THE NATURE OF WOLVES

The Nature Of Wolves

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The Nature of Wolves
Introduction

There is very little knowledge in the public about the nature of wolves.   From my own personal knowledge and from doing research I would like to inform the public about the wolf and help them to understand that the idea of the little red riding hood wolf, which attacks humans, doesn't really exist.   Information is the key to successful wolf ad-vocacy.   There are now a few small wolf populations scattered throughout the United States. As the federal government edges closer to desisting the wolf, as an endangered species, those populations will face multiplying dangers. We must make sure that the next generation carries on with wolf recovery. The best way to do that is through educa-tion.
The wolf has the most sophisticated social organization of any animal outside the primate world.   Wolves are members of the scientific family Canidae, or the dog family, which also includes coyotes, foxes, jackals and domestic dogs. The wolf was given the scientific name Canis lupusby Carolus Linnaeus in the 1700's, and it is still referred to as that today.   (encyclopedia.com)
Most male wolves weigh between 70-100 pounds and females usually weigh be-tween 55-90 pounds.   An adult male is usually 3 feet high at the shoulder and about four feet long not including the tail. Females are smaller.   The adult wolf can run up to 35 miles per hour.   When hunting they can maintain a speed of 20 miles per hour for many
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hours.   They can clear a 16-foot fence in a single bound.   The wolf's sense of smell is about one hundred times greater than a human's   (caniade.ca)
In captivity, most wolves will live to be thirteen or fourteen years old.   However, wolves in the wild sometimes live to be ten years old.   Most don't live past five years of age.   This is because of disease, injuries and parasites.   Also unfortunately, man causes a lot of wolf mortality from legal and illegal hunting, trapping and...