A member of the dog family, the wolf is known for its intelligence, courage, and endurance. The animal has appeared in many tales as a symbol of strength and courage, and North American Indians used the name for their most powerful warriors.

Where wolves live

The best-known type of wolf is the gray wolf, also called the timber wolf. The gray wolf once lived in all areas of the Northern Hemisphere except for tropical forests and dry deserts. Now its range has been reduced to the wilderness of Canada, Alaska, and parts of the Great Lakes, the western, and southwestern areas of the United States. It is also present in Russia and surrounding countries, the Balkans, Scandinavia, and southern Europe. The only other existing type, the red wolf, is native to the south-central United States, though it no longer exists there. It exists only in captivity and in small groups on the East Coast of North America.

The gray wolf establishes hunting territories ranging between 40 and 400 square miles (100 and 1,000 square kilometers). It lives in caves, hollows, fallen tree trunks, and among rocks. The home of a wolf is called a lair.

Physical features

Gray wolves are powerfully built animals. They have robust limbs, large feet, a narrow chest, and a broad head. They also have a keen sense of smell. The males are larger than the females. A male gray wolf may weigh between 44 and 175 pounds (20 and 80 kilograms). They grow to a height of 32 inches (81 centimeters) at the shoulders. Including the tail, the male may be about 6 ¹/₂ feet (2 meters) in length. The 20-inch (50-centimeter) tail is bushy. The fur is dense, soft, and long. The color may vary from the usual shade of gray to brown, red, white, and black. The legs and belly are yellowish white.

The red wolf is smaller in size and weighs about 66 pounds (29 kilograms). The coat is reddish brown to tawny, with gray or black highlights.

Feeding habits

Wolves normally hunt at night in organized groups. They feed on large animals such as deer, moose, and caribou. They also eat smaller animals like squirrels and mice and occasionally plant matter. Wolves are rarely known to attack humans.

Social behavior

Wolves are social animals, living in close-knit packs. Packs are organized groups for hunting and rearing the young. A typical wolf pack is a group made up of a pair of adult wolves and their offspring of all ages. The male and female leaders in the pack are known as the alpha pair. They have the sole right to mate and reproduce. The size of a pack may go up to 30, depending on the abundance of prey.

Wolves are extremely territorial and demonstrate typical behavior in defending and marking their territory. This includes group howling, facial expressions, body postures, and also scent markings of the home range. The pack's territory may extend to several hundred square miles.

Reproduction and growth

A wolf, it is believed, pairs with its mate for life. Wolves breed between the months of January and April. A litter usually consists of six or seven cubs. The cubs are reared collectively by the pack and are fed regurgitated meat, or meat that has been eaten, partially digested, and thrown up by the parents. The young ones are trained to hunt and fend for themselves. As they become adults, they leave the pack, looking for new territory and mates. Some young wolves choose to stay on with the pack as “helpers.”

Survival

Wolves attack livestock and domestic cattle. Many wolves were killed by humans because of this. The red wolf population was also reduced by the fact that they began to breed with other species. By the 1970s the red wolf had almost become extinct. Over the next several decades scientists worked to protect the remaining wolves, and by the late 1990s the wolves had been reintroduced into the wild, on the East Coast of North America. Similar programs helped the gray wolf population in the Southwest and West.