This page is a collection of information on modern day, real live wolves, which can be applied to the wolves of Rushwater Holt. The information herein pertains specifically to the Timber Wolf, which is a subspecies of the Grey Wolf found across North America.
Biology
Wolves are members of the canine/dog family, scientifically classified as Canis lupis. However, despite their relationship to dogs, wolves possess significant differences from the dog and even when bred in captivity are never fully 'tame'; the wild is a well-ingrained aspect of the wolf as a whole.
Appearance
There are approximately 5 subspecies of North American wolf, the most common being those of the Grey Wolf strain, especially the Timber Wolf, which is discussed herein. These wolves typically measure 2.5 feet (0.76 m) in height at the shoulder and are between 5 to 5.5 feet (1.5 to 1.6 m) in length, including the tail, which averages 15 to 19 inches (38 to 48 cm); males being slightly larger in size and mass than females. Weight typically ranges between 50 to 100 lbs. (25 to 50 kg). Wolves generally achieve their adult mass by their first autumn and finish growing between their first and second year, only continuing to flesh out shortly thereafter.
Timber wolves possess a mainly two-toned colouring system with darker coloured backs of brown and black with reddish or grayish highlights and lighter toned underbellies of gold, cream and white. Black and brown are the most common colours while pure red and white are extremely rare. The coat itself is also double layered; a short, soft undercoat similar to the down of a duck is closest to the skin and provides insulation while a longer, rougher layer of guard hairs provides defense from the elements and other animals.
Physical Features
The wolves' head and jaws are essential to its survival, as even a toothache can result in death. Powerful jaws can deliver as much as 1500 lbs. (750 kg) of pressure per square inch, easily accounting for a wolf's ability to grab prey and cling to it despite thrashing. The mouth houses 42 teeth, which serve different functions. The large canine teeth capture and hold prey during a hunt while the small incisor teeth are used to nibble flesh from bones and the stout carnassial molars break bones and grind.
Similarly important to wolf survival are the legs and feet. Wolves in fact walk upon their toes rather than the whole foot. The fore feet are comprised of 5 toes, 4 of which are walked upon while the fifth is placed higher up off the ground. The hind feet have only 4 toes, lacking the fifth, higher toe as seen on the front feet. All feet have a pad of tougher skin in the middle and each toe is equipped with a non-retractable claw. While the outer two toes of a dog point slightly outward from the foot, a wolf's print shows all four toes pointing straight ahead. Wolves also move both front and back leg of one side of the body at one time, placing the hind foot exactly where the fore foot was, thus creating a very straight line of single tracks. When traveling in groups, wolves walk in this manner single filed, keeping one set of tracks despite the many individuals. Dogs do not exhibit either of these walking properties.
Wolves possess great senses of smell and hearing, much more advanced than the dog. The sense of smell is most relied upon, used for both social and hunting purposes. With favourable winds conditions wolves are known to be able to detect prey as far away as 1.5 miles (2.4 km), aiding in their adept tracking capabilities. Acute hearing allows a wolf to detect sounds equally as readily. Howling, for example, can be normally heard to within 3 miles (4.8 km), sometimes even up to 6 miles (9.6 km). In open terrain such as tundra or prairies this distance can increase to as much as 10 miles (16 km).
Sight, however, is the least developed sense, and wolves are typically near-sighted as their ability to focus decreases with distance although they have very good peripheral vision. As with many carnivores, wolves' vision is more acutely attuned to movement and stationary objects are quickly ignored. It is also believed that wolves are at least partially colour blind and some studies have shown them to only recognize red and yellow, which may be due to the associations of blood and urine. Night vision, in comparison, is quite strong.
Not much research has been done on the topic of wolves' sense of taste but it has been determined that wolves can recognize saltiness, bitterness, sweetness and acidity.
Physical Abilities
Wolves are among some of the most intelligent animals of the world, far surpassing the highly trainable dog. Wolves are able to learn both from experience and by simply watching other beings and they do so very quickly, showing rapid adeptness. They also have the ability to retain information for long periods of time over their lives.
A wolf's strong legs make them good runners. They are able to range as much as 20 miles (32 km) in a single day when on the search for food. They are also good sprinters, a technique used extensively during the hunting process. Jumping is an equally strong skill and wolves can easily clear distances of up to 13 feet (4 m) when on the chase or wishing to overcome environmental obstacles. Swimming too comes naturally to wolves and they seem to enjoy the water - having no objections to following prey into rivers or even eating a meal in the water.
Aging & Ailments
The dangers of the wild make for short lifespans. Quite often only half of the pups of a litter survive their first year and the majority of wolves rarely live beyond the age of five. Ten years is quite old for a wild wolf while captive wolves may live to 15 years and in some special cases up to 20 years. Like humans, aging wolves lose pigment in their hairs and steadily turn grey or white and their teeth wear down.
Wolves are susceptible to many ailments - a longer list then is necessary here. However, the most common issues are due to parasites; external parasites such as fleas and ticks burrow into the thick pelt and feast on the animal's blood while internal parasites such as heartworms, ringworms and tapeworms infest themselves into vital organs and steadily siphon nutrients from the body. Mange and tapeworms are by far the most common infections. Distemper may also appear but usually only among wolves that have come into contact with domesticated dogs. Rabies, although possible, is in fact very rare and found more commonly among small mammals such as raccoons and skunks rather than wolves.
Habitat
Wolves are highly versatile animals and can live among many differing ecosystems from the arctic to the desert and places in between. The most important factors in any habitat, however, are the presence of food and a sheltered den. While wolves tend to almost constantly range within their territory, the presence of a den becomes important during the whelping season. A secure den that has easy access to water aids in ensuring the pups will have the best chance of survival during their first year of life.
The size of a pack's territory varies just as its ability to inhabit many ecosystems does. If game is plentiful then even a larger pack can easily survive in the confines of a smaller territory. When game is scare the territory borders must be enlarged for the search of food.
Social System
Wolves are highly social animals and live in family groups called packs. The pack community is based on a hierarchy system of ranking where a dominant mated pair, called the Alphas, lead the pack and all other individuals are subservient to them. These lesser, subservient wolves then form their own ranks from high to mid to low with the lowest wolves being the Omegas. Where a wolf falls in this pack hierarchy is based on dominance behaviour - more aggressive and dominant wolves obtain higher ranks while less aggressive wolves fill in the lowest positions. Similarly, rank determines function in the pack - for more detailed information on pack rank and functions refer to the Wolf Pack Rank page. Wolves who can no longer contribute to the pack pass on, either of their own accord or by force of the pack.
While the hierarchy system and dominance behaviour may appear to be simplistic bullying to humans, this is rarely the case. The dominant Alpha and high ranking wolves (usually males) are in fact very tolerant of their lower ranking companions who are typically blood relatives. This is important for providing emotional stability and cohesion within the pack. Wolves also frequently partake in group social activities that help maintain close bonds to each other, such as playful chasing, sniffing greetings to one another, howling, growling, whining and even ritualistic dominance displays and pinning each other.
Despite the orientation to pack life, lone wolves do exist (approximately 15% of cases). These solitary animals are typically low ranking males who have left their family pack in search of a new mate and/or a new pack that may provide it better advancement opportunities. Going solo is risky business, however, as a lone wolf lacks the protection of the pack and the increased efficiency of group hunting. As a result, their mortality rate is very high and lone wolves who do not find a new pack within a year often do not last much longer on their own. However, those who do find a new pack provide fresh genetic stock, which aids in balancing the occurrence of inbreeding.
Communication
Wolves communicate among themselves and other animals through the use of sight, sound and scent markers. Visual communication is typically used within the pack while vocal and scent communication can be more widely spread across the pack territory.
Visual Communication
Visual communication is comprised of body language, posturing and what researchers refer to as the 'fixed stare'. All three forms are related and interact together. For example, an Alpha may give the 'fixed stare' to any of the lower ranking wolves, thereby enforcing the recognition of rank. The 'fixed stare' is accompanied by dominant posturing by the Alpha - a tall stance, forward perking ears and raised tail. Lower ranked wolves that receive the 'fixed stare' respond with submissive posturing - crouching while raising a foreleg, lowered ears, showing the whites of the eyes and the throat, partaking in a licking intention and a low and/or tucked tail. The Alpha may also pin a submissive wolf and enclose its jaws over the submissive wolf's muzzle. Despite the extreme body language in effect, these displays are mostly peaceful. Wolves express annoyance with a partially raised tail, raised hackles, forward moving ears and pulling the lips back to reveal the teeth.
Vocal Communication
Vocal expressions cover a wide range of emotions and sounds, including howling, whining, growling, barking and even squeaking. Howling is a multi-purpose expression and works to assemble the pack, define pack territory and warn intruders and is also done for social reasons such as celebrating births, deaths and just for the enjoyment of it. Howling becomes more frequent when a pack has something special to protect, such as a litter of pups or an especially large kill. Each wolf has a unique voice.
Scent Communication
Scent communication is accomplished through the use of urine and feces, most commonly as a means of marking the pack's territory. However, scent marking can also be used to mark empty food caches or food that is not to be eaten for whatever reason and also occurs during courtship when bonding pairs double urinate to inform others of their union. Scent marking through urine lasts approximately 2 weeks.
Interestingly, wolves urinate differently depending on their rank in the pack. All lower ranked wolves squat urinate; females actually squatting as female dogs do and males urinating in a stretched four-legged stance. The Alpha pair, in contrast, both lift-leg urinate, thereby able to scent mark objects on a higher level and provide intruders with the knowledge of their distinguished rank.
Diet & Hunting
Diet
Wolves are carnivores, meaning that they are meat-eaters. Diet, however, changes significantly from season to season, depending on what animals are available and most readily caught. Wolves typically feed upon hoofed animals such as deer, moose, elk, bison and musk oxen but also eat smaller animals including snakes, rabbits, beavers and even rodents such as mice and insects, too. Berries are periodically eaten when in season but they are poorly digested. Fragments of bone, hair and skin are also sometimes eaten along with the muscle meat and choice innards such as heart, liver and kidneys but the prey's stomach and contents are always avoided. Grass is also consumed but never digested, serving to clean out the intestines rather than nourish the body.
Feeding is accomplished through the pack hierarchy, with the higher ranking individuals eating first and the lesser wolves eating last. As a result, the higher ranking wolves get the greatest percentage of food and the best portions in comparison to the lower ranked wolves. Wolves are known to gorge themselves on a kill if they have not eaten for quite some time, such as a week or more, but never do they overeat; their internal metabolism being strictly controlled by the liver. During whelping season meat is brought back to the den for the Alpha female to eat, as she cannot leave the litter while nursing. Once weaned, the pups induce adults to regurgitate food for them by jumping at and licking the adult's muzzle; an adult can regurgitate three to four times in this manner to feed the pups.
Hunting
Several factors determine hunting ability: size and strength of individual wolves, plus pack size and the existence and use of hunting strategies. While wolves are carnivores and hunters, they are by no means foolproof and despite being primarily opportunistic hunters who target the young, old, sick and injured, only approximately 3% of hunts are successful. Additionally, large and small prey alike can easily wound or kill a wolf.
Wolves locate prey by scent, tracking and the occasional chance encounter. Wolves will use the advantage of upwind tracking whenever available and work to sneak up as close to the prey as possible before being detected. Excitement increases steadily in a tracking wolf as it nears its target but instinct causes it to remain in check so as not to spook the prey prematurely.
There are four distinct stages to a given hunt: the stalk, the encounter, the rush and the chase. Wolves pick out the best likely kills (those animals that are young, old, sick or injured) by observing the prey's body language. Once they have stalked the prey to the point of detection, the encounter begins where both parties - the hunter and the prey - are aware of each other and take stock of the situation. The rush may be initiated by either party, either the wolf attempting to provoke the prey into flight to be chased down or the prey attempting to fend off the wolf. Large prey such as elk, moose, bison and musk oxen may choose to stand their ground, their size giving them a measure of equality to that of the predator and in many cases this technique can bluff a wolf out of the kill. The chase, if initiated, is the point at which a wolf actually attacks, usually aiming for either the rump or the tender nose and similar facial areas. A chase may be long, covering several miles or end after only a few minutes of pursuit - the determining factor in chase length generally being how hungry the wolf is and the food to energy expended ratio of the prey being chased. Prey death is caused by loss of blood and shock, either independently or combined.
Wolves typically possess several types of hunting strategies and vary them depending on the type of prey being hunted. Most commonly a hunting pack will send forth one or two wolves to herd the prey into an ambush of waiting wolves. Other techniques include individual wolves laying in wait in tall grass, attracting the attention of the prey to come nearer to them for a lounge by swishing their tails; driving prey into rivers where momentum is decreased and herding hoofed prey onto icy flows where footing stability is compromised.
Wolves are also known to practice prey management, hunting in different parts of their territory and selecting from different herds and animals so as not to exterminate all sources of food in the area and allowing prey populations to recover from hunting. Surplus killing is also virtually unheard of among wild packs and typically only occurs in cases of wolves preying on domesticated animals that do not comprehend the hunt mechanism, blithely allowing themselves to be slaughtered without protest. The few recorded cases of surplus killing amid wild packs have occurred during the breeding/whelping seasons where additional food is an asset to survival.
Breeding & Puppies
Breeding
The Alpha pair is typically the only wolves to breed in the pack. However, if the pack is large and can sustain more than one litter, the Alpha female may allow lesser females to be bred by the Alpha male but these occurrences are few and far between; the instinct to promote one's own genetic stock an incredibly compelling force within the wolf.
Leading up to the breeding season the Alpha female becomes the most dangerous wolf in the pack, coveting her position as lead breeder. The Alpha female may even temporarily drive lower ranking females out of the pack during this time so as to prevent any competition. Come late winter the breeding season officially begins and lasts for approximately 4 weeks. During this time the Alpha female will initiate the coupling by the Alpha male, who is responsible for suppressing the other males in the pack so that they do not bred the Alpha female before him. Once the breeding process has successfully been met, the lower females are readmitted back into the pack and may even aid in preparing the whelping den along with the Alpha female.
Wolf gestation period is 63 days and the average litter is comprised of 5-6 pups. At birth pups weigh approximately 1 lb. (0.5 kg) and are blind and deaf, being able to do little more than wiggle to their mother's nipple. They are also incapable of self-heating and must be constantly warmed by their mother's body heat. Development is steady and pups gain an average of approximately 3 lbs. (1.5 kg) in weight a week and their eyes open at 10 days of age, although they are not well focused at this time. By 3 weeks pups are able to walk, chew, growl and their ears open to allow for hearing; this is the time when they begin to leave the confines of their den and explore the outside world. Weaning also begins at about this time as the milk teeth begin to appear. Once weaned, the pups will induce adults returned from a hunt to regurgitate portions of their food by jumping and licking at the adult's muzzles. By 5 weeks pups are ready to leave the whelping den and travel up to a mile (1.6 km).
Although instinct accounts for much, mothering capability is not instantaneous. Many new mothers may not be successful on their first year of breeding, resulting in the death of some of the pups or even the whole litter. This can especially be the case for females who have experienced a significant increase in rank and are additionally struggling to adjust to their new pack position. Surprisingly, new mothers who have larger litters are often more successful, the increased number of offspring helping to encourage her into attentiveness. New mothers of small litters (1-2 pups) can often become apathetic to the detriment of the pups.