Characteristics and Behavior

• Mexican Gray Wolf
• Whooping Crane
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The true physical appearance of the Mexican Gray Wolf differs from the scrawny, dirty animal often seen on the television screen. The Mexican Gray Wolf has a coat with a range of colors. Usually, the wolves have grayish coats with brownish patches. Completely black and completely white wolves have been spotted, but are considered rare. The fur located on the back and tail of the wolf is usually darker than the rest of the wolf. These outer hairs are coarse and bristly. The underparts and the legs of the wolf are typically yellowish white. The fur of the underparts is extremely dense, enabling the animals to sleep on snow in temperatures below freezing.

The weight of the Mexican Gray Wolf falls between 45-176 pounds. From nose to tail, the length of an average adult wolf is 140-170 centimeters. The tail alone is 28-44 centimeters long. The Mexican Gray Wolf averages 72-80 centimeters for shoulder height. Males are usually larger than the females. Captive females become estrous between mid-February and mid-March. They give birth in April and May. The gestation period is 60-63 days. The life-span is 8 to 16 years .

Mexican Gray Wolves live in packs that consist of two to eight members. Each pack is dominated by an alpha male. The alpha male initiates pack activity, leads hunts, guides pack movements, makes decisions, and assumes control at critical moments. The alpha male remains dominant until too weak to continue. Younger wolves can challenge the alpha male to gain dominance. If the alpha male loses, he can either accept the winner as the new alpha male, or he can leave the pack to become a lone wolf. The most dominant mate of the alpha male is called the alpha female. It is believed that the alpha female triggers the release of hormones in other females through fear. This hormone release interferes with ovulation, and therefore the alpha female is the only female able to produce offspring.

Within each pack are families. A family consists of an adult pair and that pair's offspring. The entire pack shares the responsibility of raising the pups. Females other than the mother are able to nurse the young. In 1980, the reported litter size was 4.5. The information was based on the average from eight dens in Mexico. Sometimes a family will leave or join a pack. However, the splitting and uniting of packs is uncommon.

Hunting and Feeding

The wolves hunt in their packs. Hunting territories usually account for the defended territory of the pack. This territory can extend more than 5,000 square miles or less than 10 square miles. On hunts, the wolves travel in single file along known areas. They are known to travel 124 miles on a single day's hunt, and they make seasonal migrations with their prey. During the summer, the wolves hunt from early evening until dawn. In the winter, there is an increase in daytime activity. Also during the winter months, the wolves wander farther and do not always return to a fixed area at night.

All wolves have excellent eyesight, hearing, and sense of smell. On the hunt, Mexican Gray Wolves can smell a deer from more than a mile away. When the prey is spotted, the pack fans out. One wolf closely pursues the prey while the others from a semi-circle around it. Consequently, if the deer changes direction, a wolf will always be waiting to meet it. The leading wolf will periodically drop back to rest and a different wolf will pick up the chase. This type of hunting strategy is unique when compared to other American predators. Mountain lions and bears hunt alone and rely on ambush to take down prey.

The Mexican Gray Wolves feed primarily on mammals larger than themselves. White-tailed deer, mule deer, elk, moose, and bison are some larger animals included in their diet. The wolves are also known to eat , rabbits, hares, and other small mammals. The size of the prey usually accounts for the size of the pack. The larger the prey, the larger the pack size.