71) When pack members return from the hunt and they are nipped on the snout by the pups, the hunters regurgitate undigested meat for them

(72) Wolves are considered to be competitors with people for game animals such as moose and caribou

(73) Although wolves are feared throughout much of the world, documented attacks on people are extremely rare

(74) Attempts to keep wolves as pets are not usually successful

(75) Wolves use direct scenting, chance encounter, and tracking to locate prey

(76) In scenting an animal, wolves must usually be downwind of the prey

(77) Wolves are active at all times of the day in winter

(78) Where waterways are plentiful, wolves often travel on the windswept and hardpacked ice in winter

(79) Wolves actually have a low hunting success rate

(80) To catch enough food, wolves must hunt often and test many animals before finding one that they can catch and kill

(81) Most packs contain less than eight members

(82) Wolves bear an average of six young per litter(82) Wolves become sexually mature at approximately twenty-two months

(83) Strong bonds are needed to hold a pack together; if there were no bonds, each wolf would go its separate way

(84) Most packs include a pair of breeding adults, pups, and extra adults that may also breed

(85) Ambushing is used by both single wolves and by packs

(86) Wolves at one time had an extensive range, occurring throughout North America, Europe, Asia, and Japan

(87) The only substantial population of wolves left at present in the contiguous 48 states inhabits northern Minnesota

(88) The range of the red wolf once extended from eastern Texas to Georgia and Florida and northward through Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Illinois

(89) The basic unit of wolf society is the pack

(90) The wolf's front teeth are sharp and pointed and adapted to puncturing, slashing, and clinging

(91) The wolf's pointed premolars and molars are useful for tearing and shearing once the prey has been killed

(92) The wolf's massive rear molars aid in cracking and crushing bones

(93) The wolf does little chewing

(94) A wolf can consume almost twenty pounds of prey at a feeding

(95) Wolves can maintain a chase for at least twenty minutes

(96) The wolf feeds almost exclusively on flesh, bones, and other animal matter

(97) Lone wolves have no social territory and rarely scent-mark or howl

(98) The range size for a given pack of wolves depends on many environmental factors, particularly prey density

(99) It is common for wolves to be moving eight to ten hours in a day

(100) A pack may cover distances from 30-125 miles in a day

(101) Wolves possess upwards of two hundred million olfactory cells

(102) A wolf's tail hangs while the tail of the dog tends to be held high and is often curly
A wolf will mate for life.

it has been recorded that older wolves will automatically take the role of omega.

Although wolves have been thought of as wild, nasty beasts, they are rather timid and don't normally like to hang around people

there is a wolf named Romeo in Juno AK, who is often seen playing with the neighborhood dogs.