Wolf gray (ordinary). Varieties of wolves living in Russia What kind of tail does a wolf have

In the eyes of a child, a wolf is an animal from a fairy tale, for adults, a wolf is a character in films about werewolves. This is based on the fact that now people have been captured by continuous television. But you need to watch not only entertaining films, sometimes you should pay attention to documentary programs about life. Then you can learn a lot of interesting things about wolves, most importantly, reliable. For example, how they behave in natural environment habitat, what kind of wolf in nature, what kind of enemies threaten ... After reading this article, you can make sure that this is not such a terrible and unprincipled animal, as shown in horror films and fairy tales.

The wolf is a typical predator

In the animal world, the wolf is considered the most typical predator. Together with their closest "relatives" - coyotes, jackals, they honorably take their place in the wolf family. There are only 2 types of real wolves in the world - red and gray.

It will not take much time to describe the appearance of this predator, there is no such person who would not know what a wolf looks like. There are all signs of a real predator! The body is slender and at the same time tightly knocked down, designed for long transitions and fast running (the wolf can reach speeds of up to 60 km / h), the muzzle is elongated. All this is accompanied by an obligatory “decoration” of a predator - two rows of large and sharp teeth (with one bite, a wolf gnaws a sheep’s throat). The claws on the paws are blunt, they grind off from walking, these animals move a lot. It is not for nothing that the people say: “The legs feed the wolf!”

The size and color of predators depend on their location. The northern representatives of this genus are quite large, with a coat of light gray almost white color. The predatory inhabitants of the middle zone are of the usual gray color, but among them there are rare handsome men whose wool is absolutely brown and red from the southern area, they are noticeably inferior in size to their relatives. Their weight and size are quite small compared to the northern "brothers".

In what area does the wolf live in nature?

The life of wolves is quite possible in any locality, it would be so, but man applied his evil will to this. People stubbornly exterminated these predators in order to push them away from their homes. So it turns out that the life expectancy of a wolf in nature largely depends on

These hardy predators live in different areas and in any climate. It is possible to meet them in the wild in the mountains, forests, steppes and tundra. Only in Holland, Belgium, Denmark and France, our contemporaries, unfortunately, cannot see a wolf in the wild, in these countries the animals are simply exterminated. You can admire them only in zoos. Here is such a sad fact.

The lifestyle of wolves in the natural environment

Wolf Pack usually consists of 10-30 predators, these are pack animals. At the head of each family, as expected, is the eldest pair of parents. The life of wolves in the wild is very interesting! Animals live in their community according to "wolf" laws, only in the good sense of this definition. The leader keeps strict discipline, distributes duties fairly and divides the booty. Animals “talk” among themselves with the help of facial expressions and gestures. A simple grin of an alpha male and alpha females can put a naughty relative in their place.

The life of wolves can tell us another interesting detail. The dominant pair always proudly holds its tail up, showing the rest of its superiority. Members of the pack, standing one step lower in rank, try to make the tail an even continuation of the body. The lower the position of the animal in the family, the lower the tail falls. The weakest keep it tight, despite their low position, no one dares to offend them. On the contrary, they can count on protection and a share of the booty, unless they run into rudeness themselves.

Mating season and procreation

The life expectancy of wolves is not so great, given all the dangers that await them in nature. During their lives, animals must have time to leave offspring so that their lineage continues. nature! Wolves bring puppies once a year.

The mating season begins in winter, the rut of one pair lasts for 5-10 days, pregnancy lasts 60-64 days. In spring, cubs are already squealing in a hole near a pair of wolves. Usually there are from 3 to 5 babies in a brood, they are born blind and helpless, they do not show their nose from the den for a whole month. From 1.5 months they become real predators and begin to eat meat, however, it is semi-digested, for puppies it is regurgitated by the father of the family. Wolves create their pairs for life, only in the event of the death of one of the spouses, the remaining one is looking for a new life partner, parents take care of the growing kids on an equal footing.

Life span of wolves in nature

Wolves have few enemies among animals, they are brave and hardy, they have excellent hearing and sharp eyesight, they have no one to be afraid of. If this beast enters the battle, it fights to the last breath. Its main enemies are man and hunger! During starvation, many young inexperienced animals die, those that are older also suffer losses from this invisible enemy. As for people, it is they who take life the largest number animals.

The life expectancy of wolves in nature is approximately 6-10 years, but in the wild the beast rarely lives to a ripe old age. Nature lovers know the Arctic wolf, which was called the Sword, scientists have observed his life. They recorded this animal as a long-liver of the wild, he managed to live up to 13 years. But there are very few such "grandfathers" in the wolf family.

Life expectancy of wolves in captivity

Wolves, like many other animals, live in captivity. They can be seen in zoos, even in our time there are many private estates, on the territory of which wolves are kept as pets. They are well tamed, but hardly amenable to training, keeping the wild pride of the beast in captivity. Sucking up to the owner, as it does will not.

Under human protection, being in captivity, a wolf can live up to 15 years. In this case, he is not threatened by his worst enemies - hunger and the man himself. Under good conditions of detention, with high-quality nutrition, including everything necessary for a predator, a wolf can live 17-18 years.

which is usually regarded as a subspecies of the wolf ( C.l.familiaris). The wolf is the largest animal in its family: the length of its body (without a tail) can reach 160 cm, tail up to 52 cm, height at the withers up to 90 cm; body weight up to 86 kg.

The size and overall weight of wolves are subject to strong geographical variability; it has been noticed that they change proportionally depending on the surrounding climate and in full accordance with the Bergmann rule (the more cold climate the larger the animal). In general, the height of animals at the withers ranges from 60-95 cm, length 105-160 cm, and weight 32-62 kg, which makes the common wolf one of the largest mammals in the family. Profitable (one-year-old) wolves weigh in the range of 20-30 kg, over-flyers (2-3 years old) - 35-45 kg. The wolf matures at the age of 2.5-3 years, reaching a weight of 50 or more kilograms. In Siberia and Alaska, large seasoned wolves can weigh more than 77 kg.

A large animal was registered in 1939 in Alaska: its weight was about 80 kg. An 86-kilogram wolf was killed in Ukraine in the Poltava region. It is believed that in Siberia the weight of individual specimens can exceed 92 kg. The smallest subspecies should be considered the Arabian wolf ( C.l. arabs), females of which in adulthood can weigh only 10 kg. Within the same population, males are always larger than females by about 20%, and with a more lobed head.

In general appearance, the wolf resembles a large pointed-eared dog. Legs are high, strong; the paw is larger and more elongated than the dog's, the length of the track is about 9-12 cm, the width is 7 cm, the middle two fingers are more forward, the fingers are not splayed and the print is more prominent than that of a dog. The track of tracks in a wolf is smoother, and forms an almost even line, while in dogs it is a winding line. The head is broad-browed, the muzzle is relatively wide, strongly elongated and framed on the sides by “whiskers”. The massive muzzle of the wolf distinguishes it well from the jackal and coyote, in which it is narrower and sharper. In addition, it is very expressive: scientists distinguish more than 10 facial expressions: anger, anger, humility, affection, fun, alertness, threat, calmness, fear.

The skull is large, massive, high. The nasal opening is wide, especially noticeably widening downwards. The greatest length of the skull in males 268-285, females 251-268, condylobasal length of the skull, males 250-262, females 230-247, zygomatic width of males 147-160, females 136-159, interorbital width of males 84-90, females 78-85 , the length of the upper row of teeth in males is 108-116, in females 100-112 mm.

The basis of the nutrition of wolves is ungulates: in the tundra - reindeer; in the forest zone - moose, deer, roe deer, wild boars; in the steppes and deserts - antelopes. Wolves also attack domestic animals (sheep, cows, horses), including dogs. Catch, especially single wolves, and smaller prey: hares, ground squirrels, mouse-like rodents. In summer, wolves do not miss the opportunity to eat laying eggs, chicks sitting on nests or feeding on the ground of black grouse, waterfowl and other birds. Domestic geese are also often caught. Foxes, raccoon dogs, and corsacs sometimes become prey for wolves; occasionally hungry wolves attack bears sleeping in a den. Many cases are known when they tore and ate weakened animals, wounded by hunters or badly injured in a fight during the rut. Unlike many other predators, wolves often return to the uneaten remains of their prey, especially during the hungry season. They do not disdain the corpses of livestock, and on the sea coasts - the carcasses of seals and other sea animals thrown ashore. During periods of starvation, wolves eat reptiles, frogs, and even large insects(beetles, locusts). Wolves, especially in the southern regions, also eat vegetable food - various berries, wild and garden fruits, even mushrooms. In the steppes, they often raid watermelon and melon melons, satisfying not so much hunger as thirst, because they need regular, plentiful watering.

By crossing some breeds of dogs and wolves, new breeds have been created, such as:

The wolf (canis lupus), also called the gray wolf or common wolf, is a predatory mammal belonging to the canidae family. The wolf belongs to the genus of wolves, which also includes the coyote and the jackal. In the canine family, the wolf is the largest animal.

Here are its dimensions: the length of the wolf is up to 150 cm, including the tail - 2 m, the height at the withers - 90 cm, body weight - as the mass of an adult, can be up to 90 kg.

According to recent wolf DNA studies, it has been established that the wolf is the ancestor of the dog. Probably a long time ago, wolves were domesticated and a breed of domestic wolf, a dog, was bred.

The wolf was previously distributed quite extensively throughout the world, especially in Eurasia and America. At present, as a result of the mass extermination of the wolf, and due to the spread of cities and villages, the habitats of the wolf have been drastically reduced.

Moreover, in some regions now this predator is not found at all. In other regions, it appears less and less often, because there are areas in which hunting for it is still not prohibited. They continue to exterminate it, since this predator still kills livestock, can attack a person, and besides, hunting for a wolf is a long-standing human pastime.

However, the wolf brings great benefits - it regulates the balance of the ecosystem, for example, in the taiga, in the steppes and mountains, in the tundra, the wolf helps nature get rid of dying or sick animals, thereby healing the gene pool of nature.

In total, there are 32 subspecies of the wolf in the world. In Russia, you can meet an ordinary and tundra wolf.

Why is a wolf called a wolf

The word wolf, which in the Slavic peoples sounds almost the same, for example, in Bulgarian the wolf will be “vlk”, in Serbian “vuk”, in Belarusian - voyuk, and in Ukrainian “vovk”.

It is believed that this word is closely related to the word “drag”, “drag”, because when a wolf dragged away living creatures, he dragged it in front of him. Hence the origin of the word "wolf".

Wolf Ancestors - Evolution

The ancestor of the wolf is the canis lepophagus, an ancient coyote-like mammal. The ancestor of the wolf lived in North America.

When the ancient canids - wolf's rivals - borophages, died out, the ancestor wolf increased its body size. The skull of the wolf also increased. The found remains of a wolf tell us about this.

A wolf that looks like a real wolf was first discovered during the study of the early Pleistocene, which existed more than 1.8 million years ago.

For example, a wolf was found called canis priscolatrans, which resembles the appearance of a real red wolf. This ancient wolf lived in Eurasia. It later evolved into the subspecies canis mosbachensis, which was already much more similar to the modern wolf.

This wolf was distributed throughout Europe and only 500 thousand years ago it evolved into the modern wolf.

When geneticists began to study the DNA of the wolf, they found that there are at least 4 family trees of the wolf. These are the African genealogical line of the wolf, the Himalayan, Indian and Tibetan lines.

The most ancient is the Himalayan genealogical line. That is, the Himalayan wolf is considered the most ancient species, but appeared about a million years ago, then comes the Indian wolf - this is a branch from the Himalayan line, the Tibetan wolf is already a descendant of the Indian wolf, it appeared only 150 thousand years ago. The Tibetan wolf line is otherwise called Holarctic, it is common in Europe and North America.

The extinct Japanese wolf is a descendant of the Himalayan wolf, it was previously very large, but later natural changes, which led to the disappearance of large ungulates, the Japanese wolf became smaller.

The Hokkaido wolf, however, which lives on the mainland and has the ability to hunt large prey, is much larger than its extinct Japanese counterpart.

The Japanese wolf, as well as the Japanese Khondos wolf or shamanu, became extinct as a result of extermination by people. The wolf was exterminated due to rabies, cases of which were described in literary sources and dated 1732. The last wolf was exterminated in Japan in 1905. It was a miniature wolf that looked more like a fox than a wolf.

Now you can see only stuffed animals of this wolf in museums.

Appearance of a wolf

In different parts of the world, the wolf looks different. The appearance of a wolf is highly dependent on prey and on the surrounding climate. If we consider the average representative of the wolf, then this animal at the withers is approximately from 65 to 90 cm, weight is from 30 to 90 kg.

The wolf reaches maturity at about 3 years old, gaining height and weight. In Siberia, a wolf up to 80 kg in weight can be found.

But hunters say that it is not uncommon to meet an animal with a weight of more than 90 kg.

The smallest wolf in the world - the Arabian wolf - canis arabs, it can weigh 10-15 kg.

If we consider the wolf population, then usually males are 20% larger than females both in height and weight. In appearance, the wolf resembles a large dog with sharp ears.

The habitat of the red wolf is Central, Central and South Asia, as well as the Malay Peninsula. This predator can be seen on the island of Sumatra and on the island of Java.

In Russia, you can expect a red wolf, but it is hardly possible to meet it, since this predator has not been seen by anyone in Russia for 30 years. Perhaps its population has already disappeared in Russia, and yet the red wolf is listed in the Red Book of Russia.

It is quite easy to recognize this predator - it has a fox appearance - short legs, a long body with a long tail, a small head and thick red-red long hair. It is possible that when you meet this wolf, you may think that you have met a fox.

The red wolf is a pack animal, scientists believe that there are no more than a few thousand of these unusual wolves left. This wolf hunts at any time of the day or night and always lives where there are many ungulates. Since the purpose of his hunting are mountain sheep, goats and deer.

The number of the red wolf has been reduced due to the fact that its habitat has been destroyed by man, the number of wild grazing ungulates has decreased, and therefore the number of red wolf individuals has also decreased.

How is a wolf different from a dog

Him strong legs and higher, the paw is slightly larger and more extended. The head has a wider forehead than a dog's, its muzzle is wide and there is a lot of hair on the sides, which makes it look like a lion. The wolf has narrow-set eyes and a long muzzle. It is narrower and much more expressive than a dog's.

The muzzle of the wolf is very expressive. So scientists have identified about 10 emotions that can be "read" on his face - these are anger, humility, tenderness, fear, threat, fear, anger, calmness and humility.

The wolf has a large and high skull. The nose of the wolf protruding forward slightly expands at the bottom.

A separate speech will be about the teeth of the wolf. There were legends and fairy tales about them. The teeth of a wolf are its most important tool, which is also influenced by the way this predator hunts and lives. The upper jaw contains 20 teeth, of which only 6 incisors and 2 large canines.

There are 22 teeth in the lower jaw. With fangs, the wolf grabs and holds its prey. The fangs are very strong and can hold a fairly large animal. For a wolf, his teeth are not only a great helper in hunting, but also a means of protection. If suddenly the wolf loses its teeth, then this will lead him to hunger and ultimately to death.

The wolf has a long tail. It is much longer and thicker than the dog's and is lowered down. The wolf does not wag its tail like a dog. By the wolf's tail, as well as by the dog, you can understand the wolf. If the tail is down and does not move, then the wolf is calm, if the wolf twitches its tail, it is unhappy.

The fur of the wolf is thick, hard. It has two layers - coarse hair and undercoat. The undercoat gives the wolf warmth in winter, and the coarse fur protects this predator from mud and water.

The wolf can shed. This usually happens when spring turns into summer. The body temperature of the wolf heats up and the fluff begins to flake off the body. The wolf is elementary hot. He begins to rub against the trees to quickly get rid of the winter fur.

Depending on the subspecies of the wolf, the fur color of the predator depends. For example, a forest wolf has gray-brown fur, a tundra wolf has an almost white fur coat, and a desert wolf wears a grayish-red fur coat.

There are unusual wolves - pure white, red or even black. Small wolves or wolf cubs have a uniform coat color - usually dark. Over time, their cover becomes a few tones lighter.

However, only the second layer of fur is different in wolves. The undercoat of the wolf is always gray.

The wolf also differs from the dog in the tracks it leaves on the ground or snow.

The following differences will help you recognize the tracks of a wolf:

in a wolf, the index and little fingers of the paws are set back more than the middle fingers.
the wolf keeps its paw collected - therefore its footprint is more prominent,
the path of wolf tracks is always straighter than dog tracks and denser, which will reliably indicate that a wolf has passed here.

The size of a wolf's footprint is from 9.5 to 11 cm in length, in a she-wolf - from 8.5 to 10 cm in length.

Wolf eyes have been a subject of mysticism for many centuries and artists often draw them in their paintings.

Wolf cubs are born with blue eyes, but after 2-4 months their eyes become yellowish or even orange. Very rarely, a wolf's eyes remain blue even after the period of "childhood".

It is also very rare to find a wolf with green, brown or green-blue eyes.

How the wolf howls

It is believed that the wolf howls mainly at the moon on one note and no longer gives a voice. However, this is not at all the case. The voice of the wolf is quite diverse in terms of frequency range. Its ability to change the frequency of the voice can only be compared with human.

Wolves can howl, howl, whimper, growl, yelp and bark. And at the same time, every howl, bark, etc. can have thousands of variations.

Even a wolf's howl at the moon is a singer's aerobatics - the wolf starts from the lowest note and gradually brings his singing to a high note, but this note is not the last. This is the last we hear, since the human ear is not able to perceive all the frequencies that the wolf's throat can transmit.

The wolf can “talk” with its relatives from the pack and warn, for example, that people will appear now, call for an attack, or that there is prey somewhere.

Wolves howl at dawn and when the moon appears, and they howl collectively, at this moment, according to scientists, wolves show their belonging to the pack and feel emotional uplift. This is comparable to how people experience an emotional high during choral singing.

However, wolves do not howl every day, perhaps the howling of wolves begins when they need the general support of the pack, the feeling of a friendly shoulder.

People have learned to understand the language of the wolf for centuries, and now there are people who understand the wolf's conversations.

How does a wolf find its prey?

The wolf has a very sensitive sense of smell. Its sense of smell is ten times stronger than a human's, so a wolf can smell prey at a distance of 3 km from it.

The wolf distinguishes hundreds of millions of different smells and has a lot of information about the reality around him. In addition, the wolf sometimes marks its own territory through urine, feces. The wolf marks its territory most strongly during the rut.

The range of the modern habitat of the wolf

Previously, the wolf lived everywhere in the world, but due to the appearance of weapons in humans, the habitat of the wolf has decreased significantly. Now the wolf can be found throughout temperate zone northern hemisphere. In Russia, it is absent only on Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands.

The wolf inhabits the tundra, forests, steppes, penetrates south to desert regions, in the mountains it can live above the forest belt (3000 - 4000 m).

Wolf Pack

The gray wolf is a social animal whose main social ties consist of wolf families and their offspring.
On average, a flock consists of 5-11 animals (1-2 adults, 3-6 juveniles and 1-3 yearlings), and sometimes two or three such families.
It happens that the number of wolves in a pack can reach up to 40.

Under ideal conditions, a wolf pair can produce puppies every year, while not parting for this up to 5 years. The basis for parting for wolves is the beginning of puberty of offspring and competition in the struggle for prey.

For wolves has great importance the size of the territory for hunting attributable to one wolf stub. Sometimes wolves can move long distances - up to 400 km from the starting place, in search of food.

It is important for a wolf pack that the wolves within it are not hostile towards each other. Therefore, the flock is larger - the more food on the territory, and the less, the less food. Wolves can search for unoccupied territory for a long time in order to create a pack that has no enemies among other wolves.

The created wolf pack rarely takes other wolves into its bosom, as a rule, it kills them. In rare cases, when a wolf pack accepts another wolf, this can only be due to its youth (up to 3 years), that is, such a wolf that a wolf pair can “adopt” without harm to themselves and their offspring.

Sometimes a lone wolf is accepted into a wolf pack, but only to replace a dead male wolf.

During the abundance of ungulates, different packs of wolves may unite.
Wolves are very territorial animals, and tend to take up much more territory than they need to survive. This is done so that random fluctuations in the number of prey do not interfere with the survival of the wolf pack.

In general, the territory depends not only on the number of prey, but also on the number of cubs. After all, wolves, reaching the age of 6 months, have the same food needs as an adult wolf.

The wolf pack constantly moves around its territory in search of food and travels about 25 km a day. Basically, almost all the time they are in the center - the core of their territory. This is done in order to avoid accidental collision with another wolf pack.

The core territory of a wolf pack is approximately 35-40 square kilometers, while the entire territory can be up to 60-70 square kilometers. A wolf pack can leave its territory only in an emergency, for example, when there is an acute shortage of food.

Wolves are excellent at defending their territory from other wolf packs, using special marks as warnings to ensure that the territory of the wolf pack is not disturbed by another wolf pack. If suddenly this happens, then the wolf pack attacks the intruders, but first they try to scare them off with a howl.

Marking their territory, as we have already said, is done with the help of urination or defecation, sometimes wolves scratch the ground, then mark scratches. They leave a scent every 200 meters and usually mark for 2-3 weeks.

Territorial fighting of wolf packs is considered the main cause of death of wolves in natural conditions, without human intervention. Scientists believe that this kills from 15 to 65% of wolves.

Reproduction and development

Wolves are usually monogamous, pairs are usually created for life, until one of the wolves of the pair dies. After the death of one wolf of a pair, the pair is usually quickly restored with the help of another wolf.

Males predominate in the wolf pack, so unpaired females are rare. The age of first mating in gray wolves depends on the environment - if there is enough food, or when the wolf population has declined enough that the laws of population regulation come into force - quite young wolves may be able to reproduce.

This is confirmed by the fact that in good conditions of reserves with sufficient food, wolves can create families as early as 9-10 months of age. However, in the wild, the standard breeding age for wolves is 2 years.

Females can give birth to wolf cubs every year. Unlike the coyote, the wolf never reaches reproductive age. Estrus usually occurs at the end of winter. Wolves mate with old she-wolves 2-3 weeks earlier than with young ones. What explains this is unknown.

During pregnancy, she-wolves stay in the center of the pack's territory to protect the female from confrontations with other wolves, which usually occur on the periphery of the pack's territory.
Pregnancy in a she-wolf lasts 62-67 days, wolf cubs, as a rule, are born in the spring-summer period.

Wolves have many more cubs per litter than other canine species. The average litter consists of 5-6 cubs, with increasing fertility in areas where prey is plentiful, although even a particularly large litter does not exceed 14-17 cubs.

Wolf cubs are born blind and deaf and are covered with short, soft greyish-brown fur. The weight of a born wolf cub is 300-500 grams. Wolf cubs begin to see on the 9-12th day. Their milk fangs appear 1 month after birth. Already in 3 weeks little wolf cub can leave the den, and already at the age of 1.5 months they are strong and flexible enough to be able to run away from danger.

The mother wolf does not leave the den even for a minute for at least 3 weeks. And all the care of providing both mom and wolf cubs with food falls on the wolf-dad. As early as 3-4 weeks from birth, wolf cubs can eat solid food.

Wolf cubs grow very quickly - so their weight from the beginning of the birth of a wolf cub increases 30 times in the first four months. Wolf cubs start playing at the age of 3 weeks. Games are mostly in the nature of the fight.

Although, unlike coyotes and young foxes, their bites are painless. The wolf cubs fight establishes a hierarchy in the family among the kids. The fight can go on for 5-8 weeks. By autumn, the wolf cubs are already old enough to accompany adults in their hunt for large prey.

wolf and hunting

Wolves usually hunt in packs, sometimes individually. The wolf will almost always eat its prey completely. Wolves have more advantages when hunting in a pack because they are smart animals, they know how to work together and are able to take down animals that are much bigger and stronger than a single wolf. Wolves are strict predators and often stay alive after hunting, they calculate their strength. Wolves don't kill for sport, only for survival.

Wolves feed on carrion, hunt and eat everything. The prey of wolves from large animals is deer, elk, caribou, bison and musk ox. Small animals include beavers, hares, and small rodents.

The wolf has a large stomach and can absorb 10 kg at a time. However, wolves can survive without food for up to 2 weeks, or even longer if food is scarce. Their digestion is very efficient, but 5 percent of the meat the intestines of the wolf are not able to digest. Any fragments of bone that do not break down in some way can be found in the stomach of the wolf, wrapped in undigested hair, which protects the intestines from injury.

Wolf cubs feed on adults who regurgitate fresh meat, or for grown-up cubs, wolves carry fresh pieces of meat to the den. Wolves play important role in the lives of other animals. Because wolves eat sick or weak animals, and then they actually help herds of large ungulates to recuperate by relieving them of the burden of sick animals.

For example, there is a sick deer in the herd that is eating food that can be used to feed a healthy young deer. So, by eliminating a sick deer, the wolf not only reduces the possibility of infection from this deer to other deer, but also contributes to the appearance of more food for the rest of the herd.
Wolves live and hunt mostly in their own territory. Pack members will guard and defend their territory from invading wolves. The size of the territory depends on the availability of prey. If prey is in short supply, the size of the territory may be small, however, if prey is plentiful, the territory of the wolf may be much larger.
The hunt will begin with the gathering of members of the pack, they greet each other with a howl. This howl will deter other wolf packs from entering that pack's territory. Wolves begin hunting by passing through the entire territory of the pack until they find their prey.

The wolf drives the prey in the opposite direction from the wind to avoid the possibility of allowing the animal to detect the wolf's scent and run away. As soon as their prey realizes that it is being pursued and tries to escape, the chase begins. The wolves chase her and as soon as they catch up, they immediately bite, usually from the side.

Large animals try to avoid bites and turn around to attack the wolf with their horns. The wolf is afraid of being hurt by the horns. Therefore, in this case, the animal is surrounded by other members of the wolf pack in order to attack from behind. At this time, the wolf standing in front, taking advantage of the turn of the prey back, tends to bite it in the throat or in the muzzle. Then the whole flock attacks the prey and kills it. The wolf immediately begins to eat its prey.

A wolf can hunt all day long until their hunt is successful. After all, it is a matter of wolf survival.

Quick facts about the wolf

1. The average lifespan of a wolf in the wild is 10 years. Wolves live in packs that usually consist of an alpha male wolf, his alpha female, and their offspring. different ages. Other wolves may also join the pack.
2. The wolf has no real natural predators; their biggest threat is other wolf packs in the surrounding areas. The wolf has been known to live up to 20 years in captivity.
3. Wolves are carnivores and tend to prey on large animals, but wolves also prey on small animals. Wolves hunt together in packs and work together as a team to catch and kill large animals such as elk or deer. Wolves are opportunists and will not waste their energy chasing a healthy deer for 10 km when a wounded or sick deer is more available. The Alaska Natives call the wolf "Wild Shepherd".
4. Wolves have a layer of thick fur, which is especially necessary for wolves that live in areas of the Arctic, where it can get very cold. It is during the winter months in these areas that the wolf's stored calories are most critical. Large animals such as elk and deer suffer greatly from cold and lack of food, and during this time they become slow, lethargic and therefore easier to catch.
5. Wolves are endangered today, as wolves are killed in large numbers by human hunting, poisoning, or capture for their fur and to protect livestock. Wolves have also been severely affected by the loss of their habitat and have been pushed into smaller areas where food sources cannot be plentiful enough to feed a hungry pack of wolves.
6. Wolves tend to mate in late winter to early spring and cubs are born a couple of months later when the weather is warmer and prey is plentiful. Wolf cubs are intensively developing the next part of the year in order to survive in their first cold winter. The cubs stay with their mother in the wolf pack.
7. Wolves can freely interbreed with dogs, coyotes, jackals to produce fertile offspring. This is a case of incomplete speciation. There are physical, behavioral and ecological differences between these species, but they are completely genetically compatible. None of the animals in this group can breed with foxes, which are too genetically different from wolves.
8. Wolves are the largest members of the canine family.
9. The wolf does not run fast. Max Speed wolf - about 45 km / h. Instead of running, they rely more on their hearing and sense of smell to locate prey.
10. Wolves have great endurance - they can run day and night until they reach their prey.
11. Wolves develop close relationships and fairly strong social bonds. The wolf often shows deep affection for his family and may even sacrifice himself to protect his family.
12. The wolf can be expelled from the pack or leave the pack of his own accord - then he becomes a lone wolf. Such a wolf rarely howls and tries to avoid contact with the pack.
13. The wolf is a favorite character in legends and fairy tales, it is a highly intelligent animal and does little to live up to its terrible reputation in legends and fairy tales.
14. People are still afraid of wolves and pursue them more than any other predator. Several centuries ago, people even tortured the wolf and burned it at the stake. However, the wolf has a high intelligence and instinct, which helped him escape from extinction.

The final fate of the wolf depends on whether the man will allow the wolf to coexist next to him.

However, it is worth remembering that the wolf is the most important orderly of nature. And, depriving her of a wolf, a person risks dying himself.

The development of nature in the last millennia is closely interconnected with the development of human society. Climate change and human intervention in nature entail global changes in the lives of living beings. Therefore, the study of life in nature, the solution of the problems of survival of animals, timely assistance to them, is necessary.

Tyler Miller, in his program for universal environmental education, gave a number of principles that you need to know in order to save the Earth.

Nature is not only more complex than we think it is, it is much more complex than we can imagine.

Everything in nature is interconnected and we all live in it together.

We represent valuable view, but no more important than the others; All living beings, including humans, have their own significance.

Every living thing has the right to life simply because it is alive; the existence of this right is independent of its usefulness to us.

It is unworthy of man to be the cause of the extinction of species existing in nature.

What do people know about wolves? That they are fierce and dangerous, treacherous and treacherous. That they must be destroyed. This is how those who know nothing about wolves think about wolves. In fact, wolves rarely attack humans. Like all predators, they hunt to feed themselves and live their lives trying to stay away from people.

The topic of my research project is "The Truth About Wolves". My interest in the life of wolves did not arise by chance. Love for the Ural nature often leads me and my grandfather, Alexander Viktorovich Safronov, to the forest. We walk, talk, observe the living world of the forest. I read a lot of stories, fairy tales and poems about wolves. In winter, I came across a number of articles in the newspaper Karpinsky Rabochiy about the extermination of wolves. On the territory of our district, wolves began to meet more often than before, cases of wolves entering the village of Kakvinskiye Pechi were recorded. And he began to wonder what kind of wolf really is? Is the wolf really that dangerous to humans? How to maintain balance in nature? I received answers to my questions from my grandfather, but decided to study the life of wolves more deeply. Learn the history of the origin of the genus of wolves, their habits, hunting features, mutual understanding in the pack. And the main question for me was: who is a wolf for a man friend or foe?

While working on the project, I turned to the city library, the school information Center, where he worked with reference literature and the Internet. In my home library I found a number of stories about wolves. I learned interesting information about the habits of dogs from the biology teacher of our school Nizamova Faina Nikolaevna. I learned about the peculiarities of the life of wolves in captivity from an employee of the Yekaterinburg Zoo. In the city museum, I was able to closely examine a stuffed wolf, feel its fur, touch its teeth and feel its terrible gaze on me.

My grandfather has two dogs, Laikas by breed, Taiga and Dina. We often take them with us on walks in the forest. They are very similar to wolves. It was my dogs who helped me conduct some of the experiments for the project.

The history of the wolf family.

WOLVES, which are also called canine and canine, exist 40 mil. years. The wolf evolved from carnivorous predators that lived 100 million years ago. As a species, Canis lupus developed in Eurasia about 1 million years ago, and by the end of the Pleistocene it became the most common predator. Total for the globe There are 35 species of canines. The wolf genus combines wolves, coyotes, jackals, wild and domestic dogs - the largest representatives of the wolf family. In addition, all foxes, arctic foxes, and raccoon dogs belong to this family.

Once upon a time, wolves had no equal among large predators. So widely they were distributed and so cleverly obtained their livelihood. But wolves interfered with man in his hunt, harassed sheep herds and were even considered cannibals - and man exterminated them for many years.

In fairy tales and legends, the taiga forest was presented as a mysterious and dangerous place for careless travelers. Most of these dangers are fictional, but once upon a time people really had reason to be afraid of wolves in the forest. Even 400 years ago, there were many gray predators, cold taiga forests were their home.

There is not much reliable evidence of wolves attacking humans, but for domestic animals they really posed a great threat, especially when natural prey disappeared. Therefore, the wolves were ruthlessly destroyed. For example, in the British Isles, the last wolf was killed in 1770. True, there are still quite a few gray wolves left in Russia.

Like dogs, wolves are very intelligent and easy to train. In addition, each wolf has a special character: there are cautious, impudent or self-confident, they keep themselves freely and naturally in wolf society, and others are not seen or heard.

Wolves do not disdain pets either. It becomes clear why people have long waged a constant war with wolves. As a result, the wolf even had to be included in the Red Book! Now these magnificent animals are not found either in the British Isles, or in Western and Central Europe, or in Japan, or in most of the United States. Wolves have lived on Earth for over a million years. They descended from carnivorous predators that lived 100 million years ago, and about 20 million years ago dogs originated from the wolf.

Perhaps, in the conditions of Canada or the north of the USA, with an abundance of wild animals (deer, hares, rodents, etc.), wolves are not dangerous for domestic animals and humans, since nature provides complete nutrition for predators, and there is no need for them to take risks by attacking domestic animals or of people. In the conditions of Russia and other countries, where there is less easy prey for wolves, hungry wolves tear domestic animals and become dangerous to humans. About 30% of wolves living in central Russia are potentially capable of attacking a person. This once again confirms the need to fight wolves in Russia.

Wolf habitats.

The wolf is widely distributed. It is found on the Iberian Peninsula, in Italy, Poland, Scandinavia, Finland, almost throughout Russia, from a number of Arctic islands and the coast of the Arctic Ocean to the southern borders of the country (excluding Crimea) and up to Pacific Ocean. In Asia, it inhabits the Korean Peninsula, partly China and the Hindustan Peninsula, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, and the Arabian Peninsula. In North America, the wolf, once common across almost the entire continent, is now heavily extirpated. The wolf is currently absent from Japan and the British Isles. It is exterminated in France, Holland, Belgium, Denmark, Switzerland, throughout Central Europe.

The wolf is distinguished by great ecological plasticity. He lives in a wide variety of landscapes, but prefers open steppes, semi-deserts, tundra, forest-steppe, avoiding solid forests. The reason for this is the abundance of food, primarily the presence of wild and domestic ungulates, as well as the conditions for hunting them, especially in the hungry, winter time, when the depth of the snow cover has a decisive influence on the distribution and abundance of the predator. The fact is that in loose, deep snow in the forests, the wolf falls heavily and cannot catch up with the elk or deer. The situation changes only in spring, during strong crusts, which easily hold predators, but break under the weight of running ungulates. Wolf hunting in open spaces with little snow is incomparably more effective than in the taiga.

Characteristics of the common wolf.

The whole appearance of the wolf testifies to its power and excellent adaptability to tireless running, chasing and attacking its victims. In size, the hardened wolf is larger than the large shepherd dog. Body length is on average 105 - 160 cm, tail - 35 - 50 cm, height at the shoulders, 80 - 85 cm and up to 100 cm. Weight is usually 32 - 50 kg. The literature mentions wolves allegedly weighing more than 90 kg, but among the many hundreds of accurately weighed wolves from different parts of the world, there was not one heavier than 79 kg. The skull is massive, the zygomatic arches are widely spaced. The facial region is longer than the brain. In adults and old animals, crests are strongly developed, especially the sagittal one. The frontal part of the skull is convex with large cavities.

The teeth are large and strong. Fangs are powerful, slightly curved, relatively short. Predatory teeth are well defined. The cutting edge of the incisors with small additional protrusions. Teeth - 42. Of these, 4 sharp, crooked 5-centimeter fangs - two on top and bottom. With them, the wolf can bite through the dense skin of the victim.

The coloration and size of wolves are subject to strong individual and geographical variability. Only on the territory of Russia there are wolves of almost 8 - 9 subspecies, there are even more of them in North America. The largest animals live in the Far North, the smallest - in the south. The former are painted in very light colors, and in winter they turn almost completely white. Thick fur up to 8 centimeters long protects the wolf from frost. The layer of fur closest to the body is the undercoat, and the outer layer is formed by hard, long, black outer hairs at the ends. They repel water, and the undercoat does not get wet. In such a raincoat with fur lining, the wolf is not afraid of bad weather.

In nature, wolves live to a maximum of 15 - 20 years, but already at 10 - 12 years old they show signs of old age. If necessary, the wolf develops a speed of up to 55 - 60 km / h, is able to make transitions up to 60 - 80 km per night, and on average, travel more than 20 km per day (in the forest zone). A calmly walking or running wolf strikes with ease of movement. It seems to creep over the earth; without changing the gait, overcomes long distances without a hint of fatigue. If there are a pair or a group of wolves, then they go in single file, stepping strictly trail after trail, and only at a turn or at a resting place where the animals disperse can one determine their number. The paw prints on the ground are very distinct, which differs from the incomparably more vague traces of large dogs. The wolf has not only speed and tirelessness in movement, but also great strength. Without apparent difficulty, he can drag a sheep in his teeth, carrying it in front of him or throwing it on his back.

Hunting and feeding wolves

Wolves are designed to hunt by nature itself. In winter, the wolf leaves a neat chain of footprints in the snow - he puts his hind paw exactly behind the front. Thanks to this step, he can run on any terrain and even in deep snow. The weapon of the wolf is the teeth. There are as many as 42 of them in his mouth. 4 sharp, crooked 5-centimeter fangs stick out in front - two at the top and bottom. With them, the wolf can bite through the dense skin of the victim. And predatory, or carnivorous, teeth - this is the name of the molars of all predators - an adult wolf gnaws even the femur of an elk. The hunter needs a keen ear, and in this respect the wolves are lucky. When they hear a noise, they move their ears and determine where the sound is coming from. The sound source may be several kilometers away. Wolves hunt almost silently, because they run on the very tips of their fingers. Just like horses and cats, the wolf does not touch the ground with its heel. He has strong, muscular legs and a sweeping gait.

The wolf is a typical predator, foraging for food on its own, active search and persecution of victims. Everywhere, ungulates form the basis of the diet of wolves: in the tundra - wild and domestic reindeer; in the forest zone - moose, deer, roe deer, wild boars, domestic sheep, cows, horses; in the steppes and deserts - antelopes, domestic animals. Along with large animals, small animals play an important role in the diet of wolves - hares, ground squirrels, mouse-like rodents, especially during the years of their mass reproduction. AT warm time years, wolves catch a lot of voles, lemmings and other animals, and on this food they are well fattened for the winter and even grow fat. In summer, wolves do not miss the opportunity to eat laying eggs, chicks sitting on nests or feeding on the ground of black grouse, waterfowl and other birds. In the area of ​​accumulation of molting geese and ducks, wolves also often catch them with great dexterity. Often, predators also prey on domestic geese. The prey of wolves sometimes become foxes, raccoon dogs, corsacs, as well as domestic dogs, for which wolves hunt on purpose, boldly kidnapping them on the village streets, right from the yard and almost in front of the hunters. Occasionally, hungry wolves dare to attack bears sleeping in a den.

Wolves can be called opportunists - they eat everything that can be caught, and everyone who is weaker than them. Hungry wolves also eat carrion, tearing meat from bones like a vulture - a terrible picture that contributed to the spread of sinister legends about them. If the wolf does not want to be content with only what gets in his way, he will always choose the largest animal so that the efforts made will bring as much food as possible. A lone wolf will be happy with a small deer or a sheep, and a pack and a larger beast is quite tough. Wolves can pursue the prey, drive it into an ambush or a dead end, performing complex maneuvers, foresee the trajectory of the victim's movement, etc. Wolves are excellent at navigating the terrain. Many packs constantly, from year to year, use the same parts of the territory to drive the victim into a dead end. Such dead ends can be blockages of trees, placers of stones or a dead end in the truest sense of the word - a sheer cliff or a deep gully in a ravine. Getting into a dead end, ungulates begin to rush about, trying to break out of it. In rubble or heaps of stones, they often break their limbs and then become easy prey for wolves. In many cases, while several wolves drive the victim, others are waiting for her, not allowing her to get out of the impasse. For deer, such dead ends in winter become ice on mountain rivers, thin ice powdered with the first snow, snow puffs. Wolves often drive saigas into dried-up lakes, where in autumn and spring the bottom softened by water turns into difficult-to-pass mud, and ungulates move with great difficulty.

So-called sediments become a kind of dead end for mountain animals (rams, goats, musk deer, red deer). These are hard-to-reach areas of rocks where ungulates wait out the danger. Having driven the victim to the sludge, wolves can wait for days until the animal, tired of standing still, becomes their prey. In winter, wolves often drive ungulates to the crust. The relative load on the track in wolves is 2-3 times less than in most ungulates. Therefore, the victims of wolves, running away along the crust, get tired very quickly, falling into deep snow, and often in the process they injure their legs on the sharp edges of the frozen snow. Often, wolves drive their prey onto other members of the pack hiding in ambush. This is how they hunt saigas. Some wait, hiding in the dunes, while others slowly drive the antelope to them. When hunting goats and rams, wolves can use narrowing in the rocks. Some hide behind rocks, while others drive ungulates to an ambush. Prolonged active pursuit of prey is not typical for wolves. As a rule, this is a short jerk for several tens, less often - several hundred meters. Often they can move behind the herd without betraying their presence and waiting for the right moment for decisive action. Such passive pursuit can last for many days.

Often, wolves lie in wait for the victim at watering places, crossings, places of rest or grazing. In these cases, silently crept up and unexpectedly sharply appeared several wolves cause panic among ungulates, which makes it easier for predators to intercept and hold randomly fleeing animals. The victims of wolves are often newborns and young ungulates in places of their concentration. Among domestic ungulates, sheep and reindeer suffer most from wolves. In sheep-breeding, especially mountainous, areas, the wolf is the most common predator to date. But often wolves attack horses. Having sowed panic in the herd with an unexpected appearance, they grab the victim by the muzzle, groin, until the exhausted animal stops and becomes their prey. In addition to ungulates, many other animals can become prey of the wolf, especially in summer, when parents feed puppies, and the pack breaks up and predators live alone or in small groups. At this time, wolves eat insects, amphibians, reptiles, birds and various mammals, on which they also worked out skillful hunting techniques. More often than others, hares become victims of wolves.

The wolves that inhabit the coast of the Caspian Sea often come out onto the ice, where they look for seals in the hummocks. In the mountains they hunt marmots. Using uneven terrain, predators, sprawled on the ground, wait for a long time until the marmots move far from the hole. Having outlined the victim, they cut off her path to escape with a short swift throw, intercepting her on the way to shelter. Sometimes wolves hide near holes, waiting for a long time for marmots to come to the surface. Like foxes, wolves can "mouse", hunting for small rodents and insectivores. After waiting for, for example, a vole to appear on the surface, the wolf in a jump presses it down with its paw and eats it.

A flock can easily drive and overwhelm an elk weighing half a ton (and this despite the fact that one wolf weighs ten times less). This requires strength, determination and coherence of action. At the same time, predators show amazing tirelessness, merciless perseverance, and sooner or later they achieve their goal. Sometimes they drive the red deer into the rocks, “to suck”, and, having surrounded, wait for it, tired, to try to break through and run away. Finally, wolves skillfully drive roe deer and deer onto the slippery bare ice of taiga rivers or cut them in deep, loose snow or on the crust. However, under other conditions, predators cannot catch up with a healthy deer and, after a short chase, stop hunting.

The main hunting tool of the wolf is its nose, which catches the slightest smell of prey. Having smelled the smell, the whole flock turns their heads in the right direction and freezes in order to remember it well. The wolves wag their tails as if anticipating a future feast, and their next actions depend on the type of terrain. There is nowhere to hide in open space, and the wolves immediately attack; in the forest, they sneak up on the leeward side, moving one after another and hoping to catch the victim by surprise. This manner of hunting allows you to get an elk or other lone animal, although they are likely to smell the enemy and put up resistance. A large stag can take a fighting stance and beat the wolves away with hoof strikes, which will have to retreat and look for a weaker victim. If the victim starts to run away, the wolves will take the chase, but will give it up if they lose in speed - it makes no sense for them to unnecessarily expend forces that will come in handy more than once.

Healthy and strong ungulates, by and large, there is nothing to be afraid of wolves, so the pack is always looking out for young animals, old or sick animals, which are easier to catch. This is clearly seen when a wolf pack attacks a herd of reindeer or musk oxen; wolves rush at young individuals, and the weakest of them become easy prey. Thus, a herd that is constantly attacked by wolves will be healthier than a well-guarded one. Having attacked the herd, the wolves try to create panic in it in order to drive away the future victim and easily fill it up. If the herd manages to regroup and adult animals surround the kids with a wall of hard hooves and formidable horns, the wolves will leave, slurping unsalted, but they will still follow the movements of weak or sick individuals seen in the herd from afar. Wolves are also capable of cannibalism. Many cases are known when they tore and ate weakened animals, wounded by hunters or badly injured in an internecine fight during the rut. Unlike some other predatory animals, wolves often return to the half-eaten remains of their own prey, especially during the hungry season. They do not disdain the corpses of livestock, and on the sea coasts - the carcasses of seals and other sea animals thrown by the waves. In the steppes and deserts, the usual food of wolves is all kinds of reptiles, beetles and locusts (in the years of mass breeding). Wolves, especially in the southern regions, also eat some plant foods - various berries, lily of the valley fruits, wild and garden fruits (carrion), even mushrooms. In the steppes, they often raid watermelons and melons, satisfying not so much hunger as thirst, because they need a regular, plentiful watering place.

By hunting with the whole pack, wolves increase their chances of success. This "team approach" is manifested in the following. Two or three wolves hide in ambush, and the whole pack attacks the herd and drives it to the catchers; they jump out of the "secret", a panic begins in the herd, a frightened deer shied away; one wolf overtakes him, then another, the deer fights back with might and main, but, in the end, falls. The leader satisfies hunger first, eating the best pieces and smearing himself with the blood of the victim; other wolves huddle at a distance, waiting for their turn and share; if the meat remains, the wolves will bury it in the ground or simply leave it, and they themselves will wash themselves in the nearest stream, sleep and come for more. If females feeding their brood are waiting for them in the den, the wolves will bring them meat - raw in their teeth or half-digested in their stomachs.

The wolf is known for its gluttony. Indeed, if he is hungry, he is able to eat up to 10 kg of meat. However, under normal conditions daily rate an adult animal is only about 2 kg, he simply takes away the rest of the meat and hides it in reserve, eating it later, which is not always taken into account and contributes to exaggerated ideas about the voracity of the wolf.

On the other hand, this beast has an amazing ability to starve without losing vitality. In the Yamal tundra, a wounded wolf lay without changing its place and without hunting, that is, being hungry, for 17 days. He was very thin, but fully recovered from his wounds and ran like a healthy man.

The wolf is a family man.

Wolves are social animals: they live in families. Every flock has its own "table of ranks", and in it everyone has their own place. Strong and aggressive wolves rule, and those who need a firm hand obey them. A wolf pack - a group of animals related by kinship and mutual sympathy - is led by a wolf and a she-wolf. The rest of its members are their children (from tiny puppies to 2-3 year old teenagers). Usually in a wolf family there are 6 - 7, and sometimes 15 animals. The strongest wolf in the pack becomes the leader. A girlfriend, a she-wolf, helps him to rule. For others to obey, leaders must have strong character. All decisions concerning the life of the pack are made by this couple. In a pack where the leader keeps order, wolves usually do not fight among themselves. However, skirmishes are common with strangers or lone wolves that have violated the border of possessions. Each wolf pack hunts only in its own territory. The owners strictly guard and mark it, warning the neighbors that they should stay away. Any uninvited guest will be punished. In large packs, it often happens that a wolf is poisoned by all his relatives. Sometimes the outcast becomes completely unbearable, and he is forced to leave the pack.

Why is an unsociable person called a lone wolf? Because he resembles a wolf that has left the pack and lives on its own. As time passes, changes occur in the flock. Applicants for the role of leader remain in the pack and wait in the wings. Other wolves, having matured, leave to wander alone. But they can also create their own flock if they are lucky enough to meet a lone she-wolf. If the wolf and she-wolf want to rule the pack, they must subjugate all the rest of its members to their will and force them to unquestioningly comply with their laws. The leader dominates the males of the pack, and his girlfriend maintains order among the wolves. The leaders constantly remind their "subordinates" who is the boss in the pack: they growl at them, bite, drive and even knock them down, preferring to do this in front of the whole pack. One stern, intent look from the leader or his mate is enough to subdue those he targets. Smiling ingratiatingly, the wolves fall to the ground, and then, if possible, sneak away. Sometimes they lie on their backs, as if to say: we know who is in charge here. The way a wolf holds its tail speaks of its position in the pack. Among the leaders, it is raised high, among the "subjects" it is lowered, and those who stand at the lowest degree in the wolf family tuck their tail. Members of the pack show love and respect to the leader in a welcoming ceremony. Crawling, with flattened ears and smoothed hair, they approach the leader or his girlfriend, lick and gently bite his muzzle.

Rutting occurs on average in February, puppies are born in April. In late spring, wolves change their habits. They no longer wander, but roam in search of prey only near the lair, where they are going to acquire offspring. Usually, the den is picked up and equipped by a female pregnant from the leader (most likely, this couple will not part until the end of their lives). Usually there are 5-6 puppies in a family of wolves. Cases have been noted when a lot of them are born - 10-13 and even up to 17. But such cases are rare and half of the brood in numerous families does not survive. Wolf cubs are born blind, helpless.

From that moment on, the she-wolf does not leave the lair for three weeks; the father of the family brings the booty. The rest of the pack stays nearby and also feeds the she-wolf and her litter until the cubs grow up. When the she-wolf begins to go hunting herself, the flock looks after the kids. If the family is in any danger, then the she-wolf carries her cubs in her mouth one by one to another, more secluded place.

The cubs' eyes open on the 9-12th day. At the end of the second week, they usually begin to respond to sounds, and after three weeks they first emerge from the nest and around the same time they begin to taste meat. Wolf cubs are born completely helpless. The mother helps them to toilet by licking under the tail. Puppies are not able to get up at this time on their feet and move by crawling. They are constantly in physical contact with their mother or with each other. Puppies sleep most of the time.

Dramatic changes in their behavior occur at the beginning of the third week. By this time, they already see and hear, stand on their feet and begin to walk, even trying to play with each other, hitting each other with their paws and biting. Wolf cubs begin active games at the age of a little less than a month, when they jump back and forth, fall on their front paws and bite each other on the muzzle. The she-wolf, although a caring mother, does not show aggression towards people who are close to her children. There are cases when hunters took the entire brood from the den, put the helpless puppies in a bag and carried them away, and at that time the she-wolf watched uneasily at a distance and then accompanied the hunters to the village for several kilometers without making any attempts to attack. In the early days, the she-wolf is constantly with the puppies. The wolf feeds her. He brings food in the stomach and regurgitates it to the female. Gradually, the she-wolf leaves the puppies alone, often and for a long time away in search of food.

According to the observations of researchers, the female can leave the cubs for 6.5 - 68 hours, that is, she can be absent for almost three days. The duration of the absence of the female strongly depends on the abundance of food in the vicinity of the lair. The more accessible it is, the less time the she-wolf leaves the puppies. Usually, when the female leaves the den, the cubs are left alone, gathering in a heap to keep warm. The wolf is rarely with them in the den. But if the puppies crawl up to the father, he does not drive them away, warming them with the warmth of his body. Wolves make their lairs in sheltered, well-protected places. They can be canopies in the rocks, deep cracks, niches, gullies in ravines. Often, wolves use burrows of other animals as dens: foxes, arctic foxes, badgers, marmots. Wolves expand other people's burrows and very rarely dig their own, choosing SOFT, usually sandy soil for this, as well as family days on which the cubs spend their first months of life, meet two requirements:

The presence of shelters from dense vegetation;

A good overview of the area, allowing you to detect danger.

In contrast, a number of cases are known when wolf cubs were found in completely unexpected places: in old stacks of straw left in the field; in piles of firewood and snow shields near the road; on a grain field 300 m from the village; in a hemp plant 10 meters from the estate. It is characteristic that wolves never hunt near their homes, but at a distance of 7-10 km and further, which, of course, also contributes to the safety of broods. After the wolf cubs grow up, the animals stop using their permanent den, and settle down to rest in various, but reliable places.

It is difficult to approach the lair of wolves unnoticed. As a rule, animals detect a person and manage to hide before a person detects them. Growing wolf cubs can frolic in an absolutely open, well-viewed place, but such a playground is necessarily adjacent to either dense thickets, or a pile of stones and labyrinths of passages in rocks and ravines. In these shelters, wolf cubs, and even adult wolves, instantly “dissolve”, without betraying their presence in any way.

Territory of wolves, dwelling.

The size of the family territory is highly dependent on the landscape and varies over a very wide range. The largest family plots are in open landscapes of the tundra, steppe or semi-desert, where they reach 1000 - 1250 km2. In the forest zone they are smaller - 200 - 250 km2. Wolves mark their territory with urine, feces, or by leaving scratches on paths, fallen trees, and stand-alone stumps. Litter of wolves, drying out, acquires White color and can be seen from a distance in the open. It seems that wolves sometimes specifically choose the most visible places to leave their droppings. Once in Altai, the droppings of a large wolf were found on the seat of a mower, which towered a meter and a half above the ground. The mower itself stood for many days in the middle of a spacious clearing, very noticeable from the road, along which wolves regularly walked, gathering in places where the deer roared.

Wandering over such a vast territory, the pack, of course, will not be able to retain exclusive rights to it, but the forest wolves, whose possessions are smaller, tend to see only their land in them. The wolf marks his possessions with his own scent.

Where there are many wolves, the concentration of marks is especially high on the periphery of the family territory, that is, along its borders, due to the imposition of marks by wolves inhabiting neighboring areas. There are many marks in the centers of flock activity within family areas, where droppings, pimples and scrapes are often found. Such centers of pack activity are permanent trails, lairs and family days. They can be removed from the borders of the territory for several kilometers. Condensation of traces of the vital activity of wolves in the centers of their activity gives the territory a characteristic appearance. Numerous traces of the vital activity of wolves in the family area, their uneven distribution, probably serve as reference points for members of the pack, leaving for many kilometers in search of food and returning again to the center of the family territory.

The lone wolf moves carefully, avoiding territories occupied by other packs and not disturbing their peace: meeting with numerically superior opponents may be the last adventure of his life. Never touching their own, the pack will ruthlessly deal with the stranger. In search of prey, wolves wander to farms, where they find themselves close to humans and risk losing their lives. In autumn and winter, a flock roams certain territory; in the forest, where there is enough game, these limits are small - no more than 100 square meters. KM, and where it is necessary to look for prey, the area of ​​\u200b\u200b"own" lands increases ten or more times. Polar wolves, hunting reindeer, follow their herds throughout the tundra year after year; it happens that with a herd of deer there is a wolf pack. Once, zoologists traced the movement of one pack across Alaska: in a month and a half, wolves traveled 1,100 km across an area of ​​13,000 square meters. km!

Communication of wolves.

Wolves do not always hunt, growl and are ferocious. The first thing a wolf will do when its stomach is full is curl up and take a good nap. Waking up, frolic with pleasure. If he wants to play, he will invite relatives to join him. Crouching low on his front paws to the ground, he will approach them and, wagging his tail, will say: “Please!” No answer? Then, in order to attract attention, he will begin to jump from side to side, just like a dog.

Well developed higher nervous activity combined in wolves with strength, agility, speed of running and other physical data, greatly increasing the chances of this predator in the struggle for existence.

The facial expressions of a wolf are much more expressive than those of a domestic dog. It is complemented by the setting of the ears and the coloring of the muzzle, a "mask" that obediently follows the changes in the facial muscles. When a wolf is frightened, its head seems to "reduce" in size: the ears are pressed and laid back, the muzzle is extended, the corners of the mouth are narrowed and drawn back. The depressed expression of the "facial" is accompanied by the avoidance of a direct look. On the contrary, in a self-confident wolf, the head looks larger and rounder, the ears are raised and directed forward, the corners of the mouth are extended. The confident expression of the "face" is emphasized by rounded eyes fixed on the partner. The aggression of a wolf, ready or preparing for an attack, is expressed by a grinning muzzle, with a demonstration of teeth in an open mouth, hair rearing up on the muzzle. Deep parallel folds of skin behind the nose above the upper jaw give special expressiveness to the "face". The tip of the nose turned up at the same time creates an extreme expression of the beast ready to attack. The setting of the ears at the same time strongly depends on how much fear is mixed with aggressiveness. The expression of aggressiveness, mixed with fear, is accompanied by varying degrees of pressing the ears to the head.

The absence of fear, aggressiveness and self-confidence are expressed by ears set straight or even pointing forward. The tail is a good indicator of the wolf's feelings and intentions. Animals raise it at different angles, swing it with different amplitude and frequency, clearly demonstrating it or hiding it between their legs. A self-confident or aggressive wolf keeps the tail high at the level, and sometimes even higher than the level of the back. When threatening, wolves often raise their tail almost vertically, tensely holding it almost motionless and rearing their hair. On the contrary, wolves express a depressed mood, a feeling of fear with a low tail, hiding it between their legs in extreme manifestations of fear. They express friendly feelings with free sweeping movements of the tail from side to side, raising it at different angles relative to the back line.

The tail, visible at a great distance, probably serves as a means of remote contact between animals. When greeting each other, wolves wag their tails and hindquarters, and low-ranking animals do this especially expressively in relation to high-ranking ones. Demonstrating their high hierarchical rank, wolves can bite their partner. However, these actions are exclusively ritual in nature and are not accompanied by injury to the subordinate individual. Most often, a high-ranking wolf bites a low-ranking wolf in the muzzle. Less often - by the withers, as if pressing him to the ground. Describing the poses of wolves in general, it can be noted that when interacting with partners in the pack, the poses of high-ranking animals are more open, the head and tail are raised high, and the animals stand straight on their feet. In low-ranking animals, there is a desire to decrease in size, lower their heads, tuck their tails, and crouch on relaxed paws.

Low-ranking animals, demonstrating their submission to higher-ranking ones, can tip over in front of them on the ground, lying on their side or even on their backs and exposing their partner's chest and stomach. At the same time, high-ranking animals often demonstrate a lateral stance, towering on high legs, in a confident pose over a lying partner. By blocking the actions of a partner, especially their aggressive intentions, wolves regularly demonstrate a side stance. The side stance is probably the most expressive of the dominant animal's confidence over the subordinate. It lacks elements of aggressiveness, such as grin and deep wrinkles behind the nose.

AT vivo wolves usually howl in the late evening hours, less often at night and early in the morning. However, under artificial conditions, their sound activity can be strongly shifted, which depends on the general mode of activity of animals, due to the specifics of the daily dynamics of stimuli that excite the motivation for consolidation. In artificial conditions, the behavior of wolves is largely human-oriented. Contacts with him usually differ in a certain rhythm. For example, in the vivarium where we observed wolves, they howled most often around lunch time, when people serving the animals usually passed by the enclosures. The wolves knew them well and reacted positively to them, as they regularly received random food from them. By the way, a lone wolf never howls.

The wolf family (pack) has developed as a close, stable and optimal community for the struggle for existence, connected by blood relationship, for the following reasons:

In a flock family, the feeding and upbringing of offspring is facilitated;

It is easier and less risky to obtain food in the family, since mutual assistance is provided in the extraction and the sharing of what is obtained or found;

The family secures and protects a certain feeding area, where "strangers" are not allowed.

Varieties of howling wolves and other signals.

There are so many unsolved mysteries of howling wolves that it forces scientists to come to the following conclusion: howling is the most mysterious and at the same time the most attractive phenomenon in the biology of the wolf. At present, there is not only no consensus on the function of this sound reaction, but the very formulation of the question is questioned. Thus, in its diversity, paradoxically, the language of the wolf, especially the howl, is similar to the language of people.

The basis of the language of wolves is the following items sound alarm:

The most important is the howl with its indescribable varieties and shades. Moreover, it is possible that the howl is emitted by wolves not only in the range of frequencies audible to humans, but also in other ranges available to wolves;

Snorting and sonorous barking;

Growling, clattering teeth, squealing, whining, barking;

In addition to sound signaling, the transmission and reception of information by wolves is carried out through traces of vital activity, smells and visually. It can be:

urinary points;

Traces of movement (footprints, remnants of wool on bushes and trees, etc.);

Scratches on the ground or in the snow, traces of wolves falling out on the ground or snow, falling, etc.;

Nest (place of hatching and initial rearing of wolf cubs);

A den in the broad sense of the term is a system of nests and day haul-outs, usually within the foraging area of ​​a given family;

Smells of wolves; they are not only individual, but often elusive to humans, although they are perfectly captured and distinguished by a wolf;

Direct contacts of animals for educational, aggressive and other purposes.

Appointment of sound signals, howling.

Wolves invest certain meanings in howling: threat, longing, despair, sadness, a signal about caught or found prey, calls, affectionate intonations in relation to wolf cubs, etc.

The she-wolf, returning to the den, with a soft whimper gently calls the scattered wolf cubs, in the den she briefly and quietly answers the howl of the returning hardened wolf. A she-wolf or a seasoned one, having heard an inept howl, suspecting the eternal enemy - a man, with a sharp snort or roar with clattering teeth, cut off the inappropriate response howl of over-brights or the yelping of the profit ones, and if they do not obey instantly, then they will punish the disobedient. When the cubs grow up, alarm signals serve as a command to the grown cubs: "Everyone hide and hide." AT last days pregnancy and in the first days after whelping, the she-wolf lies "firmly", silently. A lone she-wolf during the rut howls invitingly, waiting for the male, but, having heard his answer, she herself does not answer and does not go forward. The ability of the wolf to determine the direction to the source of the howl is such that he accurately determines it the first time and, as if on cue, goes to it.

In the daily context, most often wolves howl at dusk, at dawn. Howling is most likely to be heard within 1-2 hours after sunset or before dawn. At this time, group howling is especially possible. Frequent howling at night. During the day, the wolves rest, their howling is extremely rare, and if necessary, the roll call or signals to lost profits is carried out quietly with a short howl or squeal.

Single and group howl.

A single howl serves to communicate between members of a family-flock, determine the location of singles, warn about the occupation of the territory, establish contacts of animals of different sexes during the rut, express the state of the individual, to convene the wolf cubs and take care of them from the parents, signal prey, alarm, etc.

The group howl serves to unite the family-flock and express its condition. Perhaps the group howl of a friendly, numerous and powerful family-flock serves as proof of the strong employment of this feeding area.

Types of wolves.

Polar Wolf. Among wild canids, the wolf is the largest animal: large light polar wolves can weigh up to 80 kg. He adapted well to life in the north. From the harsh climatic conditions, polar wolves are warmed by a warm white “fur coat”, thanks to which the wolf is almost invisible in the snow.

Tundra wolf. Large animal. The length of the body of males, apparently, can exceed 150 cm. These wolves are characterized by a very long, dense and soft coat of light color. Scientist V. G. Geptner gives the following data on the maximum mass of tundra wolves, obtained as a result of measurements and weighing of the largest specimens from 500 animals shot in the tundra in Taimyr, Yamal and in the area of ​​the Kanin Peninsula. The largest weights were: an old male caught in Taimyr - 52 kg, a male from the tundra east of the Kanin peninsula - 48.8 kg and a male from Yamal - 46.7 kg. In Russia, the range of the tundra wolf occupies the tundra and forest-tundra zone of the European part and Siberia, as well as Kamchatka.

Central Russian forest wolf. Contrary to popular belief, it is this wolf that reaches its maximum size on the Eurasian continent, and not the tundra wolf. The color is classic, not bleached like the tundra. The body length of adult Central Russian forest wolves can exceed 160 cm, and the height at the shoulders can reach 1 meter. Of course, such sizes can only apply to very large individuals. It is generally accepted that on average an adult male weighs 40 - 45 kg, over-flying (about 1 year and 8 months old) - about 35 kg, and a profitable (8 months old) - 25 kg. She-wolves weigh 15 - 20% less. Anyone who is familiar with the old hunting literature, or who has had to visit the "wolf" corners and talk with the locals, must have read or heard about huge wolves. How much mass can wolves reach? For Central Russia, scientific papers indicate the maximum mass in the range of 69 - 80 kg. And here are the results of weighing specific animals. For the Moscow region - a male weighing 76 kg, the largest of the 250 wolves caught by the well-known wolf cub V. M. Khartuleri in the thirties and forties of the last century. For Altai - a male weighing 72 kg. The wolf, whose stuffed animal is in the Zoological Museum of Moscow State University, weighed 80 kg. According to N. D. Sysoev, the head of the State Hunting Inspectorate of the Vladimir Region, in the period from 1951 to 1963, 641 wolves were killed, of which 17 were especially CRUCIOUS. Among these animals the largest mass had: from males - 79 kg, obtained in the Sobinsky district, from females - 62 kg. The footprint of the right front paw of this huge, almost eighty-kilogram animal was 16 cm long and 10 cm wide. For Ukraine, wolves of even larger sizes are indicated - 92 kg from the Lugansk region and 96 kg from Chernihiv, but the conditions for determining the mass of these animals are unknown. The Central Russian timber wolf lives throughout the forest and forest-steppe zone of the European part of Russia, and probably also penetrates into Western Siberia. In the north, its entry into the forest-tundra is quite possible, however, just like the tundra into the taiga.

Siberian timber wolf. Also a large beast, in its medium size not inferior to the previous subspecies. According to many scientists, as a separate subspecies, it is still conditionally distinguished, since the taxonomy Siberian wolves still poorly developed. The predominant color is light gray, buffy tones are poorly visible or absent altogether. The fur, although not as high and silky as that of the tundra wolf, is also thick and soft. Its range is mostly considered to be Eastern Siberia, the Far East and Kamchatka, except for the tundra zone, as well as Transbaikalia.

Steppe wolf. In general, somewhat smaller than forest, with sparse and coarser hair. Color on the back with a noticeable predominance of rusty-gray or even brown hair, and the sides are light gray. Its range includes the steppes of southern Russia, including the Ciscaucasian, Caspian, Ural and Lower Volga regions. Poorly studied. The system of certain features has not been developed. The number is low, especially in the western parts of the range.

Caucasian wolf. Medium-sized animal with coarse and short outer hair and rather poorly developed underfur. The color is noticeably darker than the above subspecies due to the black guard hairs evenly distributed over the skin. The general tone is dirty gray, dull. Within our country, the range is limited to the Main Caucasian ridge and its wooded foothills.

Mongolian wolf. The smallest of the wolves living in Russia. The normal weight of adult males rarely exceeds 40 kg. The color of the fur is dull, dirty gray with an admixture of ocher colors. The fur is hard and coarse. The range of this subspecies is limited to eastern and southwestern Transbaikalia and Primorsky Krai.

The species WOLF MANED is listed in the International Red Book

WOLF MANED has an unusually original look. It looks like a common fox, but only on extremely long, slender legs. Due to the elongated muzzle and elongated neck, his body seems short. The disproportionate physique is emphasized by large erect ears and a short tail. This is also evidenced by its dimensions: the body length is about 125 cm, the tail is about 30 cm, the height at the shoulders is up to 75 cm, and the weight is 20-23 kg. The color of the long, rather soft coat is also original: in general it is yellowish-red, but the legs and underside are much darker, almost black, while the tail is very light, white at the end. The hair on the upper side of the neck and withers looks like a standing mane. The maned wolf is common in Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia, Uruguay, Northern Argentina. Here it is found in the pampas and along the outskirts of swamps overgrown with tall grass. Under these conditions, long legs are very necessary for aguarachai; they help to look at prey over tall grass. The beast hunts mainly on small animals: agouti, pacu, as well as birds, reptiles, insects; eats fruits and other plant foods; sometimes drags poultry and very rarely, having gathered in a group, attacks sheep. Cubs are born in winter. There are only 2-3 of them, almost black in color, with a white tip of the tail. The maned wolf is the largest canid in South America. Outwardly, a maned wolf looks more like a fox with long legs. Unlike other wolves, maned wolves hunt alone.

The RED WOLF species is listed in the Red Book of Russia

The RED WOLF species is listed in the International Red Book

The red WOLF is a fairly large animal with a body length of 76-103 cm and a tail of 28-48 cm, and a weight of 14-21 kg. Its external appearance combines the signs of a wolf, a fox and a jackal. A similar impression is facilitated by thick long hair, a long fluffy tail, a relatively narrow muzzle, and large ears. The general tone of color is red, which varies greatly in individual individuals and in different parts of the range. This variability, combined with a wide distribution, led to the description of a number of local forms, which at one time were considered independent species, but in fact are subspecies. The red wolf is well distinguished from other genera of the canine family by the reduced number of molars (there are 2 in each half of the jaw) and large quantity nipples (6-7 pairs). the red wolf is found in small numbers in the mountains Far East, Western Sayan, Central Asia.

The main part of the range falls on the mountain-forest regions of Central and South Asia, including Indochina, the Malay Peninsula, the islands of Sumatra and Java. Almost everywhere, the red wolf lives mainly in the mountains, rising to the alpine zone. In the southern part of its range, it gravitates towards forests. Often makes seasonal migrations, sometimes appears in landscapes that are not characteristic of it - forest-steppe, steppe and even in deserts. the red wolf is a typical HSHTSNIK. He hunts mainly during the day, tirelessly pursuing his prey. Outside the breeding season, it keeps in flocks, sometimes numbering dozens of individuals. Obviously, such groups combine a number of families or animals of several generations. They feed mainly on various wild ungulates. These predators are also known to regularly eat plant foods in the summer. The biology of reproduction is not well understood. Red wolves are strict monogamous; their males are involved in the protection and education of young animals. In zoos, animals mate in January - February; cubs in April (after 62-64 days of pregnancy), bringing 5-9 cubs. In India, the young are found within all year round but more often in January - February. Newborn puppies are covered with short dark brown fur. Their teeth erupt on the 14th day. At six months of age, puppies reach adult weight. They usually take refuge in rock crevices, caves and niches in the slopes, since red wolves almost never dig holes.

WOLF AND DOG

The German Shepherd and the Laika in appearance still resemble their own. wild ancestors- wolves.

Dogs are domesticated wolves. German Shepherds are a breed obtained by crossing a dog and a wolf, which was carried out three centuries ago, and therefore the appearance of these dogs is very similar to that of a wolf.

Whose traces?

"You follow the trail of a wolf - you will recognize the life of a wolf"

Proverb of Russian hunters

The track of an adult wolf resembles that of a very large and heavy dog. The paw print of the wolf is very compact, and not "sprawling", as in most dogs, the fingertips and claws are clearly imprinted. The middle fingers of the wolf are significantly advanced forward. An imaginary match can be placed across the imprint between the middle and side fingers. A mature male has a wider paw, a she-wolf’s footprint is more “slim”. Only occasionally on loose sand, liquid mud, etc. do the fingers of the wolves spread out, which is quite understandable. Most dogs have fingers always, as they say, “fan”. The exception is, perhaps, good working hounds, whose tracks can be confused with those of a young she-wolf.The track of a very large working husky is sometimes similar to that of a very young male wolf.

It is often written that if you connect the paw prints of a dog with segments, you get a broken line, and the wolf goes strictly "along the ribbon", the prints are located on one straight line. Alas, there are exceptions with wolves. For example, if the snow still allows walking, "trotting", but it is already deep enough, then the wolf also begins to spread its paws.

How not to confuse the tracks of a wolf and a dog in nature? Firstly, it is important to understand that a normal dog alone will not run far into the forest, and a wolf, in turn, does not curl under a person’s feet. So, if you come across a trace of a person, and a trace of either a small wolf or a dog winds nearby; if these are traces of the same freshness, and a person is most likely a hunter, since, for example, on wide skis and without sticks, then most likely the trace belongs to a hunting dog.

Secondly, the footprint of an adult Central Russian wolf is always much larger than the footprint of a dog that can be found in the forest. The trail of the wolf is sharper, more concrete, more acutely perceived by the eye. As if you immediately feel that the beast has passed, and not the dog. I quite often come across prints of a wolf's paw 13-15 cm long. Such traces belong to not at all outstanding animals weighing hardly more than 50-60 kg.

Where to look for a wolf trail? Best for forest paths, and not at all in impassable thickets. When the snow is quite deep, it is worth especially carefully inspecting the boar trails, old ski tracks, old and fresh ruts from tractors, cars, more or less cleared roads for logging.

The language of the wolf is fundamentally different, rather even the opposite of the language of another representative of the canine family - the domestic dog:

Of the sound signals, an adult wolf most often uses a howl and barks or barks extremely rarely;

The dog, on the contrary, most often barks, and howls, rather monotonous, emit only in some situations.

The life systems of wolves and dogs are diametrically opposed:

Domestic dogs, running wild, stray into large packs of 20 or more individuals and are polygamous. So do the wild dogs of Africa, which can be tamed;

Wolves never form large packs, but live only in monogamous families or, if necessary, alone;

The domestication of a wolf, even one that has grown up in a person's home, is very difficult, unstable, and the behavior of such a "domestic" wolf often becomes unpredictable and even dangerous.

wolf symbol

The wolf is, first of all, the highest symbol of freedom in the animal world, a symbol of independence. (Whereas, the so-called king of animals - a lion is trained in a circus.)

The wolf is also a symbol of fearlessness. In any fight, the wolf fights to victory or to death.

The wolf lives in a family, takes care only of his wolf-wife, and the wolf-father himself brings up his cubs.

The wolf is also a symbol of high morality, devotion to the family. (What can not be said about males of other animals)

The wolf is a symbol of justice and ambition. Under normal conditions, the wolf will not allow, for its part, to offend the weaker.

And what does the wolf mean as a symbol among different peoples? For most peoples, the wolf means the earth, evil, devouring passion and rage. Wolves and ravens are often close friends of the primitive gods of the dead.

Among the Aztecs, the howling wolf is the god of dance;

In Celtic mythology, the wolf swallows the Heavenly Father (the sun), after which night falls;

Among the Chinese, it symbolizes gluttony and greed;

In the Greco-Roman tradition, the wolf is dedicated to Mars (Ares) as the personification of rage, as well as to Apollo and Sylvanus. The she-wolf who, according to legend, nursed Romulus and Remus, is often depicted in Roman art. The wolf also symbolizes valor;

Among the Jews, the wolf personifies bloodthirstiness, cruelty, a haunting spirit;

Among the Indians, Ashvins save the quails of the day from the wolf of the night. The wolf is the mount of witches and warlocks, and a werewolf takes on its form.

The study of the habits and reflexes of wolves on the example of domestic dogs.

In the first chapter, I described the research of scientists about the life of wolves. Based on this information, I conducted a series of experiments with my dogs Dina and Taiga. By breed they are huskies, besides relatives, mother and daughter. Dina is a very caring mother. When she gave birth to puppies, she forbade us to even approach and look at them. (There were four puppies. We gave three of them to good people, and left little Taiga for ourselves)

Just like wolves, my dogs express their feelings in their own way. When my grandfather and I come to the dacha where Dina and Taiga live, they rejoice. Joy is expressed by wagging the tail, jumping and barking cheerfully. The fact that I am the owner, the dogs also know well, and, as before the master, they fall on their backs, showing their respect.

When Grandpa comes into the house to cook food for our dogs, they begin to whine and lick their lips in anticipation. At this time, they begin to salivate profusely. When the dogs were eating, I went to their bowl. They, regardless of the fact that I was the owner, bared their teeth, began to growl and bark sharply, almost attacking me.

When the dogs eat, they begin to have fun. They run around the garden, marking their territory near the fence. They run, squeal, bite each other.

If dogs stick out their tongues, their breathing becomes heavy, which means they are tired or thirsty.

My dogs are very emotional. I can easily tell when they are having fun, they can even smile.

When grandfather drives them into a cage, they tuck their tails and, almost pressing their stomachs to the ground, crawl into the booth. So they do not want to be in the house behind the doors.

On walks in the forest, dogs show themselves like real hunters. Dina and Taiga are very attentive dogs. They do not just run through the forest, but explore the entire territory: they smell the ground, trees, listen to sounds. They have very sensitive hearing. When they hear something, their ears become upright, hiding, they turn their ears in the direction from which the sound comes. When they see a squirrel, a chipmunk and someone else in the forest, they begin to bark loudly and tell us about their find. My grandfather and I praise them and believe that they are real hunters, only their prey remains to jump through the trees and run through the forest.

Based on my observations, I compiled a dictionary of dog language. Dina and Taiga, as it turned out, do not like to be photographed, they constantly jump on the camera and bark, so I chose suitable photos from the Internet.

Conclusion.

The main question of his research project was: who is the wolf - an enemy or a friend?

I also found two answers to my question. The wolf is both an enemy and a friend.

The enemy is because the wolf, in the absence of natural food or due to the difficulties of its production, can attack herds of sheep, kill livestock and even dogs. I learned that wolves are afraid of adults, and they attack children. The wolf harms livestock and hunting economy. In autumn and winter, the wolf becomes much more dangerous than in other seasons, often attacking both large and small livestock. They come closer and closer to settlements, and in small places they hunt for dogs, which they love very much and which in some places are his only prey.

But science has proven that predators in the life of nature are not only useful, but simply necessary, like orderlies and breeders who improve the tribe of non-predatory animals, because predators primarily destroy the sick and weak, poorly adapted, carrying various vices and defects. Therefore, in many countries, the law now protects against excessive extermination of predators. But the old traditions and prejudices against the predatory beast are still alive among people. The fate of wolves is especially tragic - almost everywhere they are finished off - without pity, without remorse and with a naive consciousness of the usefulness of this harmful deed. In nature, in natural habitats, the wolf plays the role of a nurse. The wolf in nature takes almost exclusively sick or crippled animals and thereby purifies the population.

The wolf in the zoo is a sad animal, he is deprived of his freedom. His hunting skill is completely unrealized. He is looked after, fed, cleaned in the cage. The wolf in the zoo is a prisoner.

As a result of my research, I found out that the wolf is a strong, courageous and intelligent beast.

It is absolutely in vain that in fairy tales children are presented with a wolf in such a stupid form.

Where only the gray wolf lives! It can be found in Europe and Asia, in North America and on the coast of the Arctic Ocean. He can live both in the taiga and coniferous forests (which everyone knows), and in the icy tundra and deserts. In Hindustan, the wolf lives up to about 16' north latitude. The lifestyle of many subspecies is different, in addition, they differ in size and color.

APPEARANCE, PHYSIOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS, FEATURES

The wolf is the largest animal in its family: its body is 160 cm long (including the tail); at the withers, the height reaches 90 cm; weighs about 60 kg.

The body of the gray wolf is distinguished by its strength, muscularity, and broad chest. Legs - high, with tightly compressed fingers. The head is broad and elegant at the same time. Ears are small. Dark stripes on the head are picturesquely combined with almost pure white cheeks and light spots above the eyes. The tail is not very long, hanging almost straight. Long thick fur reaches 8 cm. The undercoat is hard long black guard hairs at the ends, repelling water, ensuring its impermeability. The common wolf has a completely different coloration, which varies depending on the range. There are even white individuals found in the Arctic. Other color options are various variations of white with brown, gray, cinnamon, black, sometimes completely black. North American wolves can boast of generally three different colors color. The first is a mixture of gray, black and cinnamon, the top is brown. The second is a mixture of black and dark brown. The third is gray with brown.

LIFESTYLE OF THE GRAY WOLF

Habitat

The wolf lives in a variety of landscapes, but prefers steppes, semi-deserts, tundra, forest-steppe, avoiding dense forests. In the mountains, it is distributed from the foothills to the area of ​​alpine meadows, adhering to open, slightly rugged areas. Can settle near human habitation. In the taiga zone, it spread after humans, as the taiga was cleared.

The wolf is quite a territorial creature. Breeding pairs, and often flocks, live settled in certain areas, the boundaries of which are indicated by odorous marks. The diameter of the area occupied by the flock in winter is usually 30-60 kilometers. In spring and summer, when the flock breaks up, the territory occupied by it is divided into several fragments. The best of them is captured and held by the main pair, the rest of the wolves pass to a semi-wandering way of life. In the open steppes and tundra, wolves often roam after moving herds of livestock or domestic deer.

Sociality, habits, other features of life

Wolves live in packs - family groups of 3 to 40 animals. At the head of the pack are the leader, the strongest and smartest of the males of the pack, and his girlfriend. Around them single and young wolves unite. The leader enjoys unquestioned authority in the pack. Those wolves who do not like the power of the leader are expelled from the pack, or leave on their own in the hope of creating their own pack. Each flock has its own territory, which animals carefully protect from intruders.

The famous wolf howl, heard far around, is one way to make it clear that this territory is occupied.

Nutrition, ways of getting food

The main prey of the wolf is large ungulates. It can be moose, reindeer or other deer, roe deer, wild boars. Wolves also prey on smaller mammals: hares, ground squirrels, other rodents, as well as birds. In times of famine, this formidable predator will not disdain such "undignified" food as insects or carrion. In winter, wolves hunt moose, deer or roe deer. Wolves have different methods of hunting: they take the victim by starvation, attack from an ambush, replace each other in a grueling pursuit, try to separate from the herd and attack a weak or sick animal. However, only one out of ten wolf hunts ends successfully. The leader and his female are the first to saturate, choosing the best pieces of carcass.

Reproduction, growth, lifespan

During the mating season, skirmishes and serious fights occur in the pack, sometimes with a fatal outcome. After the formation of a pair, the "young" are removed from the flock. Pregnancy lasts about two months, then the she-wolf gives birth to three to ten blind cubs. The whole flock helps to feed the young offspring, bringing to the den, where the she-wolf with babies is located, selected pieces of meat.

Lairs are arranged for breeding offspring; usually they are served by natural shelters - crevices in the rocks, thickets of bushes and the like. Sometimes wolves occupy the burrows of badgers, marmots, arctic foxes and other animals, less often they dig them on their own. Most of all, the female is attached to the den during the rearing of offspring, the male does not use it. Young growth is hatched in sheltered places: in the forest belt - mainly in dense shrubs, on manes among marshy swamps; in the steppes - along ravines overgrown with shrubs, gullies and dry reed beds near lakes; in the tundra - on the hills. Characteristically, wolves never hunt near their homes, but at a distance of 7-10 km and further. After the wolf cubs grow up, the animals stop using their permanent den, and settle down to rest in various, but reliable places. Small wolf cubs of a brownish color, very similar to ordinary puppies of a domestic dog.

INTERESTING FACTS!

Do you know that:

A wolf pack can consist of two or three wolves, or it can contain dozens of individuals.

A hungry wolf is able to absorb about 10 kg of meat in one sitting.

All newborns have blue eyes, and at the age of 8 months, the eyes of these wonderful predators turn yellow.

On the this moment there are countless images of wolves in the world. However, the oldest ones were found in Europe. Their age is 20,000 years.

With wonderful weather conditions the wolf is able to hear at a distance of up to 9 kilometers in a forest area and up to 16 kilometers in the plains

GRAY WOLF AND MAN

Harm or benefit?

For humans, the wolf has always been enemy number one: the beast attacked livestock, posed a danger to people, so the wolf was exterminated everywhere. Now wolves are not at all as numerous as they used to be in the past. Meanwhile, the wolf, being a large predator, plays an important role in the ecological balance: it regulates the number of large ungulates, preys mainly on sick and weak animals in the herd, thereby contributing to the survival of the strongest. You should not forget about this and scold in vain the "evil" and "predatory" wolf - in nature there are no "unnecessary" and "useless" animals.

DISTRIBUTION AREAS, POPULATION, PROTECTION

In historical times, among terrestrial mammals, the range of the wolf was second in area after the human range, covering most of the Northern Hemisphere; now greatly reduced. In Europe, the wolf has been preserved in Spain, Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, Portugal, Italy, Poland, Scandinavia, the Balkans, and the Baltic states. In Asia, it inhabits Korea, partly China and the Indian subcontinent, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, the north of the Arabian Peninsula; extinct in Japan (subspecies Canis lupus hodophilax). In North America, it is found from Alaska to Mexico. In Russia, it is absent only on some islands: (Sakhalin, Kuriles).

RELATED SPECIES OF THE GRAY WOLF (Canis lupus)

The gray wolf has a relative living in the east of North America - the Red wolf (Canis lupus rufus). It is somewhat smaller and really red in color. Unfortunately, now this species is on the verge of complete extinction due to immoderate human persecution and is listed in the Red Book.