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The gray wolf, also known as the
timber wolf, has endured a long and tumultuous relationship with humans.
They thrived prior to the 20th century in the U.S., revered by
most Native American nations. Wolf populations shrank to near extermination
in the early and mid 20th century in the U.S. due to eradication
efforts by settlers who found them a threat to livestock. Efforts to bring
back the gray wolf began in 1973 with the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and
their numbers continue to climb today.
The gray wolf once ranged from Canada
to Mexico and from the Pacific coast to the Atlantic with the exception of
the Southeastern U.S. (home of the red wolf, Canis rufus). It is now
found throughout Canada, Alaska, and a number of locations in the Midwestern
U.S. including Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Yellowstone National Park
in Wyoming, home of a recently re-introduced group. On a global scale, gray
wolf populations are recovering due to research and public education
efforts. They can now also be found in several countries in Europe. Highly
adaptive, gray wolves have inhabited varied ecological/climate systems
(biomes) including the tundra of Siberia, boreal forests, temperate
deciduous forests, and temperate grassland.
 The
gray wolf is as interesting as a social animal as it is skilled as a
predator. Wolves live in packs of seven to thirty-five, observing a
hierarchy that includes parents, young and other non-breeding adults, led by
the alpha male. The alpha male is usually the sole breeding male in the
pack, typically pairing up with the alpha female. A male establishes its
status by challenging the current alpha male in a pack, either as a lone
stranger approaching an unfamiliar pack or challenging the alpha male in its
own pack. The alpha male appears to dictate the pack’s activities and is
even given the first chance to eat after a kill.
Wolves communicate
in many ways, including posture, scent, and voice. Howling is a major
component of their vocal communication, used to assemble the pack before and
after a hunt, to talk to other packs, assert territorial claims or as an
exclamation of pleasure. Wolves howl more frequently in the early morning
and evening, particularly during breeding and pup-rearing. Howling can be
heard far away. Emotion and status is usually displayed using faces and
tails, while territory is marked by urine and feces.
The wolf is the
largest of all wild dogs, standing at up to 30 inches (0.8m) at the
shoulder, between four and five feet (1.2-1.5m) in length and weighing up to
150 pounds (68kg), although males average about 90 pounds (41kg) and females
generally weigh about 80 pounds (36kg). Despite their name, gray wolves can
also have white, red, or black fur.
 Typically
mating for life, pairs mate in winter. After a nine-week pregnancy the
female gives birth to a litter of 2-14 pups in a den that the pack has dug
for shelter. The pups rely on their mother’s milk in the first month but
are gradually weaned and fed regurgitated meat given by the other members of
the pack. Within five to seven months, the pups are capable of traveling
with the pack, roaming throughout their territory, which can range over one
hundred square miles (259 square kilometers).
As predators, wolves
help maintain balance in the food web of their ecosystem. They are excellent
hunters, capable of traveling up to 30 miles (48km) in a day to pursue prey.
They typically trot at a pace of about 5 mph (8 kmph) throughout the day but
they can reach speeds of up to 40 mph (64 kmph). In North America, wolves
can eat a variety of animals, including field mice, although they mainly eat
large ungulates, including bison, moose, deer, caribou and elk in the
summer, helping to maintain sustainable prey populations. The evolutionary
consequences of wolf predation can be seen today in the physical traits of
prey species. The speed and alertness of the antelope and elk, respectively,
and the agility of the mountain goat, are all due in part due to wolf
predation. By keeping large herbivore populations under control, wolf
predation allows for sustainable populations of smaller animals such as
beavers and other rodents who are vital players in the ecology of their
habitats.
In the early part of
the 20th century, as settlers moved westward, large ungulate
populations plummeted from a major increase in hunting. This drastically
depleted the major source of food for the gray wolf population, which turned
to cattle and sheep in order to survive. To protect livestock the campaign
to eradicate the wolf population, led by ranchers and government agencies,
intensified. Wolves were shot, poisoned, and hunted by dogs until only a few
hundred remained in the extreme northern part of Minnesota, Canada, and
Alaska. The ESA brought with it hopes for recovery of gray wolf populations.
Other programs that have been initiated, including the experimental groups
brought from Canada to Idaho and Yellowstone National Park in the mid
1990’s, have proven successful, and the gray wolf status has been raised
from endangered to threatened in the lower 48 states. In Alaska, populations
fluctuate between six and eight thousand and are not considered threatened.
Wolf management is a
highly controversial topic, with conservation groups often at odds with
ranchers and others who still fear for the safety of livestock and people.
Many states have compensation programs for lost livestock and wolf
populations are monitored to note pack interactions with human populations.
Overall, it is looking hopeful for the gray wolf as it recovers from
dwindling numbers and people become educated on their inherent value and
vital role as predators.
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