Wolf‒ the hero of many fairy tales, in which he is always evil and stupid. But it is not so. All wolves living in Russia have similar colors, sizes and feeding habits.
Wolves are smart, highly organized animals that live in packs with strict organization and iron discipline. All members of the pack obey the leader - the strongest and most experienced. A pack is characterized by unconditional mutual assistance, support, and coordination of actions during the hunt. Thanks to this, wolves survive the difficult struggle for existence. But at the same time, animals can be cruel to their weak or sick relatives. When the natural living conditions of animals become complex and difficult, they have to sacrifice their relatives in order to save and keep healthy and strong.
Wolves living in Russia consist of six subspecies: tundra wolf, Central Russian wolf, steppe wolf, Mongolian wolf, Caucasian wolf, Siberian forest wolf.
Tundra wolf
Tundra wolf(Canislupu salbus) is one of the largest representatives, second only in size to the polar subspecies of wolves. His average weight becomes 45-57 kg. In 1972, the tundra wolf was officially classified as a subspecies. It is found throughout northern Europe and Asia, but primarily in the northern Arctic and northern regions of Russia. This predator prefers to feed on small ungulates, hares and rodents. The female and male meet only during the mating season, but they always find each other from year to year. Average duration The lifespan of these animals is 16 years.
Russian wolf
Central Russian, or Russian wolf(Canislupus communis) lives in northern Russia and has a classic gray coloration. This is a fairly large predator with an average weight of 55 kg: males 30-80 kg, and females 23-55 kg. The record weight of this subspecies is 85 kg. Hunting in packs, Russian wolves often attack chamois, deer, wild boars and moose. They are constantly fighting for prey with tigers and bears.
Steppenwolf
Steppenwolf(Canislupus campestris) has a short, stiff, pale coat gray. It is found in southern Russia and is smaller in size than the Russian wolf. Its average weight is 35-40 kg. Steppenwolves tend to stay in small groups of about 10 individuals, which are almost always closely related. Their lifestyle is semi-nomadic in nature, as it completely depends on the amount of food.
Mongolian wolf
Mongolian wolf‒ one of the small representatives among wolves living in Russia. The weight of the largest males is no more than 40 kg. Its fur is coarse and harsh, and its color is a dull, dirty gray. This subspecies can be seen in the territories of the east and southwest of Transbaikalia, as well as in the Primorsky Territory. Like a gray wolf, it can tirelessly pursue its prey and cover a distance of more than 60 km in one night. During the pursuit, wolves follow each other, strictly following each other's tracks. Only at resting places and turns where predators disperse can their number be counted from their tracks.
Caucasian wolf
Caucasian wolf It is medium in size and darker in color. His body weight averages 35-40 kg. These wolves have a strict hierarchy and despise those who refuse to accept such policies. Very territorial and aggressive towards other subspecies of wolves. Strong and healthy individuals are friendly with each other. After the mating season, the female usually gives birth to 2 to 5 babies, which are cared for by both parents. They worry about their offspring quite touchingly; they teach the wolf cubs all the wisdom of a complex and difficult life. If necessary, parents are excellent at encouraging and punishing their wolf cubs. The Caucasian wolf is a fairly rare subspecies that was on the verge of extinction. These wolves prefer to live in small groups, which often consist of parents and their offspring.
Siberian timber wolf
Siberian timber wolf lives in Kamchatka, the Far East and Eastern Siberia. This subspecies still has a conditional name, since it does not have official status. It is very similar to the Russian wolf, but has a lighter coat color. It belongs to large representatives: its weight reaches about 50 kg.
(Canis lupus tundrarum) was identified in 1912 by zoologist Gerrit Smith Miller. The wolf lives in tundra areas along the Arctic coast of northern Alaska. The polar wolf is a large individual; its weight can vary for males from 40 to 80 kg, and for females from 35 to 55 kg. The polar wolf feeds on deer and other ungulates, as well as small species and some plants. The male and female will mate in February. Pregnancy lasts from 62 to 75 days. The female usually gives birth to about 4 wolf cubs.
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In the eyes of a child, a wolf is an animal from a fairy tale; for adults, a wolf is a character in films about werewolves. This is based on the fact that people are now completely captivated by television. You just need to watch more than just entertaining movies; sometimes it’s worth paying attention to documentaries about life. Then you can learn a lot of interesting things about wolves, most importantly, reliable ones. For example, about how they behave in their natural habitat, what a wolf is like in nature, what enemies threaten them... After reading this article, you can make sure that this is not such a terrible and unprincipled animal as shown in horror films and fairy tales
The wolf is a typical predator
In the animal world, the wolf is considered the most typical predator. Together with their closest “relatives” - coyotes and jackals, they honorably take their place in the wolf family. There are only 2 species of real wolves in the world - red and gray.
It won’t take much time to describe the appearance of this predator; there is no person who does not know what a wolf looks like. All the signs of a real predator are there! The body is slender and at the same time tightly built, designed for long marches and fast running (a wolf can reach speeds of up to 60 km/h), the muzzle is elongated. All this is accompanied by the obligatory “decoration” of the predator - two rows of large and sharp teeth (with one bite the wolf gnaws the throat of a sheep). The claws on the paws are dull, they wear down from walking, these animals move a lot. It’s not for nothing that people say: “The feet feed the wolf!”
The size and color of predators depend on their location. The northern representatives of this genus are quite large, with light gray, almost white coat. Predatory inhabitants middle zone the usual gray color, but among them there are rare beauties whose fur is completely brown and red from the southern region; they are noticeably inferior in size to their relatives. Their weight and size are quite small compared to their northern “brothers”.
In what area does the wolf live in nature?
The life of wolves is quite possible in any area, it would be so, but man put his evil will into this. People persistently exterminated these predators in order to push them away from their homes. It turns out that the lifespan of a wolf in nature largely depends on
These hardy predators live in different areas and in any climate. Meet them at wildlife perhaps in mountains, forests, steppes and tundra. Only in Holland, Belgium, Denmark and France, our contemporaries, unfortunately, cannot see a wolf in the wild; in these countries the animals were simply exterminated. You can admire them only in zoos. This is such a sad fact.
Lifestyle of wolves in the natural environment
A wolf pack usually consists of 10-30 predators; these are pack animals. The head of every family, as it should be, is the eldest pair of parents. The life of wolves in the wild is very interesting! Animals live in their community according to “wolf” laws, only in the good sense of this definition. The leader maintains strict discipline, distributes responsibilities fairly and divides the spoils. Animals “talk” to each other using facial expressions and gestures. A simple grin from an alpha male and an alpha female can put a disobedient relative in his place.
The life of wolves can tell us another interesting detail. The dominant couple always proudly holds their tail up, showing others their dominance. Members of the pack, one step lower in rank, try to ensure that the tail is an even continuation of the body. The lower the animal's position in the family, the lower the tail goes. The weakest keep it tight, despite their low position, no one dares to offend them. On the contrary, they can count on protection and a share of the spoils, unless they themselves run into rudeness.
Marriage period and procreation
The lifespan of wolves is not that long, considering all the dangers that await them in nature. During their lifetime, animals must have time to leave offspring in order for their lineage to continue. nature! Wolves bring puppies once a year.
The mating season begins in winter, the rut of one pair lasts for 5-10 days, pregnancy lasts 60-64 days. In the spring, wolf cubs are already squealing in the hole of a pair of wolves. Usually there are from 3 to 5 babies in a litter; they are born blind and helpless, and do not show their noses from the den for a whole month. From 1.5 months they become real predators and begin to eat meat, although it is semi-digested; the father of the family regurgitates it for the puppies. Wolves create their pairs for life, only in the event of the death of one of the spouses, the remaining one looks for a new life partner; the parents take care of the growing kids as equals.
Life expectancy of wolves in nature
Wolves have few enemies among animals, they are brave and hardy, they have excellent hearing and sharp eyesight, and they have nothing special to fear. If this beast enters into battle, it fights until its last breath. His main enemies are man and hunger! During starvation, many young, inexperienced animals die, and older ones also suffer losses from this invisible enemy. As for people, they are the ones who take lives greatest number animals.
The lifespan of wolves in nature is approximately 6-10 years, but in the wild the animal rarely lives to a ripe old age. Nature lovers know the Arctic wolf, whose name was Sword; scientists observed his life. They recorded this animal as a long-liver of the wild; it managed to live up to 13 years. But there are very few such “grandfathers” in the wolf family.
Lifespan of wolves in captivity
Wolves, like many other animals, live in captivity. They can be seen in zoos; even today there are many private properties where wolves are kept as pets. They are well tamed, but almost impossible to train, preserving the wild pride of the beast in captivity. He won't suck up to the owner like he does.
Under human protection and in captivity, a wolf can live up to 15 years. In this case, he is not threatened by his worst enemies - hunger and man himself. At good conditions content, with high-quality nutrition, including everything necessary for a predator, a wolf can live 17-18 years.
The genus of wolves is one of the smallest
Among mammals, the genus of wolves is one of the smallest. It includes only 7 species: wolf (Canis lupus); common jackal (Canis aureus); coyote (Canis latrans); red wolf (Canis rufus); black-backed jackal (Canis mesomelas); striped jackal (Canis adustus); Ethiopian jackal (Canis simensis), wild and domestic dogs. In addition, all foxes, arctic foxes, raccoon dogs and maned wolf.
Appeared about 1 million years ago
The wolf evolved from carnivorous predators that lived 100 million years ago, and dogs evolved from the wolf about 20 million years ago. As a species, Canis lupus emerged in Eurasia about 1 million years ago, and by the end of the Pleistocene it became the most widespread predator.
Ancestors of wolves
Dogs and wolves descended from miacids, which lived on earth 50 million years ago. Their immediate ancestors were the race carnivorous mammals Hesperocyon (35 million years ago). During the Miocene, the Canidae Family was distinguished from Borophaginae mammals. Fossil remains of representatives of the Canis family were found in Spain and date back to 7 million years. The immediate ancestors of the American steppe wolf settled in North America between 4 and 2 million years ago. During this period, the Etruscan wolf (Canis etruscus) lived in Europe, which became the direct ancestor of European wolves (Canis lupus). The formation of the modern species occurred 1 million years ago.
Most common predator
Among all land mammals, wolves Canis lupus have the widest habitat. Currently, only the gray rat, with the help of humans, has been able to spread wider than the wolf. Wolves live in many areas of Europe, Asia and North America, where only large ungulates are found: from taiga, coniferous forests and icy tundra to deserts. The northern border of the wolf's distribution is the coast of the Arctic Ocean. In the south of Asia, in Hindustan, the wolf is distributed up to approximately 16" northern latitude. In its range, the wolf is very variable; there are many subspecies that differ in size, color, and some lifestyle features. Zoologists identify several dozen subspecies of the wolf. The largest wolves inhabit the tundra, the smallest are the southern regions.
Between a coyote and a wolf
American zoologists believe that the states of Texas, Pennsylvania and Florida are inhabited by a special species - the red wolf. This one is very rare beast, survives in small numbers in southwestern North America. It occupies a sort of intermediate position between a coyote and a wolf, given its size and some other characteristics. Some zoologists consider it a hybrid of a wolf and a coyote, others consider it a special subspecies of the wolf, and still others give it a separate species status.
Wolves large and small
There are 41 species in the canine family. Wolves of northern populations are larger, while wolves of southern populations are smaller. On average, the length from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail is 1000 - 1300 mm (males), 870 - 1170 mm (females). Tail length 350 - 520 mm. Weight 30 -80 kg (males), average 55 kg, 23 -55 kg (females), average 45 kg. Height at the withers (from the base of the paw to the shoulder) 60 - 90 cm.
Wolf color
... varies depending on the distribution area. In the Arctic there are white individuals, other colors are variants of white with gray, brown, cinnamon, black, and sometimes completely black. North American populations have three color phases. The first (normal) is a mixture of black, gray and cinnamon with a brown top. The second is black (a mixture of black and dark brown). The third phase is gray with brown. The similarly colored wolves Canis lupus differ from coyotes (Canis latrans) and red wolves (Canis rufus) in size (they are 50-100% larger), wide muzzle, shorter ears and higher paws.
Thick fur
Thick fur up to 8 centimeters long protects the wolf from frost. The layer of fur closest to the body is the undercoat, and the outer layer is formed by hard, long, black-tipped guard hairs. They repel water and the undercoat does not get wet. Fleet-footed deer can run away, and moose can give a worthy rebuff: these 600-kilogram giants with sharp antlers and heavy hooves can easily break a wolf’s skull.
Wolf teeth
The wolf's weapon is teeth. There are as many as 42 of them in his mouth. Four sharp, crooked 5-centimeter fangs stick out in front - two on top and two on bottom. With them the wolf can bite through the thick skin of the victim. And with predatory, or carnivorous, teeth - this is what the molars of all predators are called - an adult wolf even gnaws the femur of an elk.
Smell and Hearing
When hunting, the nose, and not the ears or eyes, is the first to tell wolves where to look for prey. In the wind, they catch the smell of even the smallest animal located 1-2 kilometers away from them, when it is not yet heard or seen. Thanks to their keen sense of smell, wolves can follow the tracks of their prey. A hunter needs keen hearing, and wolves are lucky in this regard. When they hear a noise, they move their ears and determine where the sound comes from. The sound source may be several kilometers away.
Moves silently and quickly
Wolves hunt almost silently because they run on the very tips of their fingers. Just like horses and cats, a wolf's heel does not touch the ground. He has strong, muscular legs and a sweeping gait, and can trot for long periods at a speed of 9 km/h, and can reach speeds of up to 60 km/h when chasing deer and elk.
Social life of a wolf
Wolves live in families of 2 to 15, usually 4 to 8 animals. A pack is a family group consisting of animals of different ages. Typically, a flock consists of parents, newborns (this year's brood) and youngsters (animals that have not reached sexual maturity). But very often it also includes several adult animals, apparently not taking part in reproduction. In years with abundant food, up to 30 wolves or more can gather in a family. Young wolves usually stay with the family for 10-54 months, after which they leave.
The flock is a self-regulating mechanism
If the population density is low, then the flocks are small, and the separation of the younger generation occurs faster. Under favorable environmental conditions, the population density increases; in this case, the size of the flock increases, but up to a certain limit. Growth occurs only due to non-pack lone wolves occupying a subordinate position. Thus, in the pack there is a “core” of wolves with high social status and subordinate wolves. When the environment deteriorates, at the birth of a new generation, it is the subordinate male wolves who independently leave the pack, and the females are expelled by the most important female.
Males and females in a flock
A pack of wolves consists of an a-male, an a-female, a b-male, low-ranking wolves of both sexes, and pups outside the hierarchy. During the mating season and before it, the a-female is extremely aggressive towards all mature females. Although she prefers the a-male, she can mate with other sexually mature males, including low-ranking ones. But greatest number She still maintains contacts with the a-male. After the rut, her aggressiveness drops sharply, and she behaves friendly towards all members of the pack, which helps to establish a climate favorable for raising puppies in the family.
The A-male, in Tsimena’s figurative expression, “tolerant boss,” is the real leader in the pack - he is friendly towards all its members, but is extremely aggressive towards strangers. Almost all the activity of the pack is concentrated around him, and he also holds leadership in marking behavior.
The B male is the most likely successor to the A male. Usually this is the son or brother of a-male or a-female, or their common one. Thus, he is closely related to the puppies, being their older brother or uncle. The B-male exhibits high aggression towards low-ranking members of the pack, but sometimes it is also directed at high-ranking ones. The B-male, demonstrating aggression towards the A-male, periodically checks the latter’s status, since he is his successor in the hierarchy and is constantly ready to take his place.
The role of low-ranking males is determined primarily by the advantages that the flock receives from collective hunts for large ungulates, often larger in size than the predators themselves. The chances of low-ranking males leaving offspring are very limited. They are forced to wait for a long time for their turn in the hierarchical leadership goal. At the same time, such animals are the most likely candidates for a leading position when joining a new flock.
Family hunting plot
The survival of a pack depends on the size of its hunting grounds, so wolves protect them tooth and nail. Wolves mark the boundaries of the territory (it can be 50-1500 sq. km, depending on what animals the pack hunts) with odorous marks - they spray stumps and large stones with urine - and notify neighbors about their rights by howling. Family groups of wolves living in the same territory are closely related; the areas of neighboring families may overlap, but they never collide. If there is an abundance of food, then many generations of wolves live in one area.
The size of a family's territory depends greatly on the landscape
...and fluctuates within very wide limits. The largest family plots are in open landscapes of tundra, steppe or semi-desert, where they reach 1000 - 1250 km2. In the forest zone they are smaller - 200 - 250 km2.
Border signs
Wolves mark their territory with urine, feces, or by leaving scratches on paths, fallen trees, and isolated stumps. When wolf droppings dry, they become white and in the open are visible from a great distance. It seems that wolves sometimes specifically choose the most visible places to leave droppings. In Altai, droppings of a large wolf were found on the seat of a mower, which rose about one and a half meters above the ground. The mower itself stood for many days in the middle of a spacious clearing, very visible from the road, along which wolves regularly walked, gathering in places where deer roared.
Wolves roam
When wolves do not have small cubs, they rarely live permanently in one place. For the most part, animals go quite far and leave their habitable places for several days or weeks, only to return here again when they find prey. The wolf undertakes its wanderings both in packs and alone, makes its way along mountain ranges, passes through large steppes, moves from one forest to another and, as a result, sometimes appears in areas where wolves have not been seen for several years in a row. It has been proven that during these wanderings, wolves run from 40 to 70 kilometers in one night.
They gather in flocks in winter
In spring and summer, the wolf lives alone or in pairs, in the fall - with a whole family, in winter these predators sometimes gather in packs, the size of which depends on the conditions of the area where they live. If a wolf and a she-wolf form a pair, then their union almost never breaks up; in the spring, pairs are necessarily formed; In large flocks, males predominate.
Sign language
They express their feelings through facial expressions and body movements. "Wolf's tongue" unites the pack and helps it act as one.
Tail
If the tail is raised and its tip is slightly curved, this means that the wolf is quite confident in itself. A friendly wolf has a lowered tail, but its very tip points upward. A wolf with its tail between its legs is either afraid of something or is communicating its sympathy. The way a wolf holds its tail indicates its position in the pack. Among the leaders it is raised high, among their “subjects” it is lowered, and those at the lowest level in the wolf family have their tail between their legs. By dancing and wagging its tail, the wolf invites its relatives to play.
Welcome Ceremony
Pack members show love and respect to the leader in a welcoming ceremony. Crawling, with ears flattened and fur smoothed, they approach the leader or his mate, lick and carefully bite his face.
Aggression and tolerance
Thanks to mutual tolerance, it is possible to unite a flock during group hunts, accompanied by fine coordination of the actions of its members. Behavioral mechanisms based on mutual tolerance and the desire for unification prevail in Everyday life flocks. The frequency of aggressive contacts between wolves in natural and artificial conditions is likely to be very different. Limited space does not allow wolves to avoid mutual psychological pressure, maintaining a constantly high general level aggressiveness. For animals with a highly developed psyche, such as wolves, psychological relief has great importance. In the field, we have repeatedly observed that during the day, while resting, wolves were dispersed at a distance of tens and hundreds of meters from each other. Even the puppies that grew up by the end of summer did not always stay together.
Muzzle
In a surge of tenderness, the wolves lick each other and rub their muzzles. The faces of wolves are very expressive. Frightened, the wolf presses his ears back and pretends to smile. An angry wolf bares his teeth and turns his erect ears forward. Sensing danger, he pulls his ears back, bares his teeth and sticks out his tongue.
Cruel laws of the pack
In a pack where the leader keeps order, wolves usually do not fight among themselves. However, clashes with strangers or lone wolves who trespass often occur. Each wolf pack hunts only in its own territory. The owners strictly guard and mark it, warning neighbors that they should stay away. Any uninvited guest will be punished. In large packs it often happens that one wolf is poisoned by all his relatives. Sometimes the outcast becomes completely unbearable, and he is forced to leave the pack.
When are wolves especially dangerous?
In autumn and winter, the wolf becomes much more dangerous, as it constantly wanders around the herds that are still grazing and attacks both large and small livestock, but is wary of adult horses, cows and pigs when they walk in a herd, and the wolves have not yet gathered in packs. At the beginning of winter, he comes closer and closer to villages and cities, and in small places he hunts for dogs, which he loves very much and which often constitute his only prey in some places.
They go single file
In winter, quite often, and in deep snow, packs of wolves almost always walk in single file, and each animal, like Indians on a military trail, follows each other, stepping in the same tracks if possible (lynxes do this too), so that even an experienced It can be difficult for a hunter to find out how many wolves a pack consists of.
Distribution of responsibilities during hunting
When wolves hunt in packs, they know how to distribute responsibilities among themselves very well: part of the pack chases the prey, while the other cuts its path and gnaws it to death.
Wolf vs bear
In Russia they claim that hungry packs of wolves attack the bear and, after a long fight, kill it to death. Kremenets's observations confirm that wolves sometimes disturb a bear in its winter lair, chase wounded bears and try to capture cubs.
Attack people
A flock of wolves, maddened by hunger, can, of course, attack people, even adults and armed ones, on occasion; It may happen that wolves will bite and devour a person, but in any case, the danger from wolves in those countries where there are many of them is not at all as great as it is often imagined. A lone wolf rarely attacks an adult, even armed only with a club; such behavior can only be caused by special circumstances, for example, if the wolf is mad or the she-wolf fears for her cubs.
Sitting in ambush for hours
While searching for prey, the wolf approaches the chosen victim with all possible caution, sneaks up on the animal unnoticed, with a deft leap grabs it by the throat and throws it to the ground. On forest paths, he sometimes waits for hours for prey, for example, a deer or roe deer, and in the steppe areas he patiently watches for a bobak hiding in a hole. He follows the trail of the beast with unmistakable confidence.
Hunting trick
When hunting, wolves use cunning, making sure that the prey has gone far ahead, they stop pursuing, and when the deer or elk slow down, they attack him again. Often wolves refuse an attack from an elk, which is actively defending itself, and go off to look for other prey. If an ungulate defends itself and then tries to escape, this is a clear sign of weakness; wolves pursue such a victim to the end.
Wolves understand humans worse than dogs
There is a unique connection between a person and a dog at the genetic level, which is inherited. Two containers were placed in front of the puppies and wolf cubs, in one of which meat was hidden. Then the researchers made it clear to the animals where the food was hidden: the scientists pointed to the “correct” container with gestures, touched it, or looked closely at it. The puppies won a landslide victory - best friends Each time the man quickly “guessed” where the meat was, leaving no chance for the wolves. According to their behavioral characteristics, wolves are better adapted to wild habitats, where communication with people is not the highest priority.
Attacks a fox
Foxes often become victims of wolves. If wolves meet a fox on the plain, they try to surround it immediately, and some give chase. But wolves only kill foxes, leaving them in place, and very rarely eat them. This incomprehensible feature of the predator’s behavior was noted by many zoologists. There is a superstition among hunters: where there are many wolves, foxes disappear
Distracts dogs from the herd
When attacking a herd, wolves very cunningly try to distract the dogs from it. When many wolves have gathered, and there are several dogs and shepherds with the herd, some of the wolves attack the dogs, and the other attacks the sheep.
They drive out the ungulates onto the crust
In winter, wolves often drive out ungulates at present. The relative load on the track of wolves is 2 - 3 times less than that of most ungulates. Therefore, the victims of wolves, running away on the crust, get tired very quickly, falling into deep snow, and often injure their legs on the sharp edges of the frozen snow.
Driven into an ambush or a dead end
Wolves are excellent at navigating the terrain. Many flocks constantly, year after year, use the same areas of territory to drive prey into a dead end. Such dead ends can be tree debris, scattering stones or a dead end in literally of this word - a sheer cliff or a deep ravine in a ravine. Wolves often drive saigas into dry lakes, where in autumn and spring the bottom, softened by water, turns into difficult-to-pass mud, and the ungulates move with great difficulty. Finding themselves in a dead end, ungulates begin to rush around, trying to escape from it. In rubble or piles of stones, they often break limbs and then become easy prey for wolves.
They pursue the victim for a long time
Often they can move behind the herd without giving away their presence and waiting for the right moment for decisive action. Such passive pursuit can last for many days. Prolonged active pursuit of prey is not typical for wolves. As a rule, this is a short jerk of several tens, less often - several hundred meters
Wolves can "mouse"
Like foxes, wolves can “mouse” while hunting for small rodents and insectivores. Having waited until, for example, a vole appears on the surface, the wolf jumps and crushes it with its paw and eats it. This is a common hunting technique for solitary wolves, adults and young, in the summer. In summer, the pack breaks up. In summer, when the parents feed the puppies, and the pack breaks up and predators live alone or in small groups, wolves eat insects, amphibians, reptiles, birds and various mammals, on which they have also developed skillful hunting techniques. Hares are the most common victims of wolves.
Wolf diet
The wolf's diet is based on large ungulates - reindeer and red deer, elk, saigas, sheep and goats, caribou, in the absence of which it hunts rodents, rabbits, and eats carrion. Where there are no ungulates, there are no or very few wolves. Wolves are also attracted to large concentrations of domestic animals. In reindeer and sheep herding areas, the presence of wolves is common.
How much food does a wolf need?
A wolf requires at least 1.5 kg of food per day, and much more - 2.3 kg - for successful reproduction. Wolves can go without food for two weeks or more. On average, wolves eat 4.5 kg of meat per day, and in case of successful harvest they can eat more - up to 9 kg. The wolf, due to its bloodthirstiness, did not exterminate much more animals than it needed to satisfy itself. Wolves slaughter young ungulates, or old and sick ones. Attacks on ungulates are especially frequent in the winter months, when the wolf has clear advantages when moving through the snow.
In summer it feeds on fruits and berries
In the summer, plant foods occupy a large place in the wolf's diet: fruits, berries, greens. It was noted that in the vicinity of a family camp on an area of more than one hectare, blueberries were bitten by wolves. The wolves bit off the apical shoots along with the berries. The numerous droppings of predators during the day were everywhere painted in a soft blue color. The wolves regularly fed on mulberries and apples, which fell in abundance from the trees.
Stocking feed
A characteristic feature of the feeding behavior of wolves, like many other predators, is food storage. When fed, animals often bury pieces of meat. But they probably do not remember the exact location of the pantry, but rather remember the area where the victim was killed and eaten. Moving in a shuttle motion, like a pointer dog, wolves sense a storeroom, and not necessarily their own.
Howl
It is believed that wolves howl to find out about the location of members of their family, to announce the capture of prey, or simply from a desire to communicate with relatives. Under natural conditions, wolves usually howl in the late evening hours, less often at night and early in the morning. The howl of a wolf can be heard at a distance of 10 km. Under artificial conditions, their sound activity can greatly shift, which depends on the general activity regime of the animals, determined by the specific daily dynamics of stimuli that stimulate consolidation motivation. In artificial conditions, the behavior of wolves is largely focused on humans. Contacts with him usually have a certain rhythm. For example, in the vivarium, wolves howled most often around lunchtime, when people serving the animals usually passed by the enclosure. The wolves knew them well and reacted positively to them, as they regularly received random food from them. The expectation of people, their appearance and disappearance aroused the motivation of consolidation in the wolves. They began to whine and often the whining turned into a howl, and then into a howl. During the year, wolves howl most often in winter, when packing is at its maximum. In winter, wolves stay most united and numerous groups, facilitating collective hunting of large ungulates. It is in winter that such hunts are especially typical for wolves. The howling activity of wolves also increases at the end of summer and at the beginning of autumn, during the period when puppies develop the territory, when they begin to move especially widely around the family area. But if in winter, during the period of packing, spontaneous group howls are more typical for wolves, then in early autumn - single and caused group howls.
Shelter
Wolves do not have a hole, with the exception of the den where the wolf breeds offspring. Usually the wolf curls up into a ball. covers his paws and nose with his tail and allows himself to be covered in snow. A wolf's den is a hole that is located high above the water level near a body of water. It is not equipped with anything from the inside. The length of the tunnel is from 1.8 to 7.5 m, sometimes longer. The wolf family returns to the same lair for many years. Wolf cubs leave the den at the age of 8 weeks.
Wolf's Lair
Wolves make their dens in sheltered, well-protected places. They can be overhangs in rocks, deep cracks, niches, gullies in ravines, and fallen trees. Wolves often use the burrows of other animals as dens: foxes, arctic foxes, badgers, and marmots. Wolves expand other people's burrows and very rarely dig their own, choosing for this purpose soft, usually sandy soil. Dens, as well as family days where wolf cubs spend the first months of life, meet two requirements: the presence of shelters from dense vegetation or microrelief and at the same time a good overview of the area, allowing you to detect danger. It is difficult to approach a wolf's lair without being noticed. As a rule, animals detect a person and manage to take cover before the person detects them.
Reproduction
Only one pair in a family breeds, this occurs in February, and in April 6-10 (usually 7) puppies are born. The eyes of wolf cubs open on the 9-12th day. At the end of the second week they usually begin to respond to sounds, and after three weeks they emerge from the nest for the first time and begin to taste meat around the same time. During the neonatal period, wolf cubs are completely helpless. The mother helps them toilet by licking under the tail. Puppies are not able to rise to their feet at this time and move around crawling. They are constantly in physical contact with their mother or with each other. Puppies sleep most of the time. The she-wolf diligently hides it from prying eyes. If the family is in any danger, the she-wolf carries her cubs one by one in her mouth to another, more secluded place. In the first days, the she-wolf is constantly with the puppies. She is fed by a wolf. He brings food in his stomach and regurgitates it to the female. Gradually, the she-wolf leaves the puppies alone, often going away for a long time in search of food. According to the observations of Y. K. Badridze, the female leaves the wolf cubs for 6.5 - 68 hours, that is, she can be absent for almost three days. The duration of the female's absence greatly depends on the abundance of food in the vicinity of the den. The more accessible it is, the less time the she-wolf leaves her puppies. Usually, when the female leaves the den, the cubs are left alone, huddling together to keep warm. The wolf is rarely in the den with them. But if the puppies crawl towards their father, he does not drive them away, warming them with the warmth of his body. When the babies have grown up, the female goes hunting with the pack, and the puppies are fed by all family members, regurgitating food for them. As they grow up, the puppies leave the den, but do not move away from it and stay close. Usually this place has a lot of vegetation and is located near water. Wolf cubs learn to hunt by attacking mice and shrews. Young wolves grow until their third year and then become capable of reproduction.
Wolf mother
does not show aggression towards people close to her children. There are known cases when hunters took the entire brood from the den, put the helpless puppies in a bag and carried them away, while the she-wolf restlessly watched at a distance and then accompanied the hunters for several kilometers to the village without making any attempts to attack.
A wolf never hunts near its nest,
This is why young roe deer and wolf cubs often play together in the same clearing. Growing wolf cubs can frolic in a completely open, clearly visible place, but such a playground is necessarily adjacent to either dense thickets, or a pile of stones and labyrinths of passages in rocks and ravines. In these shelters, wolf cubs, and even adult wolves, instantly “dissolve” without betraying their presence in any way.
Foxes destroy wolf cubs
A case of a male fox destroying a litter of wolves in the Badkhyz Nature Reserve in Turkmenistan is described. The wolf cubs were about three weeks old, and they were left without parents for a long time, since for some reason there was no male, and the she-wolf was forced to leave the den for a long time.
Young wolves die
Young wolves, whose mother is killed, often disappear without a trace, and, in all likelihood, their graves become the stomachs of old wolves. If the wolf cubs are not disturbed in their nest, then this should be attributed more to the vigilance of the mother than to the love of the father.
Wolves-fathers
The father participates in obtaining food for the cubs, but the issue of this should be considered not yet resolved. Only later, when the young wolves grow up, does the mother bring them to the old wolves, and they accept the babies into their society, always respond to their squeals with a howl, teach them, warn about danger and howl pitifully if the cubs die.
How long do wolves live?
Wolves can live 12-15 years; many of them die of hunger, others die from a variety of diseases to which they are susceptible in the same way as dogs.
The wolves were exterminated
Under human influence, the wolf's range has sharply declined over the past 200 - 250 years. Man exterminates the wolf, protecting herds of domestic animals, and displaces it from densely populated areas. The wolf is currently absent from Japan and the British Isles. It has been exterminated in France, Holland, Belgium, Denmark, Switzerland, and throughout Central Europe.
Rare beast
In the northern hemisphere, the wolf is considered a rare animal and is listed on the CITES List (Appendix I) of India, Pakistan, Bhutan and Nepal and (Appendix II) in other countries. IN North America Gray wolf is an endangered species in Mexico and 48 US states (except Minnesota, where the species is listed as threatened). The protection of wolves comes down to preserving the usual habitats of wolves, preventing wolf hybridization with domestic dogs, and educational activities among the population that has long persecuted wolves.
Norway is cleared of predatory animals
The Association of Norwegian Forest Owners has announced its intention to seek the destruction of wolves in Norway, as well as a reduction in the numbers of other large predators and bears, lynxes and wolverines.
Wolves take over Swedish forests
The number of wolves in Scandinavia began to decline rapidly at the beginning of the 20th century. By 1960 it was believed that they had completely disappeared. However, in the mid-1980s, wolves suddenly appeared again in Sweden. Research by scientists has shown that they came here after traveling almost 1000 km from neighboring Finland. The periodic arrival of new animals from the east helps to improve the health of the small population, which is threatened by degeneration due to inbreeding. There are currently about 100 wolves in Scandinavia, including 10 actively breeding groups.
Wolf, wolves, about wolves, Falkland wolf, about the Falkland wolf
Wolves are highly adaptable animals that have habitats that span almost the entire world (except Antarctica and islands); however, they are most abundant in the United States, Canada, and Arctic Russia. Wolves are social animals, living in family groups called "packs". Some species prefer to hunt prey and raise their pups in a single territory, which they fiercely defend from other wolves. Other species, such as the tundra wolf, prefer a nomadic lifestyle and follow their migrating prey.
Although wolves are most often associated with forests, they actually also live in grasslands, mountainous areas, deserts and arctic regions of the planet. Wolves are more common in the remote Arctic regions of Russia and Canada, as there is much less competition with humans for habitat. Reintroduction programs in North America and recognition of their endangered species status have allowed wolf populations that were once on the brink of extinction to rebound. Found only in coastal areas of North Carolina, the Red Wolf disappeared completely from the wild until populations were reintroduced natural environment habitats, thanks to a captive breeding program.
There are about seven distinct species of wolves, and another seventeen (or so) varieties of gray wolf, making a total of about 24 species that can be found throughout the world.
Wolf- a typical predator that gets food on its own active search and persecution of victims. Everywhere, the basis of wolves' diet is made up of ungulates: in the tundra - wild and domestic reindeer; in the forest zone - moose, roe deer, wild pigs, domestic sheep, cows, horses; near the steppe and desert - antelopes different types and sheep; in the mountains there are wild and domestic goats.
polar Wolf (Canis lupus tundrarum) is one of the rarest animals on our planet. The polar wolf's habitat is the Arctic. The wolf is well adapted to the harsh Arctic climate. Its thick, warm, windproof coat helps it survive in extreme temperatures. The wolf has keen eyesight and an excellent sense of smell, which are indispensable in hunting the small living creatures that inhabit these harsh places. Meager supplies of biological food and difficulties in obtaining food lead to the fact that the wolf eats its prey entirely, leaving neither the skin nor bones of the caught animals after the meal. Having an average weight of 60 to 80 kg and a height of up to 80 centimeters, the polar wolf is able to survive without food for several weeks in the event of an unsuccessful hunt, but then can eat up to 10 kilograms of meat at one time. Polar wolves live in packs of up to 10 individuals and hunt polar hares, reindeer and other animals. In one litter of a she-wolf, approximately 3 to 5 cubs are born. The unique fur of the polar wolf has always attracted increased attention from hunters, which has brought the polar wolf to the brink of extinction. Due to global warming and melting polar ice The number of polar wolves continues to decline due to sudden changes in the climate of their usual habitats. Currently, the polar wolf is listed in the Red Book, and hunting it is prohibited.
– a rare species included in the IUCN Red Book and the Red Book of the Russian Federation. In Russia it is endangered. Hunting is allowed in India, but only with licenses. Externally, this animal has a peculiar appearance - the features of a gray wolf, fox and jackal are mixed. Body length 76-103 cm, tail – 40-48 cm, weight – 14-21 kg. The red wolf has thick, long, red-red fur on its back and sides, chest, belly and inside legs – cream color. The long fluffy tail is similar to a fox's, it is darker than the rest of the body, almost black at the end. The head shows a dark pattern around the eyes and on the nose. The red wolf is a predator; it feeds mainly on wild animals, but in the summer it also consumes plant foods, namely mountain rhubarb. This plant is always found in dens with puppies. It is believed that wolves feed them to small wolf cubs, regurgitating half-digested rhubarb inflorescences. Sometimes they eat carrion. Wolves hunt in packs of 15-20 individuals and act very harmoniously, which allows them to catch even a large animal, for example, a buffalo. Thanks to their endurance, they drive their prey to exhaustion, after which its fate is sealed. Red wolves are quite talkative animals. Wakeful animals almost constantly emit a quiet whine, apparently maintaining communication with other members of the pack. In India, red caps reproduce within six months. The duration of pregnancy in females is 60-68 days. The average litter size is 4-6 puppies. The wolf cubs are dark brown in color, blind, weighing 200-350 g. The pups leave the hole at 70-80 days, and at seven months they already participate in collective hunting. Sexual maturity occurs at 2-3 years. Life expectancy in captivity is about 16 years. In captivity this period is much shorter.
Marsupial wolf or thylacine, as it is otherwise known, is officially considered an extinct animal. According to official data, the last wild representative of this species was killed in 1930, and the last one kept in captivity in a private zoo died of old age in 1936. But there is still a possibility that the marsupial wolf still managed to survive in the wilderness of Tasmania (where it once thrived). But so far not a single animal has been caught or even photographed. But scientists do not lose hope. In 1999, scientists from the National Australian Museum, based in Sydney, issued a press statement announcing the start of an ambitious project to create a clone of the thylacine. The scientists intended to use the DNA of marsupial wolf pups that had been preserved in alcohol. DNA was extracted, but, alas, the samples turned out to be damaged and unsuitable for the experiment. The project was suspended. But in 2008, scientists managed to “revive” one of the marsupial wolf genes and “embed” it into a mouse embryo. So who is this marsupial wolf? The marsupial wolf (Tasmanian wolf or marsupial tiger) is a mammal, the only one in the thylacine family. Its first studies and descriptions date back to 1808. These descriptions were made by a certain Harris, he was an amateur naturalist. His work was published by the Linnean Society of London. The thylacine was one of the largest carnivorous marsupials in the world. The length of its body reached one and a half meters, and even more with its tail. Height at the withers is approximately sixty centimeters. The weight of the marsupial wolf was twenty to twenty-five kilograms. But the most amazing thing about his appearance was his mouth - elongated and elongated, it could open as much as 120 degrees. Famous interesting fact that when the wolf yawned, his jaws formed a straight line (well, almost a straight line).
(Chrysocyon brachyurus) or guar, aguarachai gets its name from the long hair that adorns its shoulders and neck, reminiscent of a horse's mane. The maned wolf's habitat is primarily the savannas of South America, but it can also be found in Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia, Uruguay and Northern Argentina, where it lives in the pampas and along the edges of swamps overgrown with tall grass. Lean and light, the maned wolf has red fur, an elongated muzzle and large ears, which makes it look vaguely like a very large fox. The body length of the maned wolf, from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail, is approximately 160 cm, the height of the wolf at the shoulders reaches, on average, 75 cm, and the weight varies from 20 to 23 kilograms. Aguarachay - the tallest of all known species wolves. Long legs help the maned wolf detect prey above tall grass, covering savannas and wetlands. The wolf hunts, as a rule, alone, and its prey is mainly small animals, such as agouti, pacu, various birds and reptiles. The wolf also eats fruits and other plant foods, carries poultry, and is capable of attacking sheep when gathering in flocks. Auarachai live in pairs, but rarely contact each other. Maned wolf cubs have a black coat color and are born in winter, 2-3 cubs per litter. Aguarachai or maned wolves are listed as endangered on the International Red List of Threatened Species. Currently, there is no immediate threat of extinction, but the maned wolf still remains a very rare animal.
(Canis lupus arctos), also called the Ellesmere wolf or Arctic wolf, lives in North America on a group of Arctic islands and in the northern part of Greenland. The Melville Island wolf is slightly smaller in size than the common wolf, and its length, from ears to tip of tail, varies from 90 to 180 cm. The wolf reaches a maximum height of 69-79 cm, with a weight of about 45 kg, although especially large , adult males can weigh about 80 kg. The Melville Island wolf's fur is typically light white or grayish. A wolf's ears are small, which helps it efficiently expend heat in low temperatures. For more successful hunting, Melville wolves unite in packs of 5-10 individuals. The main objects of hunting for the Melville Island wolf are reindeer and musk oxen, to which the wolf pack uses driven hunting tactics, attacking mainly weakened prey that cannot offer strong resistance. The wolf's food also includes arctic hares, lemmings and, occasionally, moose. Permafrost is a significant obstacle that makes it difficult for a wolf to set up and dig a den, so wolves use the natural landscape and place their homes in rock ledges, caves or small depressions. The Melville Island wolf gives birth to few cubs, 2-3 cubs per litter, which is largely due to the harsh living conditions in the Arctic climate.
Belongs to the class of mammals and the order of carnivores. The name Japanese wolf comes from two subspecies of the common wolf family (Canis lupus), which once lived on the islands of Japan. In the worldwide classification, the Japanese wolf belongs to the Hokkaido wolf (Canis lupus hattai). He is also known as Ezo, a wolf who lived on the island of Hokkaido. And the second subspecies is the Hondos wolf or Honshu wolf (Canis lupus hodophilax). Today, both species are considered extinct. In terms of external dimensions, Hokkaido was much larger than the Honshu wolf, and in parameters it was approaching the size of an ordinary wolf. In 1889, this subspecies became extinct due to the increased settlement of the island for the construction of farms, during the Meiji restoration. The existing Meiji Government determined a reward for anyone who brought the head of a killed wolf, thereby organizing a campaign to exterminate them.
Lyre wolf found exclusively in South America
Newfoundland Wolf - Officially extinct in 1911
Newfoundland Wolf (Canis lupus beothucus) The Newfoundland wolf lived on an island off Newfoundland on the east coast of Canada. The color was light with a dark stripe along the ridge. Dimensions were an average of 5.5 feet (from nose to tip of tail). Diet consisted of: Caribou (as reindeer are called in Canada), beavers, voles and other rodents. Hunting and fur trapping in the region led to the complete extinction of this species in 1911. The extinction was also influenced by factors such as a severe food shortage in 1900, which led to a sharp decline in the caribou population.
A wolf very similar to a fox. This species is endangered; for its fur, which has no analogues (the color of the fur can reach yellow), this animal is widely hunted.
Also known as the Mountain Wolf, Alaskan Wolf, or Canadian Forest Wolf. A direct relative of our timber wolf, but due to specific habitat conditions it has thicker fur and a whitish color that remains even in summer.
There are six subspecies of wolves found in Russia:
Tundra wolf, Central Russian forest wolf, Siberian forest wolf, Steppe wolf, Caucasian wolf, Mongolian wolf.
Contrary to popular belief, it is this wolf that reaches its maximum size on the Eurasian continent, and not the tundra one. The coloring is classic, and not lightened, like the tundra. The body length of adult Central Russian forest wolves can exceed 160 cm, and the height at the shoulders can reach 1 meter. Of course, such dimensions can only apply to very large individuals. It is generally accepted that on average an adult male weighs 40 - 45 kg, a mature male (about 1 year and 8 months old) weighs about 35 kg, and a mature male (8 months old) weighs 25 kg. She-wolves weigh 15 - 20% less. Anyone who is familiar with old hunting literature, or who has been to “wolf” corners and talked with local residents, has probably read or heard about huge wolves. How much weight can wolves reach? For Central Russia, scientific works indicate a maximum weight in the range of 69 - 80 kg. (Ognev, Zvorykin). And here are the results of weighing specific animals. For the Moscow region - a male weighing 76 kg, the largest of the 250 wolves caught by the wolf hunter V.M. Hartuleri, famous in the thirties and forties of the last century. For Altai - a male weighing 72 kg. The wolf, stuffed of which is in the Moscow State University zoo museum, weighed 80 kg (5 pounds). According to N.D. Sysoev, the head of the state hunting inspection of the Vladimir region, in the period from 1951 to 1963, 641 wolves were killed, of which 17 were especially large. Among these animals, the largest weight was: of males - 79 kg, caught in the Sobinsky district, from females - 62 kg. The footprint of the right front paw of this huge, almost eighty-kilogram animal had a length of 16 and a width of 10 cm. It must be said that wolves are also indicated for Ukraine large sizes- 92 kg from the Lugansk region and 96 kg from the Chernigov region, but the conditions for determining the mass of these animals are unknown. The Central Russian forest wolf lives throughout the forest and forest-steppe zones of the European part of Russia, and probably penetrates into Western Siberia. In the north, it is quite possible for it to enter the forest-tundra, however, in the same way as the tundra into the taiga.
It is also a large animal, not inferior in its average size to the previous subspecies. According to many scientists, it is still conditionally identified as a separate subspecies, since the taxonomy of Siberian wolves is still poorly developed. The predominant color is light gray, ocher tones are poorly visible or absent altogether. The fur, although not as tall and silky as that of the tundra wolf, is also thick and soft. Its habitat is largely considered to be Eastern Siberia, Far East and Kamchatka, except for the tundra zone, as well as Transbaikalia.
In general, somewhat smaller than the forest one, with sparse and coarser hair. The color on the back is with a noticeable predominance of rusty-gray or even brown hair, and the sides are light gray. Its range includes the steppes of southern Russia, including the Cis-Caucasian, Caspian, Ural and Lower Volga regions. Poorly studied. A system of specific characteristics has not been developed. The number is low, especially in the western parts of the range.
A medium-sized animal with coarse and short guard hair and rather poorly developed underfur. The color is noticeably darker than the subspecies described above due to the black guard hairs evenly distributed throughout the skin. The overall tone is dirty gray, dull. Within our country, the range is limited to the Main Caucasus Range and its wooded foothills.
The Mongolian wolf is the smallest in size compared to all the wolves that live in Russia. The average weight of males of this species does not exceed 40 kg. The Mongolian wolf has a dull, dirty gray hue, coarse and coarse fur. This subspecies of wolves is common in the eastern and southwestern Transbaikalia and the Primorsky Territory.
Lifestyle of wolves. Migration of wolves in search of new territories
Lifestyle of wolves
Wolves are active mainly at night, but sometimes they can be found during the day. They make their presence known by a vocal howl, which is very different in character among adult males, she-wolves and young ones, and also depending on the situation. The fact is that with the help of various kinds of howls, wolves exchange information about the presence of prey, the appearance of other wolves in the territory of the pack, the appearance of people and other important events. Wolves also have quite developed facial expressions - the expressions of their muzzle, posture and tail position can be very diverse, which reflects emotional condition animals and is of paramount importance for establishing contacts between individuals or, conversely, preventing collisions. Of the analyzers in wolves, the most developed is hearing, some weaker are vision and smell.
Well-developed higher nervous activity in wolves is combined with strength, agility, tirelessness, running speed and other physical characteristics that significantly increase the chances of this predator in the fight for survival. Without visible effort, he can carry a sheep in his teeth, holding it in front of him or throwing it behind his back. If necessary, the wolf reaches speeds of up to 55-60 kilometers per hour, capable of traveling up to 60-80 km. per night, and on average per day (in the forest zone) to cover over 20 km.
In the tundra, as well as in the mountains, wolves carry out seasonal migrations behind herds of wild and domestic ungulates. Sometimes there is a noticeable increase in the number of wolves in a certain area as a result of a sharp deterioration in living conditions in neighboring areas. Migration of wolves in search of new territories In a wolf pack there is a strict hierarchical ladder, which is determined by a very complex set of relationships in the pack, the age of its members and feats in hunting. The least respected are young wolves, who occupy the lowest places in the hierarchy; they are the ones who often fight off the pack, showing pride and impatience with oppression from their older brothers. Such wolves migrate from the territory occupied by the pack over quite long distances in search of the same tribesmen or smaller packs with weaker leaders and available lone wolves. Lone wolves move carefully, avoiding encounters with humans, but not necessarily at night. Along the way, the wolf stops to hunt, often for livestock. When meeting lonely brothers, they flock into small flocks and continue their journey in search of free territories and rich hunting grounds. In this case, a pack of migrating wolves can consist of up to three or five individuals. When united in a pack, wolves often attack shepherds and enter small villages, but only when they have no luck in the hunt for a long time. A meeting between migrating wolves and a pack of fellow tribesmen can result in trouble for a weaker enemy. Thus, going through difficulties and trials, wolves explore new territories, sometimes running hundreds of kilometers.
Wolf hunting. How wolves divide territory
Wolf Hunt
Wolves belong to the canine family and are very similar to dogs and appearance and habits. Well-developed muscles and fairly long legs allow them to run quite quickly. Wolves used to be very numerous in the Northern Hemisphere, but they have been exterminated in many countries. Wolves live in packs according to the laws of hierarchy (one wolf dominates the others) and communicate using a whole range of sounds of different tones.
How do wolves hunt? They move in search of prey along the same routes, more than 160 kilometers long. Sometimes it takes them several weeks to cover all the trails. Wolves are predators, so they eat meat. They attack other animals that they meet along the way. Wolves hunt deer, elk and other large ungulates. In Canada and Alaska, wolves follow on the heels of caribou herds, attacking young animals and weak, sick animals. In the north, wolves hunt musk oxen. And if they see a herd of livestock left unattended, they will immediately attack it. Wolves also hunt hares and other rodents, but only if there is no easier prey nearby. Hungry animals, having lost hope, will feast on fresh meat and are content with wild berries.
How wolves divide territory
Owning a huge territory, a pack of polar wolves, for example, will, of course, not be able to maintain exclusive rights to it, but wolves living in the forest, whose possessions are much smaller, are forced to clearly recognize the border of their territory. Wolves mark their possessions with the smell of their own body, raising their paws like domestic dogs. They do this especially carefully on the border with the territory of another flock. So that the neighbors understand who they are dealing with and are afraid to violate the border. Smells play an even greater role in communication between wolves than sounds. If one pack of wolves, for example, in the process of hunting intersects with another, then a bloody showdown with the victims is inevitable, which is why the wolves howl, warning others about their location. The alpha male usually begins to howl, his howl is picked up by others. When chasing prey, wolves howl, making shorter sounds, notifying their fellows where they are. All wolf packs nearby respond to the howl of one of the packs, and an unimaginable forest cacophony immediately begins. However, it often happens that one of the flocks does not reasonably pick up someone else’s howl, it is numerically too small, and therefore it needs to hide or retreat as quickly as possible for the same reasons. It should be noted that a lone wolf will never howl
Life in wolf's clothing
Have you ever wondered where this expression came from? For some reason, it is generally accepted that life in a wolf’s skin means, first of all, the risk of running into a hunter at any moment, whose first intention will be to take this very skin from you. It may well be that life in wolf skin is not at all a fear of dying at the hands of a hunter, but a fear of dying alone? In ancient times, it was believed that wolves embodied in their essence all the evil that lives in the forests. In all children's fairy tales, undoubtedly, the wolf appears in the image of a negative hero, but if you think carefully, it was we who created such an image of the wolf. Maybe, in fact, wolves are completely different? One day, having stumbled upon a television program about domesticated wild animals, I was able to imagine for myself the real image of a wolf, not inspired by false ideas. Like a faithful dog, a huge gray wolf, playing, licked the hands of his owner, the man who long ago picked him up as a wolf cub in the forest, cured him and gave him, in fact, new life. Why did the wolf, such a terrible and lonely animal, sincerely thank his savior and educator? Perhaps because he found himself true friend among people and now is not afraid to die alone.
Wolf- this is, first of all, the highest symbol of freedom in the animal world, a symbol of independence (while the so-called king of beasts - the lion - is trained in the circus).
Wolf- This is also a symbol of fearlessness. In any fight, the wolf fights until victory or death.
Wolf does not pick up carrion, which means it is a symbol of purity.
Wolf lives as a family, cares only for his wolf wife, and the wolf father himself raises his wolf children. Among wolves there is no such vice as adultery.
Wolf- this is also a symbol of high morality and devotion to family (which cannot be said about males of other animals).
Wolf - a symbol of justice and ambition. Under normal conditions, the wolf will not allow, for its part, to offend the weaker.
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