How the wolf speaks. An interesting fact about wolves. Wolf and she-wolf. Single and group howl

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, with the exception of Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands. I think everyone knows that wolves are predators. Individuals can be of medium and large sizes. Outwardly, they are very similar to dogs. They cope well with different habitat conditions, 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 are mainly nocturnal, and during the daytime they hide in shelters.

What does wolf howl mean

I've heard so many variations on 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 doesn't matter at all whether you can see the moon 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 location. 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.

The wolf is a predatory mammal that belongs to the carnivorous order, the canine family (canine, wolf).

The Russian word "wolf" is consonant with some Slavic names of the beast: the Bulgarians call the predator vylk, the Serbs - vuk, the Ukrainians - vovk. The origin of the name goes back to the Old Slavonic word "vylk", meaning to drag, drag away.

Predators have a long and thick tail, which in some species grows up to 56 cm in length and is always lowered. The wolf's head is massive, with high-set sharp ears, and the muzzle is elongated and wide. The skull of the red and maned wolves is shaped like a fox.

The wolf's mouth is armed with 42 teeth: predatory teeth are designed to tear prey into pieces and grind bones, and with the help of fangs, the beast holds and drags its prey tightly.

Only in red wolves, the dental formula contains a smaller number of molars.

Wolf cubs are born with blue eyes, but by the third month the iris becomes orange or golden yellow, although there are wolves that remain blue-eyed all their lives.

The fur of the wolf is thick and two-layered: the undercoat is formed by waterproof fluff, and the top layer is made up of guard hairs that repel dirt and moisture. The low thermal conductivity of wool allows animals to survive in the most severe climatic conditions.

The color of wolves is distinguished by a rich spectrum of shades, including various variations of gray, white, black and brown, although it is not uncommon for the fur to be red, pure white or almost black. It is believed that the color of the coat allows predators to harmoniously merge with the surrounding landscape, and the mixing of different shades emphasizes the individuality of animals.

Wolves are digitigrade animals: reliance on fingers allows them to balance their weight while moving. Strong limbs, a narrow sternum and a sloping back allow predators to travel considerable distances in search of food. The usual gait of a wolf is a light trot at a speed of about 10 km / h. The speed of a wolf chasing prey can reach 65 km/h.

The wolf has excellent hearing, eyesight is much weaker, but the sense of smell is excellently developed: the predator smells prey 3 km away, and the ability to distinguish several million different shades of smell is of great importance during the rutting season, during hunting and during the communicative communication of animals. Urine and faecal marks are used to mark territory boundaries.

The vocal range of wolves is rich and varied: predators howl, grunt, yap, squeal, growl, whimper and convey complex messages to other members of the pack with their voice. At dawn, you can hear the "choral singing" of wolves. It is believed that wolves howl at the moon, but in fact, howling animals inform members of the pack about their location and drive away strangers. Solitary animals that live outside the pack rarely howl, so as not to bring trouble on themselves.

The facial expressions of wolves are also very highly developed: thanks to the position of the mouth, lips, ears and tail, as well as the display of teeth, predators express their emotional state. As with a domestic dog, a raised tail and wolf ears indicate alertness or aggression.

The lifespan of wolves

In nature, wolves live from 8 to 16 years; in captivity, life expectancy can reach 20 years.

Historically, the range of wolves was the second largest after the range of humans in the Northern Hemisphere, but today it has decreased significantly. Wolves live in Europe (the Baltic States, Spain, Portugal, Ukraine, Belarus, Italy, Poland, the Balkans and the Scandinavian countries), Asia (in countries such as China, Korea, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan, Iran , Iraq, north of the Arabian Peninsula), Africa (Ethiopia), North America (Canada, Mexico, USA, including Alaska), South America (Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay). In Russia, wolves are distributed throughout the territory, except for Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands.

The following types of wolves live in Russia:

  • red wolf (2 subspecies out of 10);
  • Gray wolf;
  • tundra wolf;
  • steppe wolf;
  • Eurasian wolf, also known as Tibetan or Carpathian;
  • polar Wolf.

Predators have mastered and adapted to life in a wide variety of natural areas: wolves live in the tundra, forests, deserts and semi-deserts, on plains, in mountain forests, sometimes they settle near settlements.

Wolves are territorial and social animals, forming packs of 3 to 40 individuals, which occupy a personal area of ​​65-300 square kilometers, marked with odorous marks. At the head of the pack is a monogamous pair of leaders: an alpha male and an alpha female, the rest of the pack members are their offspring, other relatives and clinging lone wolves, subject to a strict hierarchy. For the rutting period, the flock breaks up, the territory is divided into small fragments, but the dominant pair always gets the best site. While moving through their territory, the leaders leave odorous marks every 3 minutes. At the border of the territory, the density of marks can be even more frequent.

Being nocturnal animals, during the day wolves rest in various natural shelters, thickets and shallow caves, but often use the burrows of marmots, arctic foxes or badgers, and dig holes themselves very rarely.

What does a wolf eat?

Wolves are one of the most agile, fast and enduring predators, tracking down and tirelessly pursuing their prey. The diet of the wolf depends on the availability of food and in most varieties consists mainly of animal food. Wolves are equally successful in hunting in packs and alone, but they can drive and attack large prey, for example, reindeer, bison or yak, only by cohesive hunting. In 60% of cases, wolves attack young, old, sick or injured animals, and they perfectly feel whether the animal is strong and healthy or sickly and weakened.

In the wild, the wolf feeds on large animals (moose, deer, roe deer, saigas, antelopes, bison, wild boars), smaller mammals (hares, ground squirrels, beavers, armadillos, mice, lemmings), as well as fish, nesting birds, and their eggs. Wolves often prey on large and small domestic animals and birds (geese, ducks, sheep, cows, horses), as well as foxes, wild dogs and corsacs.

In the absence of a primary food source, wolves do not disdain small amphibians (such as frogs), lizards, insects (beetles, locusts), and carrion (such as dead seals washed ashore). In the warm season, berries, mushrooms and ripe fruits appear in the diet of predators.

In the steppes, wolves quench their thirst in the fields with gourds - watermelons and melons. Hungry predators even attack bears in hibernation, they will not miss the opportunity to tear apart a weakened and sick animal, eating up to 10-14 kg of meat at a time. A starving polar wolf eats a hare whole, with bones and skin. An interesting feature of wolves is their habit of returning to the corpses of an undereaten victim, as well as hiding excess meat in reserve.

Types of wolves, photos and names

In the canine (wolf) family, several genera are distinguished, which include different types of wolves:

  1. Rod Wolves (lat. Canis)
    • Wolf, he is a gray wolf, or an ordinary wolf (lat. canis lupus), which includes many subspecies, including domestic dogs and Dingo dogs (secondarily feral):
      • Canis lupus albus(Kerr, 1792) - tundra wolf,
      • Canis lupus alces(Goldman, 1941),
      • canis lupus arabs(Pocock, 1934) - Arabian wolf,
      • Canis lupus arctos(Pocock, 1935) - Melville island wolf,
      • Canis lupus baileyi(Nelson and Goldman, 1929) - Mexican wolf,
      • Canis lupus beothucus(G. M. Allen and Barbour, 1937) - Newfoundland wolf,
      • Canis lupus bernardi(Anderson, 1943),
      • Canis lupus campestris(Dwigubski, 1804) - desert wolf, he is also a steppe wolf,
      • Canis lupus chanco(Grey, 1863),
      • canis lupus columbianus(Goldman, 1941),
      • Canis lupus crassodon(Hall, 1932) Vancouver island wolf,
      • Canis lupus deitanus(Cabrera, 1907) (in some classifications it is a synonym for the subspecies Canis lupus lupus),
      • canis lupus dingo(Meyer, 1793) - Dingo dog, or secondarily feral domestic dog,
      • Canis lupus familiaris(Linnaeus, 1758) - dog,
      • Canis lupus filchneri(Matschie, 1907),
      • Canis lupus floridanus(Miller, 1912),
      • canis lupus fuscus(Richardson, 1839),
      • Canis lupus gregoryi(Goldman, 1937),
      • Canis lupus griseoalbus(Baird, 1858),
      • Canis lupus hallstromi(Troughton, 1958) - New Guinea singing dog (in some classifications it is a synonym for the subspecies canis lupus dingo),
      • Canis lupus hattai(Kishida, 1931) - Japanese wolf, or shaman,
      • Canis lupus hodophilax(Temminck, 1839),
      • Canis lupus hudsonicus(Goldman, 1941) - Hudson wolf,
      • Canis lupus irremotus(Goldman, 1937),
      • Canis lupus labradorius(Goldman, 1937),
      • Canis lupus ligoni(Goldman, 1937),
      • canis lupus lupus(Linnaeus, 1758) - European wolf, he is also a Eurasian wolf, Chinese wolf, or ordinary wolf,
      • Canis lupus lycaon(Schreber, 1775) - eastern wolf, or North American timber wolf,
      • Canis lupus mackenzii(Anderson, 1943),
      • Canis lupus manningi(Anderson, 1943),
      • Canis lupus minor(M. Mojsisovics, 1887) (in some classifications it is a synonym for the subspecies Canis lupus familiaris),
      • Canis lupus mogollonensis(Goldman, 1937),
      • Canis lupus monstrabilis(Goldman, 1937),
      • Canis lupus nubilus(Say, 1823) - buffalo wolf, or wolf of the Great Plains,
      • Canis lupus occidentalis(Richardson, 1829) - the Mackenzian plains wolf, also known as the Alaskan wolf, Canadian wolf or Rocky Mountain wolf,
      • Canis lupus orion(Pocock, 1935),
      • Canis lupus pallipes(Sykes, 1831) - Asian, he is also an Indian or Iranian wolf,
      • Canis lupus pambasileus(Elliot, 1905),
      • Canis lupus rufus(Audubon and Bachman, 1851) - red wolf,
      • Canis lupus signatus(Cabrera, 1907) - the Iberian wolf (in some classifications it is a synonym for the subspecies Canis lupus lupus),
      • Canis lupus tundrarum(Miller, 1912) - polar wolf,
      • Canis lupus youngi(Goldman, 1937) – Southern Rocky Mountain wolf.
  2. Genus Maned wolves (lat. Chrysocyon)
    • Maned wolf, or guara, or aguarachay (lat. Chrysocyon brachyurus)
  3. Genus Red Wolves
    • Red wolf, or mountain wolf, or Himalayan wolf, or buanzu (lat. Cuon alpinus)

Below is a description of several varieties of wolves.

  • Red Wolf, he is mountain wolf, himalayan wolf or buanzu(Cuon alpinus)

A large predator, outwardly combining the features of a wolf, fox and jackal. Mature males grow from 76 to 110 cm in length. At the same time, the weight of the red wolf is 17-21 kg. The tail of animals is longer than that of other wolves, fluffy, like a fox, and grows up to 45-50 cm in length. The red wolf has a short, pointed muzzle and large, high-set ears. The main color of animals is various shades of red, and the tip of the tail is always black. A distinctive feature of the subspecies is considered to be a smaller number of teeth and from 6 to 7 pairs of nipples. Differences in fur density, color and body size made it possible to divide the species into 10 subspecies.

Biotopes of predators are attached to mountains, rocks and gorges (up to 4 thousand meters above sea level). The red wolf feeds on small animals - amphibians and rodents, as well as large animals: sambars, axises and antelopes. In summer, wolves are happy to eat various vegetation.

A significant part of the range of animals extends across the territory of Central and South Asia, predators live from the Altai Mountains and Tien Shan to Hindustan, Indochina and the Malay Archipelago. The largest population is observed in the Himalayas, in southern Iran, in India and the Pakistani Indus Valley. In other habitats, the red wolf is extremely small or completely extinct, so the species is classified as endangered and is under protection.

  • Maned wolf, he is guar or aguarachai (Chrysocyon brachyurus)

A unique member of the family, its name translates as "short-tailed golden dog." Long hair up to 13 cm long grows on the nape of predators, forming a thick mane. Externally, a maned wolf resembles a large long-legged fox, the body length of adults is 125-130 cm, due to overly elongated limbs, the height of the wolf at the withers reaches 74-87 cm, and animals weigh from 20 to 23 kg. The obvious disproportions of the body are especially emphasized by the long muzzle, large, high-set ears and a short tail from 28 to 45 cm long. The wolf's coat is reddish-yellow, a strip of black wool runs along the spine, the legs are almost black, and the chin and end of the tail are light.

Maned wolves live exclusively on the plains, and have evolved their surprisingly long limbs, allowing them to make their way through the thickets of grass. The range of the species extends from the northeast of Brazil to the eastern regions of Bolivia, in the south it captures Paraguay and the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. According to the IUCN, the state of the population is becoming vulnerable.

Predators feed on rodents, rabbits, armadillos, amphibians, insects, and also eat guava, bananas and nightshade, which rids animals of nematodes.

  • eastern wolf, he is north american timber wolf(Canis lupus lycaon)

It still does not have a definite classification: a number of scientists consider it as an independent species ( canis lycaon) or considered a hybrid of a gray wolf with a red wolf or a coyote. The growth in the shoulders of mature males reaches 80 cm, females - 75 cm, with a body weight of 40 and 30 kg, respectively. The fur of the eastern wolf is yellowish-brown, shaggy, black hair grows on the back and sides, and the area behind the ears is distinguished by a reddish-brown tint.

Eastern wolves are predominantly carnivores, deer, elk and rodents become their prey.

These animals live in forests from the southeast of the Canadian province of Ontario to the province of Quebec.

  • common wolf, or Gray wolf(canis lupus)

One of the largest predators among canines, with a body size reaching 1-1.6 m. The growth in the shoulders of mature individuals is from 66 to 86 cm, in especially large specimens it can be up to 90 cm. An ordinary wolf weighs from 32 to 62 kg, in the inhabitants of the northern regions of the range, body weight varies from 50 to 80 kg. The tail of predators grows up to 52 cm. The color of the fur of animals is quite variable: the inhabitants of the forests are usually gray-brown, the inhabitants of the tundra are almost white, the predators of the deserts are gray with red, only the undercoat is always gray.

The favorite food of wolves is various hoofed mammals: deer, elk, roe deer, antelopes, wild boars and small animals: mice, hares, ground squirrels. Wolves do not disdain representatives of their own family, for example, small foxes and raccoon dogs, often various domestic animals become their prey. During the ripening period, predators quench their thirst on melons, eating watermelons and melons, because they need a lot of moisture.

The range of the gray wolf passes through the territory of Eurasia and North America. In Europe, predators are distributed from Spain and Portugal to Ukraine, Scandinavia and the Balkans. In Russia, the gray wolf lives everywhere, except for Sakhalin and the Kuriles. In Asia, animals are distributed from Korea, China and Hindustan to Afghanistan and the north of the Arabian Peninsula. In North America, animals are found from Alaska to Mexico.

  • red wolf(Canis lupus rufus)

At first it was considered as an independent species (lat. Canis rufus), but DNA analyzes made it possible to consider it a hybrid of a gray wolf and a coyote.

These predators are smaller than gray relatives, but larger than coyotes, their size is from 1 to 1.3 m excluding the tail, and the growth of animals is from 66 to 79 cm. Seasoned wolves weigh from 20 to 41 kg. Red wolves are more slender and longer-legged than their gray relatives, their ears are more elongated, and their fur, on the contrary, is shorter. The red color of the fur is characteristic of the inhabitants of Texas; other animals in color, along with red, have gray, brownish and black tones; the back is usually black.

The diet of predators consists mainly of rodents, raccoons and hares, hunting for large prey is rare. Insects and various berries act as secondary food, and carrion is eaten on occasion.

The red wolf is the rarest subspecies, its range, originally covering the eastern United States, was reduced to small areas of Texas and Louisiana, and in the 70s of the 20th century the red wolf was completely exterminated, with the exception of 14 specimens preserved in captivity. Thanks to efforts to restore the population, out of 300 bred individuals, about a hundred predators today live within the state of North Carolina.

  • tundra wolf(Canis lupus albus)

One of the especially large and poorly studied subspecies, outwardly similar to its close relative, the polar wolf, but somewhat inferior to it in size: the average weight of predators is about 42-49 kg. Although pure white wolves are found in the population, most individuals are gray-white and dark gray with no brown at all.

The developed massive jaws of the wolf with strong teeth make it possible to hunt large prey, although rodents and white hares are present in the diet.

Tundra wolves live throughout the tundra and forest-tundra of Europe and Siberia up to Kamchatka and the coast of the Arctic.

  • steppe wolf, or desert wolf(Canis lupus campestris)

Poorly studied variety of predators of small size, with rather rare and rough fur of a grayish-ocher color.

Desert wolves inhabit the steppe and desert landscapes of Central Asia, including the Kazakh steppes and southern Russia: Ciscaucasia, the Caspian lowland, the Ural region and the Lower Volga region.

  • Eurasian wolf, he is European, steppe, Carpathian, Tibetan or to Chinese wolf, also called common wolf(canis lupus lupus)

Outwardly, the predator resembles the North American subspecies, but its fur is denser and shorter. The growth of mature males in the shoulders is about 76 cm with a body weight of 70 to 73 kg.

The smallest individuals inhabit Eastern Europe, the most massive are found in the north of Russia. The color of wolves is monochromatic or includes various combinations of gray, white, black, red and beige, and the most brightly colored specimens live in Central Europe.

The diet of European wolves depends on the area and consists mainly of medium and large prey, such as saigas, chamois, moufflons, deer, roe deer, wild boars, and even bison and yaks. Predators do not disdain smaller animals, catching hares and frogs, and in the absence of food, they feed on waste from slaughterhouses in garbage dumps.

The Carpathian wolf is considered a particularly common subspecies of the common wolf and is found in a significant range that runs through Eurasia through Western Europe, the Scandinavian countries, Russia, China, Mongolia, Azerbaijan and the Himalayas.

  • polar Wolf(Canis lupus tundrarum)

The closest relative of the European wolf and the completely extinct Japanese wolf. Adult males grow in length from 1.3 to 1.5 m, not counting the tail, and weigh about 85 kg, their height at the shoulders reaches 80-93 cm. The light fur of the polar wolf is extremely dense, adapted to survive in extremely cold climates and warming the beast during long hunger strikes.

Lemmings and arctic hare become the most accessible prey for predators; if the hunt is successful, the flock gets musk ox or reindeer.

The range of the species extends throughout the Arctic and undergoes slight fluctuations caused by the migrations of animals - the main food sources. The life span of a polar wolf is about 17 years.

wolf breeding

Female wolves mature at 2 years of age, males become sexually mature at the age of 3 years. The rut of wolves depends on the range and usually occurs from January to April. The mating behavior of a couple consists in mutual courtship and flirting. When new pairs are formed, fierce fights begin between males, and a weaker rival often dies.

At the time of mating, partners leave the pack and retire. The lair is settled in a secluded place (dense bushes, thickets, rock crevices), and the pregnancy of a she-wolf lasts about 62-65 days. There is usually an odd number of puppies in a litter - from 3 to 13, wolf cubs are born blind, and open their eyes only after 12-13 days. Weak puppies are culled by the female so that stronger cubs get more milk.

The grown up wolf cubs are fed by the belching of their parents, consisting of semi-digested meat, then they begin to feed on the brought prey, and all members of the pack feed the cubs. By autumn, young (arrival) wolves are already beginning to participate in the hunt.

Enemies of the wolf in nature

Wolves have few natural enemies. Sometimes predators come into skirmishes over sharing prey with a lynx or a bear, they can suffer and even die from injuries received when hunting for a large prey - an elk, deer, bison or horse. Red wolves living in the USA have been attacked by alligators and cougars. Sometimes representatives of two different wolf packs arrange bloody fights among themselves, dividing the habitat, which also leads to fatal injuries. However, the main enemy of the wolf is considered to be man: setting traps and unauthorized shooting of wolves by poachers sometimes lead to a soulless and barbarous reduction in the population of these predatory animals.

wolf as a pet

Recently it has become "fashionable" to keep a wolf as a pet. The wolf is easy to train, however, he executes the commands of the owner only if it is interesting to him. True, puppies with a meek disposition become more aggressive with age and are not averse to competing with a person for leadership in the pack. A wolf at home is not always safe, so such a pet should be treated with special attention and great care.

  • By purposeful hybridization of wolves and dogs, several breeds have been bred, among which the Czechoslovak Vlchak (Czechoslovakian Wolfdog) and the Sarlos Wolfdog are considered recognized.
  • In the Middle Ages, wolves were considered servants of the devil and were often used as mysterious characters in fairy tales and legends, the most famous of which is the werewolf.
  • Some European family coats of arms are decorated with the image of a wolf, which means that the family owes its origin to the werewolf.
  • Wolves attack humans extremely rarely, and in most cases, aggression is shown by animals infected with rabies.
  • To raise morale, the Vikings drank wolf blood before the battle and dressed themselves in animal skins.
  • In 17th-century Ireland, there were so many wolf packs that the country was called Wolfland.

Everyone remembers the fairy tale about the gray wolf, which we were told in childhood. So who is the real wolf? An image from a fairy tale or a dangerous animal? The common wolf is a large predator of the Canine family. The gray wolf is the master of the tundra and taiga, a hardy and very intelligent beast. In this article you will find a description and photo of the wolf, learn a lot of interesting things about the harsh life of this formidable predator.

Outwardly, the common gray wolf is very reminiscent of a dog, which is not surprising, because these animals have common ancestors. However, the wolf looks much larger. The body length of a wolf can reach 110-160 cm, the length of the tail is up to 52 cm, the height at the withers ranges from 60 to 90 cm, and the body weight of a wild predator can reach up to 80 kg.

There were cases when the weight of individual individuals exceeded 92 kg. The average weight of wolves varies from 30 to 65 kg. The size and weight of wolves depend on the geographical location. The colder the climate, the larger the animal. Males are always larger than females.


The animal wolf has thick, rather long and warm fur, which consists of two layers, in connection with this, the wolf looks larger. The first layer of wool of the common wolf is tougher and protects from dirt. The second is a waterproof undercoat that protects the wolf from the cold and various extreme conditions of nature. Animal gray wolf is very hardy.


The wolf looks like a threatening and dangerous animal, has a strong muscular body, high strong paws and a large broad-browed head with sharp ears. The elongated and large muzzle with dark stripes is combined with almost white cheeks and light spots in the eye area. The massive muzzle of the wolf is also very expressive. The tail of the gray wolf is quite long and is usually lowered down. By its movement and position, one can judge the mood of a predator.


The common wolf has a completely different color, depending on the habitat. In the forests it is a gray-brown color. In the tundra - lighter, almost white. In the desert - grayish-reddish. There are even white individuals that are found in the Arctic, as well as red or almost black ones. The undercoat of the beast is always gray.


How is a wolf different from a dog? An ordinary wolf differs from a dog not only in appearance, but also in its tracks. The track of tracks in the gray wolf is more even than in dogs, and forms an almost straight line. Also, the wolf has a different track length, which is 9-11 cm, and the width is 6-7 cm, for the she-wolf it is 7-9 cm and 5-6 cm. a much more embossed imprint than that of a dog.

Where do wolves live?

The wolf is the most common land predator. This wild animal has a wide range of habitats. The wolf lives mainly in cold countries and in various landscapes. In forests, steppes, deserts, taiga, tundra, forest-steppe and at the foot of mountains.


Wolves live in many parts of Europe (from Russia to Portugal), Asia (from Korea to Georgia) and North America (from Alaska to Mexico). Large individuals inhabit the tundra, and small ones inhabit the southern regions. It is curious that in Russia the wolf is absent only on Sakhalin Island.


The common wolf is a territorial animal. Packs of wolves live in conquered areas, the boundaries of which are marked with marks. In summer, when the wolf pack breaks up, the occupied territory is divided into several sections. The best of them is occupied by the main pair, and the rest of the wolves are moving to a nomadic lifestyle.

How do wolves live?

The common wolf is a social animal. Therefore, wolves live in packs, they hunt together, play and even howl. A wolf pack is a family group that consists of animals of different ages and can number from 3 to 40 individuals. The pack is controlled by a leader or a seasoned wolf - the dominant male. This is the smartest, wisest and strongest male in the wolf pack. The leader of the pack has a girlfriend - a dominant female. Together they form a pair, thereby uniting other wolves around them - this is the wolf pack.


A pack of wolves has its own hierarchy. The leader in the pack has unquestioned authority. This is a wise leader and he is friendly towards all members of the pack. But the seasoned wolf meets strangers extremely aggressively. A beta male is often present in the pack - the most likely successor to the leader. Usually this is the common son of the leading pair or the brother of the leading male. The applicant for the position of the head of the pack periodically demonstrates aggression towards the alpha male, as if checking his status, as he is ready to take his place at any moment.

A wolf that left the pack on its own or was expelled is called a lone wolf. Such animals have every chance to create their own flock.


Wolves live by relying on their feelings. They use these senses to hunt and communicate with other wolves. The excellent hearing of the beast allows you to hear a howling wolf at a distance of seven kilometers. Their sense of smell is 100 times stronger than that of humans. The gray wolf is able to run at a speed of 55 km/h.

Wolves live in packs and each pack has its own hunting area, which animals carefully guard from other wolves. In a pack where the leader keeps order, the wolves live peacefully and do not fight. Skirmishes happen with strangers and lone wolves that have violated the boundary of the site. Each wolf pack has its own territory and hunts only on it.


The owners carefully guard and mark their territory, leave scratches on fallen trees or old stumps. Thus, make it clear that it is better to stay away. Unexpected guests are punished, such are the cruel laws of the wolf pack. The wolf howl that is heard around is a way of notifying that the territory is already occupied.


The size of the family territory of the common wolf depends on the landscape and ranges from 50 to 1500 km². The pack's survival depends on the size of its hunting grounds, so wolves protect them carefully. If there is more than enough food in the family hunting area, then several generations of wolves will live on one site. The largest hunting grounds for wolves are found in open landscapes of the tundra and steppe and are 1000-1250 km². In the forest zone, they are much smaller - 200-250 km².

When wolves do not have small cubs, they are nomadic. Wolves travel both in packs and alone. As a result of wandering, animals sometimes appear in areas where no wolves have been seen for several years. Nomadic wolves run up to 70 kilometers in one night.


Gray wolves gather in packs in winter. If the snow is deep, the wolves in the pack walk in single file. Each animal follows each other, stepping on the same track if possible. The common wolf is very cunning. Therefore, it is very difficult to find out from the tracks how many wolves a pack consists of.

Why do wolves howl? Wolves howl because howling is the way they communicate with each other. With the help of howling, wolves find out where their family members are, announce the capture of prey and the seizure of territory, or simply to communicate with relatives. Wolves howl usually in the late evening hours. During the year, wolves howl most frequently in winter, when the number of pack members reaches its maximum. Wolves begin to howl more actively by the end of summer and with the beginning of autumn, as well as when puppies are developing the family plot and begin to move its territory.


What does a wolf eat and how does it hunt?

The wolf is a picky predator. The main diet of the common wolf includes large ungulates: deer, elk, saigas, sheep and goats. But the wolf also feeds on hares, various rodents and birds, because he is picky. Sometimes wolves can eat the dead members of the pack.


Large concentrations of livestock attract wild and predatory wolves. Therefore, meeting a gray wolf near farms is a common thing. The wolf eats meat, so the average animal needs 3-4.5 kg of meat per day. The wolves store their food. Having sated, the animal wolf buries the remaining pieces of meat. Wolves can go without food for more than two weeks. In the summer, the diet of the common wolf includes plant foods, so in the summer the wolf also eats fruits and berries.

The principles of wolf hunting are very diverse. In winter, wolves collectively hunt large ungulates. Wolves use this type of hunting in winter. The main advantage of the wolf's winter hunting is the presence of snow cover, on which he moves with ease. For hoofed animals, snow makes it much more difficult for them to escape from the wolf, a wild and predatory animal.


It is curious that the collective hunting of wolves provides for the distribution of responsibilities: part of the pack participates in the pursuit of prey, while the other cuts the path of the prey. On the hunt, the nose of the wolf is the main adviser. He tells the wild predator where to look for prey. Wolves smell even a small animal that is a couple of kilometers away from them. It is with the help of a keen sense of smell that wolves can follow their prey in the footsteps. The wolf hunts almost silently.


The main weapon of the wolf is the teeth. With sharp fangs 5 ​​cm long, the wolf holds and drags the victim, and with the rest of its teeth it cuts the game. The teeth of a wolf are not only its weapons, but also its protection, so their loss is detrimental to the animal.


Especially large ungulates are killed by wolves, attacking the whole pack and attacking until their prey falls. At the same time, the primacy of eating prey rightfully belongs to the leader and his female, they eat the best pieces of the carcass.

The wolf hunts very carefully. Imperceptibly sneaking up to the animal, with a deft jump grabs it by the throat and knocks it to the ground. It can sit in ambush for hours and wait for prey for a whole day. Often they can follow a herd of ungulates, predators do not betray their presence, but wait for a convenient moment to attack.


Wolves are very cunning, in pursuit they stop the pursuit, allowing the prey to go far ahead. When the victim slows down, the wolf attacks again. Often wolves attack foxes. But most of the time they don't eat them. When attacking a herd of livestock, wolves can distract dogs. Part of the wolf pack attacks the dogs, and the rest - the herd.


Wolves are very good at navigating the terrain. Many packs use the same patches of territory to drive prey into a dead end. When hunting rodents, the wolf jumps on the prey, crushes it with its paw and eats it. This hunting technique is common for wolves in the summer.

In summer, the flock is divided and predators live singly or in small groups. Wolves feed on various animals using well-established hunting techniques. In the summer, most often the wolf feeds on hares. But even with all the prudent moves and clever maneuvers in the hunt, it does not always end successfully.

Wolf cubs - the birth of puppies. How does a pack raise wolf cubs?

A wolf's lair is a hole where a she-wolf brings out wolf cubs. Wolves make their lairs in secluded places. In this case, the place should have a good overview. Often wolves use empty burrows of other animals as a den device.


Wolves breed annually in January-February, for the first time the breeding season begins at the age of 2-3 years. The duration of the pregnancy of a she-wolf is about two months. In the spring, wolf cubs are born in the lair. Usually a female gives birth to 4 to 8 cubs. Wolf puppies are born deaf and blind, the first days of the life of the babies, the she-wolf is constantly nearby. They begin to see and hear around the 10-12th day of life.


After three weeks, the wolf cubs leave the den for the first time and begin to taste the meat at the same time. The whole flock takes part in the cultivation and education of wolf cubs. Wolves bring the best meat to the lair with the kids.


In small wolf cubs, the color has a grayish-brown hue, which changes with age. At the age of 2 months, wolf cubs leave the den, but still stay close to the hole. Such places are protected by vegetation from prying eyes. Wolf puppies learn the basics of hunting, attack shrews and mice.


Wolf cubs grow rapidly and their weight increases almost 30 times in the first four months. Newborn wolf cubs have blue eyes. At the age of 8 months, the cubs' eyes change to yellow. By the end of the first winter after birth, wolf cubs reach adult size. The common wolf lives 12-15 years.

Are wolves necessary and why?

Why do we need wolves, because for a person a wolf is an enemy. It is dangerous to people and exterminates livestock. Gradually, the struggle of people with wolves led to a reduction in their numbers. But a wild predatory animal, the common wolf plays an important role in the balance of the ecological system.


Wolves are needed to regulate the population of large ungulates. Also, wolves are a kind of "orderlies", since by destroying sick animals, wolves do not allow diseases to spread. Hunting the weak animals helps the strong survive.

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Language of communication of wolves

LIFESTYLE OF THE WOLF FAMILY (PACKS)

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, feeding and raising offspring is facilitated;

it is easier and less risky to get 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 guards a certain feeding area, where "strangers" are not allowed.

This leads to streamlining the use of food resources and eliminates major conflicts between packs, which is largely ensured by the dominance of strict discipline, the unconditional execution of the orders of the elders, especially the head of the pack - the mother wolf. This way of life of wolves is one of the main reasons for their adaptability to various conditions and the preservation of the wolf as a species in almost all countries of the world, despite centuries of persecution by man. The wolf is able to ensure the reproduction and stability of the population, and at times significant "bursts" in numbers and expansion of the habitat. The successful activity of wolves in a family-pack is, of course, possible only with the good development of the language of communication, transmission and reception of information, which is excellently achieved by wolves in the process of a long struggle for existence. The basis of the wolf language is a sound alarm, and in it the main element is howling. Sound communication through an extremely diverse howl is inherent only to wolves. None of the large predators of Russia uses such an ambiguous howl. At the same time, the frequent use of howling and disgusting laughter in some breeds of hyenas in Africa is known, and these large predators, similar to wolves in some morphological features, also conduct a pack hunting method similar to that of a wolf. 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:

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

the dog, on the contrary, most often barks, and the howl, rather monotonous, emits only in some situations.

The life systems of wolves and dogs are diametrically opposed:

domestic dogs, when they run 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 gather in large packs, but live only in monogamous families or, if necessary, alone;

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

The contrast of wolf language and way of life with the language and behavior of a dog makes us recall the opinion of the well-known hunting biologist M. P. Pavlov about the dubiousness of the widespread opinion about the origin of the domestic dog from the wolf. Other scientists adhere to the same point of view. So, according to V. Sokolov and O. Rossolimo, "another still unresolved problem is the definition of the status of a domestic dog" (Bibikov, 1985, p. 23). It is very possible that dogs (Canis), later domestic dogs (Canis familiares), and wolves were created independently in the canine family (Canidae). It seems that the idyllic pictures of good-natured, pooch-like wolves drawn in the book by Canadian F. Mowat "Don't Shout Wolves!" hares, rodents, etc.) wolves are not dangerous for domestic animals and humans, since the wild fauna provides complete and easily accessible food for predators, and there is no need for them to take risks by attacking domestic animals or people, but in the conditions of Russia and other countries where it is easy there is much less prey for wolves, hungry wolves tear domestic animals and become dangerous for humans.Therefore, the pictures of the life of wolves and the conclusions of F. Mowat, uncritically accepted for conditions where wolves often starve, harm the aspirations, if not to destroy wolves, then to reduce their number to acceptable level for conservation as a species. According to L. Krushinsky, E. Mychko, M. Sotskaya and A. Shubkina, "about 30% of wolves in central obna attack a person." (Bibikov, 1985, p. 287). This once again confirms the need to fight wolves in Russia.

BASIC DATA ABOUT THE WOLF LANGUAGE

Varieties of howling wolves and other signals.

The basis of the language of wolves is the following elements of sound signaling:

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 accessible 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. These 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 as 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 by man, although they are perfectly captured and distinguished by a wolf;

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

Visual information also matters. Here, special attention is paid to the very diverse facial expressions, position and movements of the body, ears and tail. (Bibikov, 1985, pp. 295-303). 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 (A. Nikolsky, N. Frommolt, 1989). Thus, in its diversity, paradoxically, the language of the wolf, especially the howl, is similar to the language of people. Wolves howl mainly at dawn and at night, but sometimes, especially after the death of one of the family members, during the day. In this case, the howl is especially frequent and prolonged. So, after shooting a she-wolf, the inhabitants of a neighboring village gave the following colorful description of a dreary, sorrowful howl: "For a week, the wolves howled in the morning, in the evening, sometimes in the afternoon, they even cried." (Bologov, 1982). At the same time, the howl is strictly individual, just like the voices and intonations of people. A clear description of the individuality of the mother's howl is given by the oldest wolf cub of the MOOiR Vasily Petrovich Petrov: "One male is vociferous, the other is nasal, one howls long, the other is shorter." And yet, with all the variety of wolf howling, some persistent features can be distinguished. First of all, like the voices of people, the howl of wolves is clearly distinguished by age and gender:

the howl of a seasoned wolf - thick and low, very rarely with a bark;

the howl of a mother wolf - on much higher notes; sometimes there is whining and barking;

the howl of pereyarkov - on even higher notes with frequent flashing, sometimes whimpering;

As already noted, the pitch, tonality, frequency of repetition, duration, tendency to howl at different hours of the day - everything is different, individually.

Purpose of sound signals, especially howling.

Wolves put certain meanings into the howl: threat, longing, despair, sadness, a signal about caught or found prey, calls, affectionate intonations towards the cubs, etc. briefly and softly responds with a howl to the howl of the returning mother. 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." In the last days of 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 by bearing, goes to it. The seasoned one, returning to the lair usually later than the she-wolf, utters his usual howl, but somewhat weaker, short: "I'm on my way." The seasoned one sometimes snaps at the wolf cubs that demand belching from him, tries to move away, but after the intervention of the she-wolf, he still burps. Hearing a skillful waba in the voice of a male or the howl of a competitor encroaching on his feeding area, the seasoned with a furious growl goes towards him for battle. There were cases when, in excitement, he "flew out" to a skillful howl with clearly aggressive intentions.

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.

The meaning of sound signals.

Determining the meaning of sound signals is very necessary for organizing a successful hunt, but they are so diverse that the data we have presented are only the first approximation to the knowledge of the wolf language and are far from free from errors.

The signal for calling wolf cubs to mother is figuratively described by V. Bologov (1986). The sounds are reminiscent of "au" of women calling to each other in the forest, but as if inverted - "uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuumuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu The duration is short, only 4-7 seconds. A case is described when, after the death of a she-wolf, a hardened wolf often began to appear near the nest and, not reaching the nest 300-400 m, issued a long complex howl with "soothingly gentle" intonations for the cubs.

Hazard warning signals.

Snorting is usually used by a she-wolf, less often by a hardened one to warn cubs. After this signal, the cubs quickly hide and hide in protected places. A ringing bark and a howl interspersed with a snort is a rare signal, and we have never heard it. A. Nikolsky and K. Frommolt (1989) describe it this way: "The reaction of wolves to their worst enemy - a man is not limited to snorting. A ringing bark, very similar to the barking of a dog or a howl alternating with barking. When the wolves sort out the deceit of an inept waba, the she-wolf at the end of the howl with a blemish, the syllable "gamma" immediately cuts off the answer of the brood. V. Bologov (1986) compares the forbidding signal of a mother with a powerful "go-go", after which the cubs instantly fall silent and hide. Let's try to give a "free translation" of some phrases of the wolf language. At first, the hardened one quietly tightened his "oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooohard subjectmate, as if the wires are humming in the wind, the sound is getting stronger, the tone is a little higher, and now a thick one is heard throughout the forest, lingering howl. One can feel the power of a hefty she-wolf. And at the end, a formidable warning sounds even more bass "o-o-o-o" or "o-o-o-ah": "Listen, this is my and my family's forest, my fodder area, beware, stranger!" Here, with inescapable longing, the mother dragged her into two knees: “uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh” Where did that one, the biggest, with the big foreheads, who always starts fuss and fights, go. Mother is here, come here, fool!"

Unrecognized wolf tongue signals.

Experienced wolf hunters are well versed in wolf language. However, despite centuries of wolf hunting, numerous scientific studies and publications on the biology and habits of wolves, we still do not know (and are unlikely to know soon) many features of the wolf language, how wolves communicate. For example, the signals that wolves use when organizing and conducting joint hunts are not known. And different signaling is absolutely necessary for the organization and implementation of wolf hunts, which are very diverse. During their implementation, the rolls perfectly use the conditions of the terrain, take into account the peculiarities of the behavior of their victims. S. Korytin and D. Bibikov read that "the wealth of hunting techniques is one of the main reasons for the extraordinary ecological plasticity of the wolf, the ability to withstand intense persecution" (Bibikov, 1935, p. 323). Here is one example. A family-flock with a nomadic lifestyle often conducts group, very lucrative hunts. At the same time, like our hunts by "corral", the family-flock is divided into beaters and "shooters", that is, wolves on the numbers. But by what signals are they organized, how is the distribution of duties established, who should go into the corral, and who should bypass the prey, stand on the right manhole and quickly intercept the victim? Or how the hunt for a large and dangerous animal, for example, an elk, is organized, when some of the wolves distract the elk from the head, and they do not attack him, dodging hooves and horns, but do not give him a move, while other wolves attack from behind and from the sides ? They tear the crotch, thighs, stomach and sides, as a result of which the victim dies from blood loss. There is a known case when, in the cold, from the grips of wolves from behind and from the sides, blood mixed with snow froze on the hind legs of an elk, turning them into bloody pedestals. The following also testifies to the high organization of group hunts. Despite the fact that such wolf hunts are carried out systematically, we have never seen wolves die from hooves or horns or traces of their defeat. As far as we know, there are no publications about the death of wolves from elks or deer, but beautiful pictures about this are rather invented. The death of wolves during the hunt, of course, happens, but extremely rarely. It is undeniable that such reasonable methods of numerous collective wolf hunts can be organized and carried out only with the exchange of information, the issuance of still unknown commands or a very quiet sound signal, either completely silently, facial expressions, touches, body movements, or in any other way. It is the unusually developed signaling system (information exchange) that provides a closely knit family-flock with high efficiency of collective hunting, and, consequently, survival in the most difficult winter period. As noted above, even in the part of the audio signal that a person can hear, there is still a lot of obscurity. But the quite probable scale of the wolf tongue at frequencies that are not audible to humans is completely unknown to us. But it is known that the wolf sometimes takes a pose for howling, throwing back its head, but people do not hear the howl itself. In the light of the foregoing, both in applied and scientific terms, a broad collection of information about wolf language and further research on this phenomenon is necessary.

Additional features of the howl that are important for learning to subskill.

As noted, the howl of a hardened one is distinguished by its density of tone, bass or barygon, power and duration, almost always without interruptions. The howl, especially low at the beginning, rises a little in the middle, and ends again on a low note. This long "buzz" on almost one low note is similar to a drawn-out "oooo" or "oooo", and sometimes with an even shorter bassy, ​​menacing ending "oooooooo- o-a-a." Occasionally, the howl of a hardened happens with a short break. The duration of the howl is different, as well as the degree of "nasal". The respiratory apparatus of a seasoned wolf is much more perfect than that of a human, so a wolf can sometimes "pull" more than a human in one breath, up to 20-25 seconds, but in most cases the duration of the howl is about 15 seconds. With the help of modern acoustic equipment used by A. Nikolsky and K. Frommolt (1989) with the assistance of V. Bologov, it was possible to obtain sound recordings of the howl of a large wolf (probably a hardened one) in the conditions of the Central Forest Reserve. The duration of the howl was only 8-10 seconds. This is confirmed both by ear and by eavesdropping. The brood responds to the "average" wailer's howl for about 10 seconds. By the way, the well-known wolf cub of the Moscow region A.P. Izotov successfully imitated the howl of a seasoned wolf with a duration of 10-12 seconds. The she-wolf howls on a high note, comparable to a tenor, mournfully and drearily. A long "uuuuu" is heard with the transition at the end of the knee to "oh-oh-oh" or "ah-ah-ah." The she-wolf howls "in two knees" with a short break between them or without a break, only with a noticeable weakening, as if the sound fades. The duration of one "knee" is only 5-7 seconds. On a tape cassette distributed to the participants of the MOOiR wolf cub seminar in June 1996, A. Izotov and F. Vasilyev’s howls are recorded, as well as the wolf’s natural howl without complete breaks between “knees” with a total duration of 10-13 seconds and discordant, thin, then weakening, then the intensifying yelping, squealing and flashing of the wolf brood in August, lasting about 1-1.5 minutes. Pereyarki howl in a high tone, even shorter than seasoned ones. In addition, their howls are characterized by squealing and barking, usually at the end of a "knee". Profitable (puppies) are crying like a puppy. As they grow up, they learn the basics of the wolf language, gradually mastering short howls with frequent yelping, screeching, getting closer and closer to the sound signaling of over-brightness.

Howling time by seasons.

The howling of wolves can be heard almost all year round, only during the rutting season, in the middle of winter, and during the whelping period, howling is rare. During the rut, this is either the inviting howl of mature she-wolves, or the roll call of pereyarkov, sometimes the bass parts of seasoned males. Late spring and early summer seasoned

they usually avoid howling for fear of giving away the location of the nest. By necessity, their howl is short and not loud. Howling frequency by months is shown in the graph. Most often, wolves howl in July-August, when the wolf cubs, having grown stronger and reached 1-1.5 months of age, actively move and when seasoned and newborns begin to change dens (day rests, temporary dens, day rests). Days are in comfortable, well-protected places. In winter, in severe cold, this is a dense spruce undergrowth, etc. places protected from the wind, but in the second half of winter, when the sun begins to warm - often in the sun. With the passage of time and pereyarki, hanging out separately until the second half of summer, they begin to increasingly join the hardened wolf cubs, forming a complete family-flock. Under these conditions, sound communication is especially necessary. A single howl is mainly required for communication between family members. Often experienced howls on the way to the den, and wolf cubs, sometimes over-flying, respond to them. It is also not uncommon for the roll call of pereyarkov. It happens that hungry wolf cubs, without waiting for their mothers, begin to whine, squeal and chirp. Later, the group howl of the family-pack appears, the time comes for the most frequent "wolf concerts". In the daily context, most often the windrows 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 howl is extremely rare, and if necessary, the roll call or signals to lost profits is carried out quietly - with a short howl or squeal.