With its powerful appearance and mysterious ways, the wolf has been an object of hatred and fear, myth and legend for thousands of years.And because of human fear regarding it, the wolf has been sadly misunderstood and often cruelly treated, bringing it to the point of extinction throughout much of its original range in North America and Europe.But its public image is changing as new information about their lives and habits replace the centuries-old misconception that the wolf is a killer of innocent people, as it has been portrayed in fairytales such as Little Red Riding Hood and The Three Little Pigs.Much of this change in attitude stems from the realization that in many ways they are very similar to us.For example a wolf is faithful to its mate, playful and tender with its young, and loyal and cooperative with its family pack, forming a close-knit society. (That's actually more than you can say for some humans, isn't it?).
Wolf packs usually consist of ten or fewer individuals, most of them descendants of one original pair.A stable social order is maintained by a ranking system that is reinforced by the day to day interactions of pack members.In many ways they behave like dogs.When a subordinate (or lower ranking) wolf approaches a dominant one it crouches with its ears laid back flat and its tail between its legs.In reply the dominant wolf assumes a regal manner, walking stiff-legged, with ears pointed forward and tail held high.If pressed a subordinate may defuse the hostility of the dominant wolf by acting like a puppy, rolling on its back and presenting its unprotected stomach in helpless submission.
Within the pack the only ones permitted to breed are the Alpha (top ranking) male and female.In May when a litter of four to seven pups is born (most often in an underground den) the process of intergrating the new members into the social order of the pack must begin.By the time they leave the den, at seven to ten weeks of age, permanent dominant-subordinate relationships may have been settled by playful or not so playful fighting with other pups.They will have also formed life long emotional attachments not only with their siblings and parents, but with the other adults, all of whom participate in feeding the pups.By nipping at the muzzle of an adult, the pups stimulate it to regurgitate food.
Food for the pack consists primarily of whatever large, grazing animals are most abundant in the area.A wolf can eat as much as twenty percent of its own weight at a single feeding.The pack can travel 15 to 16 km a day in the search for food.Each pack will defend a territory of 50 to 300 km or more, from neighboring packs or the occasional "lone wolf".These lone wolves are defeated Alphas or exiled subordinates that travel widely, keeping a low profile at the boundary of pack territories, while they wait for the opportunity to find a mate and start new packs.If a pack discovers a lone wolf or another pack in its territory, there is frequently a fight.
Territories are generally maintained by making regular patrols and urinating on "scent posts".This keeps the entire area marked, especially the perimeter, and serves as a "no trespassing" warning to others.They also send warnings to other packs by their howls.A typical performance begins with a high ranking wolf doing a solo, sometimes on a steady pitch, sometimes breaking to a higher note and dropping back.Others join in with yips, howls and whines for a minute or more.To the wolves this serves as a friendly tail wagging ceremony that bonds the pack into a close group.Another reason for these howls is that by the summer the pups will have left the home den, but aren't fully able to follow the adults until the fall, these songs are used as a means to relocate each other after a hunt.
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