Do wolves bark? Wolves. Laws of the wolf pack. What do wolves eat
Since ancient times, people have revered and feared wolf, he was called the elder brother, they frightened children with him, they composed legends and retellings about him. The wolf genus itself is quite extensive, including coyotes and jackals, but it is precisely wolves became the direct and closest ancestors of the domestic dog.
Wolf- enough large predator from the family of mammals, which could previously be found almost everywhere in Russia and the CIS. But due to a number of problems caused by the progress of technological progress, the habitat of these animals has narrowed significantly in recent decades.
The name itself wolf” comes from the Old Slavonic language, has long Indo-European roots and literally means “ drag' or 'drag'.
It turns out that the Wolf family is quite extensive - there are about 32 different subspecies of wolves, but only six main ones are found on the territory of Russia - tundra, Central Russian forest, Mongolian, Caucasian, Siberian and steppe.
What do wolves eat
Basic wolf diet make up ungulates depending on their habitat. It can be reindeer, horses, roe deer, pigs, moose, goats, both wild and domesticated.
In desert regions, Wolves prey on antelopes and sheep. In connection with the expansion human activity and the introduction of man into natural environment habitats of wolves, attacks of predators on livestock farms occur.
But wolf population constantly decreasing due to lack of food and constant hunting for them. During difficult periods, Wolves can eat frogs, lizards, and even large insects. They sometimes eat berries, mushrooms and fruits, and to quench their thirst they can plunder a watermelon or melon planting.
Where does the wolf live
Wolves prefer wooded area and choose flat or mountain areas with sparse vegetation and a temperate climate.
pack of wolves usually occupies an area of 30 to 60 km and prefers a settled way of existence. But in the spring-summer period, this area is divided into fragments in accordance with the hierarchy of the pack: the best goes to the strongest Wolves.
Wolves can also be found in the north in the taiga and tundra near human settlements.
Wolves are smart and understand that where a person is, you can always profit from something. And though they hurt agriculture, but, on the other hand, they also regulate the balance of the ecosystem, controlling the number of animals and acting as forest orderlies.
Are wolves dangerous to humans?
Scientists have come to the conclusion that the Wolf will not attack a person just like that, since he has an instinct for self-preservation. But sometimes there are sad cases of attacks by animals with rabies. Or with a severe lack of food.
wolf breeding
Mating season for wolves lasts from January to April. Wolves are monogamous and lead a family lifestyle, the couple stays together until one of the partners dies.
The she-wolf before the onset of estrus does not accept the sexual advances of the male. Violent fights for the attention of females, often with fatal, are absolutely normal among Wolves.
she-wolves reach puberty in the second year of life, and Wolves - in 3 years.
Wolves have only 1 estrus a year so that the cubs are born in the warm springtime, when there is enough food around.
wolf couple to begin with, he takes care of a safe shelter for future offspring. These can be both various secluded places, and other people's burrows of badgers or arctic foxes, their own burrows are rarely dug.
Only the She-Wolf uses the den, she is also engaged in raising little wolf cubs, which at first resemble puppies of an ordinary dog. Usually from 3 to 13 wolf cubs are born to the She-Wolf, and the whole flock helps to feed them.
But despite close care from parents and other Wolves, in the first year of life only 20-40% of cubs survive. This is due to disease, lack of food and competition within the family, when stronger puppies get more food, and weak ones gradually die.
Wolves have a rather interesting voice, which has much more possibilities than other animals. Wolves not only howl, as is commonly believed, they also know how to grumble, whimper, squeal, yelp, bark and growl. Moreover, they are fully aware of these sounds and understand the information voiced by their fellow tribesmen. This helps to find out where the prey is hiding, where to go hunting and even report the appearance of people. A collective wolf howl is an hallmark active social life.
By the way, Wolves can hear your tribesman and transmit messages from a distance of about 8 kilometers.
The Wolf is very highly developed sense of smell, he distinguishes smells 100 times better than a person, so the scent plays one of the main roles in the wolf family.
Wolves are strong and hardy animals that can overcome the distance up to 80 km, and if necessary develop speed 60 km/h, which is one of the important conditions for survival.
In nature Wolves live out up to 15 years, but already at 10-12 years old they show signs of old age.
The wolf also symbolizes devotion and loyalty in the family, it is associated with many heroes. folk tales and epics of the ancient cultures of the peoples of the North, where he personifies strength and courage. But sometimes he is perceived as an evil and negative character who is greedy and greedy, and sometimes serves the dark forces.
think of some interesting features daily behavior of your dog: they can howl, dig holes, sniff out smells and tree bark. All these actions constitute the behavior transmitted at the genetic level from their ancestors - wolves. We think you will not argue with us on this matter. In fact, some of these traits, of course, are definitely generic, but it turns out that not all of them can be classified as such.
Since dogs are the direct descendants of wolves, it becomes obvious that many of the innate behaviors of our four-legged friends come from their ancestors. However, it is interesting that barking cannot be classified as such. Actually a mature wolf in wild nature does not bark like our pets. This behavior is limited to babies and juveniles.
The reason for the lack of barking is that in the wild, wolves know that if they are in real danger, it is best to be as quiet as possible, not betraying their presence in any way until the threat has disappeared.
Dog's reaction to direct threat
On the other hand, our canine companions prefer to deal with threats in reverse - barking at them until they leave. But if wolves are the ancestors of dogs, why is their ability to bark reduced to zero?
Some researchers believe that dogs acquired this pattern of behavior because of their close relationship with humans. Humans are very musical and our puppies learn to hear, understand us and react in a similar way rather quickly. But we are not that good at deciphering their non-verbal cues.
To make sure their owners understand what they are trying to communicate, our dogs default to certain verbal cues. However, there are other researchers who believe that dog barking is related to years of selective breeding. We prefer dogs that exhibit gentleness and friendliness, and as a result have developed these characteristics in our pets over the years. And, you guessed it, barking is just side effect these relatively recently acquired skills.
Conclusion
If you ask what barking is, we will answer that it is just one of the many attractive behaviors without which we cannot imagine a four-legged creature.
Whether our dogs bark in order to communicate with us, or simply because they look more like a young than a mature wolf, we perceive this behavior as our four-legged friend's natural reaction to certain stimuli.
The first time I heard a real howl of a wolf was when I came to visit my grandmother in the village. To be honest, it became very creepy and scary from these sounds. It seemed to me that their howl was getting closer to home. Why do wolves make such sounds? Now I will dispel some myths and tell you a little about these animals.
Where do wolves live
Wolves are known in many countries of our planet. Their habitats are:
- Europe;
- Asia;
- North and South America.
In our country, wolves are also not uncommon. They live everywhere except Sakhalin and Kuril Islands. I think everyone knows that wolves are predators. Individuals can be medium and large sizes. Outwardly, they are very similar to dogs. They do great with different conditions habitat, so it will not be difficult for them to survive, for example, in the tundra.
Wolves gather in packs of up to 40 individuals. They mark the territory of their residence. Such a flock is headed by a pair of leaders, and the rest are their relatives and individuals who have come from outside. Wolves mostly lead night image life, and during daylight hours they hide in shelters.
What does wolf howl mean
I am so much different options I heard about why wolves howl. Some almost argued that wolves are werewolves. All this, of course, is nonsense. And wolves do not howl at any moon either. Wolves can howl every day, and it makes no difference whether the moon is visible in the sky or not. You can just hear the sounds of howling at night, due to the fact that wolves begin their hunt in the dark.
Howling is a way for a wolf to communicate. With such sounds, he can notify other flocks about the ownership of the territory. In communication with each other, they can notify about the beginning of the hunt for prey, tell about their whereabouts. By these sounds, wolves are very well oriented. And there is nothing mystical about it.
It turns out that there are even several artificially bred breeds that are a mixture of a dog and a wolf. But some even have real wolves at home. I would say that it is not a very safe idea to have such a pet.
Think about some interesting features of your dog's daily behavior: they can howl, dig holes, sniff out smells and tree bark. All these actions constitute the behavior transmitted at the genetic level from their ancestors - wolves. We think you will not argue with us on this matter. In fact, some of these traits, of course, are definitely generic, but it turns out that not all of them can be classified as such.
Wolves don't bark
Since dogs are the direct descendants of wolves, it becomes obvious that many of the innate behaviors of our four-legged friends come from their ancestors. However, it is interesting that barking cannot be classified as such. In fact, a mature wolf in the wild does not bark like our pets do. This behavior is limited to babies and juveniles.
The reason for the lack of barking is that in the wild, wolves know that if they are in real danger, it is best to be as quiet as possible, not betraying their presence in any way until the threat has disappeared.
Dog's reaction to direct threat
On the other hand, our canine companions prefer to deal with threats in reverse - barking at them until they leave. But if wolves are the ancestors of dogs, why is their ability to bark reduced to zero?
Some researchers believe that dogs acquired this pattern of behavior because of their close relationship with humans. Humans are very musical and our puppies learn to hear, understand us and react in a similar way rather quickly. But we are not that good at deciphering their non-verbal cues.
To make sure their owners understand what they are trying to communicate, our dogs default to certain verbal cues. However, there are other researchers who believe that dog barking is related to years of selective breeding. We prefer dogs that exhibit gentleness and friendliness, and as a result have developed these characteristics in our pets over the years. And, you guessed it, barking is just a side effect of these relatively newly acquired skills.
Conclusion
If you ask what barking is, we will answer that it is just one of the many attractive behaviors without which we cannot imagine a four-legged creature.
Whether our dogs bark in order to communicate with us, or simply because they look more like a young than a mature wolf, we perceive this behavior as our four-legged friend's natural reaction to certain stimuli.