Wolves are sophisticated predators. Just like their domesticated cousins, dogs, wolves are social animals. This means that they live and attack with their pack. Although wild, there are things about wolves that are fascinating. Below are the most amazing wolf facts that you need to know.
Wolves are the largest land predators that exist on earth. They are social animals and live in packs of 4-8 members.
Wolves are typically about 60-72 inches long including the tail which is about 24 inches long. Their shoulder height is usually around 30 inches tall, but can range from 27 to 36 inches tall depending on the sex of the wolf, age of the wolf, and species of wolf.
Wolves have a variety of vocalizations for different situations or moods. They can howl, bark, yelp, whine, growl etc.
Wolves are considered to be the most social, intelligent and cooperative animals on the planet.
Wolves live in a family unit called a pack. The pack includes a breeding pair, their offspring from previous years, and any lone wolves who have been adopted by the group. Each wolf has a role to play in the pack.
A wolf can weigh anywhere from 60-120 pounds and they can live up to 12 years in captivity. Wolves are very intelligent animals who have been known to teach their young how to hunt for prey as well as how to avoid being prey themselves.
Wolves are the most widespread and successful wild canine species. They hunt in packs of usually 5 to 10 animals, with one dominant male and female.
The Fiercest Facts about Wolves
1. In North America, wolves are considered endangered or threatened in most of Canada and all of Mexico, but their numbers have increased in some parts of the US since the 1970s.
2. Wolves can grow up to 4 feet tall on their hind legs and their weight can range from 30 to 220 pounds.
3. They come in a variety of colors including white, grizzled gray, brownish red or black.
4.A wolf’s sense is stronger than a dog’s sense because it has more scent glands that allow it to detect prey from miles away.
5. Wolves are the ancestors of today’s modern-day dogs.
6. Wolves are found in almost every habitat across the world, from tundra to mountains to deserts.
7. Wolves typically eat small mammals like deer, rabbits, and mice. Sometimes they will hunt larger animals like moose or elk for food.
8. Wolves are the most widely hunted animal in North America. The government even imposed a wolf eradication program in 1915. This led to them becoming nearly extinct during the turn of the 20th century.
9.Wolves have a very sensitive sense of smell – they have 200 million olfactory cells, thus allowing them to smell other animals more than 1.6 kilometers away.
10. Wolf jaws are incredibly powerful and they can crush 1,500 pounds per square inch. Incredibly, this is twice as much power as a large dog, like a German Shepard.
11. The earliest prehistoric drawings of wolves’ dates back to 20,000 BC – and they were discovered in a cave in southern Europe.
12. Wolves are the most widely distributed predators on land. There are only only two places where they do not thrive: rain forests and true deserts.
13. When they mate, they stay together for life and become devoted parents to their pups. Monogamy is rare in the animal world.
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14. The Vikings considered wolves as superior animals so in order to take on the wolf’s spirit into battle, they wore wolf skins and drank wolf blood to make them stronger.
15. Wolves and dogs both have the same number of teeth: 42. But wolves have canine teeth that are longer and can more easily eat and hunt with.
16. They howl for many reasons – sometimes to get the attention of the other members of their pack and sometimes just for fun. And sometimes when one wolf howls, the rest of the pack also does the same.
17. Although dogs and wolves share a common ancestor, they separated from the same family tree 34,000 years ago.
18. Wolves are considered to be one of the most sophisticate land predators. They are built to have speed, agility, and intelligence. Although this may be the case, they are not spared from human hunters.
19. To date, there are only 150,000 wolves all over the world.
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Wolves 101 | Nat Geo Wild
If you want to learn more about wolves, this video from National Geographic is incredible!
With their piercing looks and spine-tingling howls, wolves inspire both adoration and controversy around the world. Find out how many wolf species exist, the characteristics that make each wolf’s howl unique, and how the wolf population in the continental United States nearly became extinct.
I’m Natalie Garcia and I started this website to share my love of trivia, facts and fun knowledge tidbits. We cover things like celebrity gossip, historical facts, tv shows, world leaders and just odd and random fun things. I started this site to have some fun with my hobby and share some useful information with you, our community. Please feel to send me your suggestions and feedback through the contact form. And if you have suggestions for things to write about, please shoot me a message!