The Wolf (Canis lupus)

It has been everything from worshipped as a god, to pursued as a devil. Not only did it give us man's best friend, the domestic dog, but some also consider it the greatest enemy mankind is facing and perhaps indeed has ever faced in the wilderness. Some are merely amazed by its ability to adapt to and survive in almost any place on the earth, an adaptability which is surpassed by few other species on this planet. It is the wolf, Canis lupus, that has been the source of so much controversy. But why did it turn out that way?

Let me start out by saying this: the wolf is a predator – a carnivore, to be exact. It is an animal that kills other animals in order to survive. If you have a problem with the thought of that, perhaps you are better off keeping to your own world, where food appears from out of nowhere behind the supermarket. In the wilderness, there is no such thing as a free meal, even if you are willing to pay. It takes both effort and risk to survive, for predators and prey alike.

Life and survival

Wolves are highly social animals that live in extended family groups called packs. Each pack claims and defends a territory which, depending mainly on the availability of prey animals, can range from a few tens of square kilometers to hundreds or even thousands of square kilometers. It is a common misconception however that packs are necessary to bring down larger prey – while a pack often has an easier time killing a large animal than a single individual would have, there are numerous records in the litterature showing that even individual wolves are capable of bringing down large prey. Even then, despite its prowess as a hunter, the wolf still has to work for its food: in the case of moose, research has indicated that only about one prey encounter out of ten actually result in the prey animal being killed by the wolves, and many potential prey animals are never even encountered by the wolves. It would seem reasonable to assume that the success rate, or predation efficiency, is roughly the same for other similarly large prey.

The pack has a strict hierachy – how strict, however, is under debate and also varies from pack to pack. On the top are the leading male and female, commonly referred to as the alpha pair and superior in rank to the other individuals in the pack of their respective sex. (Alpha comes from the first letter of the Greek alphabet, α.) The alphas are usually the parents of the other members of the pack, but do not have to be. Below them are the beta animals, and beyond that scientists have no specific designations until the lowest-ranking individuals, the omegas (from the last letter of the Greek alphabet). Given the size of most wolf packs (the alphas, present year's pups and possibly a few more animals), however, it is rarely necessary to go beyond these designations.

It is uncommon, though not unheard of, for any individuals but the alphas in a pack to mate. The mating takes place in late winter, and the pups are born about two months later. The litter size varies, with 5-6 pups being normal. The pups only weigh around 500 grams and are totally dependant on their mother when born, but grow quickly and reach close to adult size before their first winter. Despite their rapid growth, however, far from all pups reach adult age.

Communication

Perhaps the most widely known form of communication used by the wolf is the howl, however it is by no means the only one. Wolves communicate using a wide variety of sounds, including barks, yelps, howls, squeaks, growls, and many others – as well as non-vocal means, including scent marking and various body expressions. As any dog owner can testify, there is an incredible and seemingly near infinite variation among these sounds and gestures as well; a growl can be anything from playful to vicious, just like that a howl can be happy or mourning, a bark startled or aggressive, or joyous.

The howl especially serves a number of purposes: among others, it can help gather the pack after a hunt, advertise the pack's precense to other wolves (trespassing or resident in adjactant territories), or it may be just an expression of feelings, not unlike a human song. We might never know for certain exactly why wolves howl in any given situation, but that does not keep people from thinking about and researching the matter, or getting strong feelings when hearing the sound of a pack of wolves howling. To some, it is the most fearsome sound imaginable; to others, the wonderful echo of a free nature. Regardless of how one feels while listening to it, however, a wolf's howl is one animal sound that is almost impossible to mistake for anything else.

Wolves are known to howl in response to humans as well. In the photograph above, it was the humans who started howling, but the wolves were not late in running up on the hill to join in. (The wolves pictured were approximately nine months old when the photo was taken.)

Physical characteristics

Physically, the wolf looks much like a large German Shepherd dog. Adult males vary between 150 and 200 cm from nose to tail tip, weighing on average around 45 kg; females normally measure 140–180 cm and weigh slightly less than 40 kg. They both stand on average between 65 and 80 cm at the shoulder, and have tails varying between 30 and 50 cm in length. There are exceptions, however, and record individuals weighing almost 80 kg have been noted. (The man who is kneeling behind the wolf in the picture is Runar Næss, who helps give an idea of the size of the animal. Original photograph courtesy of The ALPHA Association in Norway.)

As mentioned above, newborn pups are basically helpless, and depend completely on their mother. However, by the age of about six months the pups are hard to distinguish visually from adult wolves, and they are fully grown by the age of one year. The wolves do not reach sexual maturity until almost another year later, however, by the age of 22 months.

Threats

The wolf, just like any other living being, faces a number of threats. These include, but are certainly not limited to, diseases and parasites, famine and encounters with other animals (both wolves, other predators as well as scuffles with intended prey). Even in the light of these natural threats, however, the most serious threat wolves face in most parts of their range is humans and human activities, including destruction of habitat and (often subsequent) loss of natural prey. Deprived of their normal food supply they often turn to livestock, causing controversy and calls for control actions by humans, which often turn out to be lethal. In a tragic irony, the wolves get killed simply because they try to ensure the survival of themselves and their families.