Grey Wolf or Gray Wolf or Timber Wolf
Gray wolves are listed as endangered in the Southwest under
the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and threatened throughout the lower 48 states.
Wolves in Alaska are not listed under the ESA. Endangered means a species is
considered in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of
its range, and threatened means a species may become endangered in the
foreseeable future. I love grey wolves!! Wolves are carnivores, that
means they are meat eaters.
Canis lupus
Though listed as a species of least concern for extinction
worldwide, for some regions including the Continental United States, the species
is listed as endangered or threatened.
Grey wolf and gray wolf are both acceptable spellings.
Physical Description:
 | Wolves vary in color from black to grey to white. |
| A multicolor coat characteristically without any clear pattern. |
| A wolf's coat is usually lighter on the animal's underside. |
| Distantly resembles to look of German Shepards and Huskies. |
| The grey wolf is considered the largest of the canine family. |
| Gray are capable of covering several miles trotting at about a 10 km/h (6
mph) pace |
| Gray wolves are about 25 to 33 inches tall at the shoulders. |
| Size varies depending on where they are found. |
| Grey wolves weigh about 50 pounds to 130 pounds. |
| Wolves have stout, blocky muzzles that help distinguish them from coyotes
and dogs. |
| Male grey wolves are usually larger than the females are. |
| Precaudal glands at the base of the tail are present in wolves but not in
dogs. |
| Grey Wolves live about twelve years. |
| Wolves are built for stamina, possessing features tailored for
long-distance travel. |
| Gray Wolves have been known to reach speeds approaching 65 km/h (40 mph)
during a chase (wolves only run fast when testing potential prey). |
| Narrow chests and powerful backs and legs contribute to the wolf's
proficiency for efficient locomotion. |
| When in a full sprinting run wolves can cover cover up to 5 meters (16 ft)
per bound. |
| Grey wolves can look even bigger than they are because its coat is so
bulky. |
| Gray wolves coats are made up of two layers. The first layer consists of
tough guard hairs which repels water and dirt. The second is a dense,
water-resistant undercoat that insulates. |
| Female wolves tend to keep their winter coats longer into the spring than
male wolves do. |
| Wolves have distinct winter and summer coats that alternate in spring and
autumn. |
| Gray Wolves live in family groups called packs. |
| Grey wolf packs can have from eight wolves to as many as thirty-five
wolves. |
| The size of the pack may change over time and is controlled by several
factors, including habitat, personalities of individual wolves within a pack,
and food supply. |
| Wolf Packs have a very complex social structure. |
| Each pack has a breeding pair called the Alpha male and the Alpha female
and their cubs. |
| Usually only the alpha pair breed, but not always only them. |
| The death of one alpha mate does not affect the status of the other alpha
mate. However the surviving alpha animal will choose another mate. |
| The alpha female goes into 'heat' only once a year and it only lasts about
4-5 days. |
| The pack is made of of dominant and subordinate wolves. |
| The whole pack works together to insure the survival and success of the
whole pack. |
| Grey wolves communicate with a variety of expressions such as:
scent-marking, howling and other vocalizations, facial expressions, and even
the way in which they use body posture is a form of communication within the
pack. |
| The way wolves use their tails and facial expressions shows not only their
emotion but also their status in the pack. |
| Gray wolves mate for life. |
| A pack marks its territory by urine and feces. |
| When wolf pups reach maturity they leave the maternal pack and head out to
find mates and forms packs of their own. |
| Mating usually occurs in January and February. |
| Gestation for wolves is about two months. |
| Gray Wolf pup litters are usually four pups to seven pups. |
| Wolf pups are born blind and helpless. |
| All the females in the pack help take care of the pups. |
| When wolf pups are about three to five months old they begin traveling
with the rest of the pack. |
| Wolf pups are born with darer fur. |
| When wolf ups are born they have blue eyes. |
| The wolf pups blue eyes will change color to be yellow, gold or orange as
they get older. |
| While it is very unusual, it is possible for an adult wolf to still have
blue-colored eyes in adulthood. |
| Wolf pups are born in a den and usually remain in the den until they are
about three weeks old. |
| Wolf pups begin eating regurgitated foods after 2 weeks— by which time
their milk teeth have emerged. |
| When pups are about five weeks old they begin wandering away from the den. |
| Wolf pups are fully weaned by 8–10 weeks. |
| During the first weeks the mother usually stays with her litter alone. |
| Soon most members of the pack will raise and care for the pups. |
| When the pus are abut two months wolf the pack moves them to what is
referred to as a rendezvous site. While most of the pack goes hunting a
couple of wolves in the pack stays behind to care for the pups. |
| Soon the pups are old enough to go hunting with the pack. |
| When the pups are about eight months old they are old enough to begin
hunting themselves. |
| Pups are mature when they are between two and three years old. |
Types of Prey:
The normal prey for gray wolves are hoofed animals which includes deer and
elk type animals. They even prey on rabbits, beavers and other rodents.
Their prey varies with their habitats and what animals are living in them.
Caribou is even prey for gray wolves.
When there is enough natural prey wolves tend to avoid domestic live stock,
unless the behavior has been learned by individual packs.
Important Part of the Eco System:
As predators, gray wolves help to maintain balance in the food web. The loss
of wolves in ecosystems have lead to the overpopulation of other animal species.
This leads to starvation and desease for those over populated prey based
animals.
Habitat:
Gray wolves are found in many kinds of habitats such as: forest, desert,
mountains, plains and even tundra.
Population:
Around the world there is an estimated 170,000 to maybe 200,000 wolves left
worldwide in over 50 countries and dwindling fast.
There are about 6,000 to 9,000 wolves in Alaska. That number ins
dropping extremely fast due to poisoning and aerial gunning.
In the lower 40 states of America there are only about 3,000 grey wolves
left. Again this number is taking a fast nose dive because of the
poisoning, trapping and killing of these animals mostly in Idaho.
The gray wolf used to live in may states in America. Now they can only
be found in Alaska, and sparsely in Idaho, Michigan's Upper Peninsula, Northern
Minnesota and Wisconsin, also in Wyoming.
One but not anymore, lived in diverse regions as Israel and Egypt.
Wolf populations were the lowest in Eurasia between the 1930's and 1960's. In
the 1950's wolf numbers were the lowest in North America.
Threats:
Man is the gray wolf's greatest enemy. Illegal and lately legal killing
with aerial gunning, traps and poisons are major problems for the long term
survival of grey wolves. The wolf's habitat loss to humans is another
major disaster.
History Thought:
Throughout the past decades people's views toward gray wolves have changed
several times. Earlier this century people decided wolves should be wiped
out and mass wolf killing dropped the numbers of wolves to sadly low numbers.
Protections for these majestic animals were made into law. After which the
gray wolf populations began to recover.
In the last few years, especially in Alaska and Idaho people have again
decided to wipe out wolves. This is a devastating blow. Protection
for wolves are being ignored and in some places people are trying to remove
those protections.
Good News in some places:
| Recently, 30 gray wolves were re-introduced to Yellowstone National Park
in Wyoming. |
| A thriving wolf population lives in northern Minnesota |
| There is an isolated population on Isle Royale National Park, Michigan.
|
| In some places, gray wolves are recovering thanks to ongoing research and
public education efforts. |
| Gray wolves now can be found in Rome (Italy), Spain, France, Poland,
Germany, the former Soviet Union, Finland, Norway, and Sweden. |
| However, the tragedies inflicted by man that is CURRENTLY happening to
wolves in Alaska and Idaho is alarming, to say the least. |
Protection:
*CITES, Appendix I (populations of Bhutan, India, Nepal and Pakistan);
Appendix II (all other populations), Endangered Species Act
*Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and
Flora, an international treaty with more than 144 member countries. Appendix I
listed species cannot be traded commercially. Appendix II listed species can be
traded commercially only if trade does not harm their survival.
In Alaska and Idaho these protections are being ignored and grey wolves are
being killed with poisons, trappings and aerial gunning.
