The snow was deep and they’d walked for 25 miles already today. Familiar territory, sure. But the hares weren’t around like they had been the year prior. This year was requiring more work. The nine of them climbed the hill, knowing that on the other side would likely be valuable prey to feed the pups before returning to the den. Only four remained from the seven first born. She had been supported by the older siblings through the summer in providing food to the pups but there hadn’t been quite enough to support them all.
They reached the top of the hill. He, the eldest male and ‘father’ of the pack (alpha male), moved up next to her, the eldest female and ‘mother’ of the pack (alpha female). He was larger than average at 105lbs, 6’4” long and standing 34” from the ground at his sholder. Their pack consisted of their offspring and one adopted yearling whose pack was killed by hunters the year prior - they'd never adopted before and never would again. In Canada this was legal hunting, although with only 4,000 being hunted a year, dangers of the wild or disease were much more likely to kill them than hunters.
They sniffed the air and scanned the plains below. No obvious prey, but they had to go on. She led, cutting a track through the snow through which the rest could walk. He followed after hanging back for a short rest; tired from cutting the track for the last 10 miles.
They mated for the first time ten years ago, each at the age of two. They had left their packs and found each other, as lone wolves. A pack of nine was fairly typical for them depending on the number of pups they had, and how many survived. Every year, as they had more pups, the eldest of their young somewhere between the ages of 1-4, would see the competition for food within the pack was harder than going alone. So, they’d leave to become lone wolves and typically find mates soon thereafter. These two, like all wolves, would stay with each other as long as they both lived. If all goes well that would be another 2 or so years.
Over the years they had only had two different dens. The first was destroyed in a wildfire but did them well for 3 years. The second had been their home ever since. It was a reliable, familiar shelter in the center of their territory which had varied from 50-450km² depending on food availability. This year was at the upper end for them but was still far short of the ~6,000km² some other packs needed to survive.
As he started forward to rejoin his pack a familiar smell ignited his nostrils. His experience of smelling prey over a mile away kept his thinking calm as he turned and lowered his body into the snow, his light gray coat blending in perfect camouflage, as sound joined the smell confirming the nearness of some prey. Still, he remained calm as he knew he could hear even further - up to 10 miles away when downwind like he was now. He waited. Still, calm until he saw movement. While he waited his pack had picked up on his interest and slowly rejoined him. As the first three of his pack moved alongside him, the deer’s head emerged from the forest below him, lifting its nose to check for danger.
The wolves wasted no time, launching off their hind legs down the hill, hitting 30mph in less than 4 seconds. While the deer’s reactions were almost instant, its chances of survival were slim. While the wolves had a short distance to cover, their real strength was in numbers and their ability to run distance. Unlike the past, this time it didn’t take several miles of running to surround the deer. Within minutes they had it cornered, taken down, and killed.
The meat from this one deer would feed the whole pack and keep them nourished for days. They only need a few pounds a day each. Feeding collectively, the mating pair made sure the pups had their fill first, followed by the older siblings. The pups didn’t need regurgitated food anymore. They were 5 months old so could eat meat. In another month or so they would be hunting with the rest of the pack.
Justified admiration, or false ideology?
Wolves have always been a species that has fascinated me from a distance. Living in the southern hemisphere I’ve never seen one in the wild, but I’ve spoken to enough folk who have to know that the experience would be one worth paying for. There’s some sort of mystical admiration many of us have for them. While this is justified, social media and incorrect facts, act somewhat like propaganda, fuelling this admiration.
Like many, I’ve seen and read the above. And I thought it was exceptional. What I’ve since learned is that this description has been debunked several times. It’s ideological anthropomorphism at its worst. It wasn’t the weakest in the front and the alpha at the back. It was actually a ‘mother’ at the front and a straggler at the back. 25 wolves, however, is probably more than one family unit which can often make up a pack. This, and plenty of other facts, I didn’t know about wolves.
Regardless, the way wolves work together as a family unit, stay monogamous to their first mate until death, have as permanent home as is possible in their den, and communicate to each other, does make the familiarity factor high. Let alone their taxonomic closeness to domestic dogs.
I’ve been told that Native Americans have a legend they tell about wolves. “Years ago the earth split between man, and animals. At the last second, as the crack in the earth widened, the wolf lept over and joined man.” Is that actually a legend? Or more ideology? I’ll do some more digging and come back to you. Until then, some facts to add to the information I wove into the short story above.
Fast Facts about Wolves
Gray wolf (Canus lupus) is the species most of us think of and see when we think about wolves; native to North America and Eurasia, with 38 different recognized subspecies. Genetically distinct from other wolves, it shares the same genus as coyotes, jackals, and domestic dogs.
Total population is estimated ~300,000 globally including ~60,000 in Canada, ~10,000 in Alaska, ~5,000 in the contiguous US - the remainder found in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.
Many studies of wolf pack dynamics have been in captivity where a pack was forced together. This spurred the concept of a dominant alpha. These dynamics unfolded because they were forced together. It’s not the case in the wild where a mated pair work together to lead a pack just as human married couples do.
There can be multiple family units within one pack. In this instance, there can be a dominant breeding pair - the ‘alphas’ - who lead the rest.
Family packs average around 8 (varies by location). Multi-family packs can get up toward 30.
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