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Wolves Animal | The Most Interesting Facts About Wolves
Wolves belong to the same family as domestic dogs and wolves are a large dog found in North America and Eurasia. Apart from this, they are also known as gray wolves. Wolves look like dogs and their length can be about 41-63 inches. The shoulder height of a wolf can be about 31-33 inches.
The snout and ears of a wolf are less pointed and the body of a wolf is short and the tail is long. Being related to small species like golden jackal and coyote, wolves are much larger in size than dogs.
The fur of a wolf is black or brown and subspecies living in Arctic regions can be completely white. Wolves are great hunters but despite this, other animals or humans can hunt wolves.
Some animals in the wild hunt wolves such as polar bears, grizzly bears, Siberian tigers eat wolves. Wolves are afraid of humans and can attack domestic animals but wolves stay away from humans.
Where Are Wolves Found
These predatory animals are found in Europe, North America, North Africa and Asia. Apart from this, wolves like to live in the forest and red wolves live in forests, swamps and coastal valleys.
It may seem that the wolf species prefer to live only in cold climates but it can also live in areas where the temperature can range from 70 degrees below zero to 120 degrees Fahrenheit.
A pack of wolves travels up to about 20 kilometers a day and wolf saliva has antiseptic properties. The saliva of wolves can help heal wounds and the largest wild dog species is the gray wolf.
These animals howl to form a strong bond and also warn other packs to stay away. Another method of communication used by wolves is to leave a scent trail of feces or urine in an area.
Scientific Name Of Wolves
The scientific name of wolves is Canis lupus and wolves form the same family as dogs so their behavior sometimes makes them very cute like dogs.
Like dog babies, wolf babies are also very cute and they look very adorable because of the innocence present on their faces. As the babies grow up, their innocence fades to some extent.
Baby wolves are known as pups and in a pack mostly the leader and his mate give birth to babies. Females give birth to 1-11 babies after mating at the end of winter season and 9 weeks of gestation period.
The babies are taken care of by the wolves of the pack and at the age of about 5-10 weeks the babies start taking a hard diet. At the age of 6 months the babies are ready to hunt and when the babies are 2 years old they become full grown wolves.
Wolves Habitat
Wolves prefer to live in the forest and wolves can be easily seen in habitats ranging from tundra to desert areas and large plains to temperate rainforests. This range of habitats has become home to wolves and their prey because they have adapted very well to them.
At present, this animal is found in greater numbers in the northern regions of the world such as Russia, Canada and Alaska. Wolves are known to live in packs, roam and mark their territories as they move. They have a group of 6 to 10 wolves which is known as a wolf pack.
Wolves also hunt in packs and can roam far. Wolves can travel a distance of about 20 kilometers in a day and packs of wolves cooperate in hunting large animals like elk and deer. When their prey is killed, wolves eat in large quantities. A wolf from their pack can eat up to 9 kilograms of meat at a time. Read- Dinosaur | History And Interesting Facts About Dinosaur
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How Do Wolves Look Like
Nowadays, the areas where wolves are found have a high number of living and wolves belong to the Canidae family so they look like dogs. The tails of the wolf are bushy and the body of the wolf is a mixture of brown color.
Size Of Wolves
The weight of the wolves can vary depending on its location. The smallest size wolf is considered to be the Arabian wolf weighing around 13 kg and lives in the southern Middle East. Apart from this, the male gray wolf living in northern Minnesota weighs around 31-45 kg and the female can weigh between 22-38 kg.
Gray wolves found in Canada, northwestern United States, Alaska and Russia are large in size and the male wolf can weigh about 38-50 kg. The length of wolves can be about 41-63 feet and weigh about 18-79 kg. Gray wolves are larger in size than red wolves.
What Do Wolves Eat
Wolves are carnivorous animals and eat up to 9 kilograms of food at a time. Apart from this, wolves eat only the meat that they hunt. Gray wolves are known to hunt large animals like goats, deer. Wolves attack their prey in packs and can hunt wild or domestic animals.
How Wolves Reproduce
Wolves mate with only one partner throughout their lives and are therefore considered monogamous. But if a mate dies, the surviving wolf quickly finds another mate. Female wolves give birth to 1 pup every year.
The gestation period of wolves is 62-75 days and in very cold areas, they give birth in spring or early summer. When female wolves are pregnant, they stay in their burrows to avoid encounters with other packs.
Burrows for the pups are built during the summer time. These burrows are made in cracks in rocks and wolves take care of play areas, resting places and food for the offspring while building the burrows.
A female wolf can have 4-5 puppies while older females can have 6-8 puppies. When these puppies are born, they are deaf and blind and look like German Shepherd dog puppies.
The babies have soft brown fur and weigh 300-500 grams. The babies start seeing when they are 9-12 days old and at the age of 3-4 weeks they start eating a hard diet.
The rapid growth of the babies in the first 4 months increases their weight by 30 times and by the fall season the babies are ready to accompany the adult wolves to hunt and defend their territory.
How Long Do Wolves Live
Wolves live for about 8-13 years in the wild and it is known that wolves can live longer in zoos which can be up to about 15 years. Some wolves in the wild die at birth or are killed when they are not even fully grown.
But wolves in zoos have a better chance of living to a good age because wolves are given regular food and medical care. The biggest problem wolves face is that their cubs do not survive the first winter after being born. If the cubs survive, their chances of survival increase to 2-4 years.
How Fast Can Wolves Run
Wolves can run at a speed of about 50-60 kilometers per hour. Just like dogs are good at running, wolves belong to the same family so wolves are also good at running.
Apart from this, wolves also have to hunt deer and so the running speed of the wolf has evolved a lot to hunt for food and survive. Read- Indian Paradise Flycatcher Interesting Facts With Picture
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How Do Wolves Communicate
The thing you must have heard about wolf communication is the wolf howl. Wolves howl at any time and mostly wolves howl in the evening as that is the most active time of the wolf. The communication of wolves can be divided into 4 types like howling, barking, growling and whimpering.
Apart from this, they bark to warn so it is wise to pay attention to the barking of wolves. If the female wolves feel that there is any danger around then the female can bark to warn her children. Barking is also used by wolves to defend their pack.
Whining is a form of communication where female wolves tell their cubs that she is ready to raise them. If a wolf that is whining is facing a wolf then it can also be used as a signal to give up. Growling is used to scare predators or attack animals from their territory.
Howling is a form of communication used by wolves over long distances. Apart from this, wolves also have their own body language and in anger their teeth and ears stand upright. When wolves are suspicious they squint and pull their ears back.
How Many Wolves Are There In The World
The number of gray wolves in the world is about 200,000-250,000. Wolves were once more numerous in Eurasia and North America but now live only in a small part of the range due to encroachment and destruction of the habitat of these animals.
The IUCN has classified the wolf species as least concern, and in 2003 there were about 300,000 wild wolves worldwide. But despite habitat loss and other threats, wolves' populations remain healthy.
Behavior Of The Wolves
Some people keep wolves as exotic pets and it cannot make a good pet because they do not respond to human commands. Instead, wolves act aggressively.
Wolves Facts For Kids
1. What is the wolf known for?
It is famous for its spine-tingling howl, which is used by wolves to communicate with each other. The wolf howls to get the attention of its pack. The collective howl of wolves can send territorial messages from one pack to another.
2. Do dogs share 99.9% of their DNA with wolves?
Dogs share 99.9% of their DNA with gray wolves, and that 1% makes a lot of difference. Natural and artificial selection of that 1% of traits has resulted in dogs having the most variation of any animal.
3. Are wolves found in India?
Wolf species are found in India which has two sub-species. Indian wolf and Himalayan wolf also known as Tibetan wolf. Apart from this, Indian wolf is found in India and Himalayan wolf lives in the Himalayan region.
4. What are 5 facts about wolves?
Wolves have 4 paws and these paws are oval in shape. Wolves stay together for life and have 4 to 6 puppies in a pack. Their puppies are born blind with bright blue eyes and there can be from 2 to more than 30 wolves in a pack. Wolves can run at a speed of 50-60 kilometers.
5. Which divine animal is the wolf?
In Roman mythology, they are associated with Mars, the god of war and agriculture. Apart from this, the role of the wolf is very diverse and the wolf is often associated with the Greek gods Zeus, Apollo, Artemis and Leto.
6. What is a wolf for kids?
Wolves belong to the dog family and the members of this family are called canids. This family also includes coyotes, foxes, jackals and domestic dogs. Today only 2 species are considered true wolves which is the gray or timber wolf.
7. What is a simple fact about wolves?
Wolves live in packs and love to hunt. Wolves are known to roam up to 12 miles (22.224 kilometres) a day and cooperate on their favorite prey which includes large animals such as deer, elk and moose. Wolves do not eat in moderation when they are successful in hunting.
8. What are baby wolves called?
Baby wolves are called pups and the term cub is mostly used for big cats but both young bears and raccoons are also referred to as cubs.
9. What is special about wolves?
Wolves are highly intelligent animals that are caring and devoted to their families above all else. Like elephants and gorillas, wolves raise their young and live in family groups.
10. What do wolves eat?
Wolves are carnivorous animals and prefer to hunt and eat animals such as deer, elk and bison. Apart from this, wolves also hunt small animals such as beavers, kraits and rabbits.