Gray Wolf (Canis Lupis). Gray Wolves run with a bounding gait with their tails held horizontally. The pack works together on a hunt by chasing the victim or driving it to circle back to the other pack members.

Gray Wolf (Canis Lupis). The Gray Wolf used to have one of the widest ranges of all mammals. It has roamed over most of Europe, northern Asia and North America. When settlers arrived wolves slowly disappeared from vast areas, with survivors being driven into unsettled terriroty. In 1989, the public supported a congressional bill that called for full implemenation of the Endangered Species Act that would pave the way for restoration of the wolf.

Gray Wolf (Canis Lupis). For the first few weeks of their lives, Gray Wolf pups remain in the den. Once they are one month old, they begin to crawl out of the den and romp outside. During the summer, the pups will accompany the parents on the hunt and by autumn have become fairly good hunters. At 2 or 3 years old, they are fully grown and take a mate of their own.

Gray Wolf (Canis Lupis). The Gray Wolf is an ancestor of all domestic dogs. The relationship to the domestic dog is so close that it is not uncommon or the wolf and the domestic dog to mate and produce fertile offspring. It looks similar to the German shepard, but stockier with a heavier head. The colors range from gray to tawny, to black and white. The male weight is approximately 100 pounds and the female 80 pounds.

Gray Wolf (Canis Lupis). The Gray Wolf has strong family ties where one mail is thought to be faithful to his mate for life. A pack consists of a mated pair and one or more generations of offspring. The mated pair are the only members of the pack that reproduce. Both the males and females share in taking care of the home and raising the young.

Gray Wolf (Canis Lupis). An individual Gray Wolf may leave its pack and become a lone wolf. This departure occurs in autumn and during mating season in January. The lone wolf will wander over an area that is several times larger than a territory of a pack. It will search for a mate and if successful will establish its own territory and begin a pack of its own.

Gray Wolf (Canis Lupis). The breeding season of the Gray Wolf comes in late winter. In early spring, approximately 63 days after mating, 5 to 7 pups are born. The nursery is an underground burrow prepared by the female with the help of the male. The pups are blind and covered with soot-colored fur at birth. They learn to hunt and care for themselves by watching their parents.

Gray Wolf (Canis Lupis). The Gray Wolf has a complex form of communication. Its facial expresstions are used to exhibit its emotional state. The light patches of fur around the eyes, muzzle, and inside the ears will heighten the effect of its facial expressions. It will also use body language to communicate with its pack members.