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Gray Wolf (Canis lupis)
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Weight:
Length:
Life Span:
Pup Mortality:
Top Speed:
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80 lbs
5-6.5 ft
13 yrs
40-60%
45 mph
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Status:
The power and stealth of the wolf has been awed by the Native Americans and
Eskimos, feared by the European settlers. When the Europeans came to
America, the parents often told their children that if they were not good
than the big, bad wolf would come and get them. Those stories carried onto
future generations, and wolves were killed whenever possible. Today wolves
are just starting to make a comeback in the United States due to wonderful
reintroduction programs. Yellowstone National Park has been reintroducing
wolves since 1994. By 2002 the wolf will be living on its own and will no
longer be considered a threatened species. Most of the wolf populations today
are in the very remote areas of the earth like most of Canada and Alaska, and
small isolated sections of the lower 48 states of the US and in eastern Europe.
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Report by Catamount
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Physical Characteristics
The gray wolf is the largest of the canines. The wolf has gray fur with
long, tawny-colored legs, narrow chest, and tawny-colored flanks. The
males are 20% larger than females, and both sexes get larger the farther
north they are found. Wolves have excellent hearing and super smell.
They can reach up to 45 mph in a short sprint but can also run 25 mph for
several miles. Their normal trot, though, is at about 5 mph. Dogs are
related to the gray wolf.
Habitat
In the eastern woodland the "timber wolf" is another name for the gray
wolf; in the arctic the "arctic wolf" is another name for the gray wolf;
in the tundra the "tundra wolf" is another name for the gray wolf. The
gray wolf has thrived in many different environments. In fact, the
rainforest and true desert environments are
the only places the wolf has not adapted to.
Hunting
Wolves are great to build a strong ecosystem. They seek out weak animals
and pray on them. After they have caught the animal, other animals such
as bears and foxes use
the remains. Wolves hunt by scent. Packs hunt larger game such as moose,
elk, bison, or deer; loners hunt smaller animals
such as hare or beavers. Wolves may travel 30
miles a day searching for weaker pray.
Reproduction
Packs are made up of two parents, their offspring, and a few non-breeding
adults. After wolves leave their pack at two or three, they search for
their life-long mate and try and develop their own pack. For the first
month the resulting five or six pups depend totally on their mother's milk
then gradually wean them. When the pups reach seven months they begin
hunting with the adults.
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