![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() For example, the white color phase is predominant in arctic regions. The predominant color phase within a population often corresponds to the overall color of its environment. In the Western Great Lakes region, about 98 percent of the gray wolf population exhibits the gray phase, with the occasional occurrence of white or black phases. White, gray and black color phases may be seen within the same gray wolf population. The red wolves reintroduced in northeastern North Carolina were, on the other hand, bred in captivity because red wolves were officially declared functionally extinct in the wild.Ĭarrying Capacity – The total number of a species that a given area of a habitat can support at any given time the ability of a given area to supply water, food and shelter to a species.Ĭolor Phase – The color of an animal’s pelage (fur), which is determined by genetics and may vary within a population. They were captured in Canada and transported to the northern Rocky Mountains and released. The wolves that were reintroduced in Yellowstone National Park and central Idaho were not bred in captivity. These captive populations may be used for reintroduction in designated areas. Captive breeding is a tool to save critically endangered species such as the Mexican gray wolf ( Canis lupus balleyi) and the red wolf ( Canis rufus). Some scientists have proposed that the eastern wolf, Canis lupus lycaon is a distinct species, Canis lycaon.Ĭaptive Breeding – Breeding animals in such places as zoos. Two recognized species of wolves live in North America – Canis lupus and Canis rufus. to store or hide.Ĭanid – A member of the taxonomic family Canidae, which in North America includes wolves, coyotes, foxes and domestic dogs.Ĭanines – The sharp, pointed teeth (fangs) that carnivores use to pierce and tear the flesh of their prey.Ĭanis lupus – The scientific name for the gray wolf.Ĭanis rufus – The scientific name for the red wolf. These zones may be contested by resident packs.Ĭache – a hiding place used for storing food if there is an abundance of meat from a kill v. However, buffer zones are not necessarily neutral areas and therefore safe havens. Wolves that have dispersed and that are alone often find relative safety and food in buffer zones with less risk of being attacked and killed by members of established packs. Prey species often flourish in buffer zones. Federal and state governments have used bounties as part of their predator control programs to encourage people to kill wolves.īreeding Pair – The term used to refer to the male and the female in the pack who mate and produce offspring.īuffer Zone – An area between territories occupied by established wolf packs. Biologists also study the relationship of living things to one another.īounty – A payment or other reward for removing or killing certain species of animals designated as harmful. In many states, selected species are legally designated as big game, small game (rabbits, squirrels, game birds) and non-game (songbirds, birds of prey).īiological Diversity or Biodiversity – The variety, complexity and relative abundance of species (plant and animal) present and interacting in an ecosystem.īiologist – A person who studies living organisms, life processes and/or the animal and plant life of a particular place. Examples are bears, moose, deer, elk, caribou and bighorn sheep. (See Alphas and Dominance Hierarchy)īig Game (Large Game) – Term used to designate larger species that are hunted. According to this model, a wolf at this rank would usually dominate all of the other wolves in its gender except the dominant wolf. This implied that a pack may have both a beta male and a beta female. In what researchers now consider an oversimplified model of a wolf pack, social hierarchies were thought to operate for males and females. Animals are frequently anthropomorphized in literature and in movies.īehavior – What an animal does its reactions or actions under specific conditions.īeta – The term sometimes used to describe the second rank in the social order of a wolf pack. Therefore, competition for rank in the group may take place with a resulting social hierarchy.Īnthropomorphism – The act of giving human characteristics, behaviors, feelings and/or motivations to animals or objects. Because a free-ranging wolf pack is a family comprising the parents and their offspring, the term “alphas” has been superseded by “breeding pair” or “breeders” or simply “parents.” (See Dominance Hierarchy) On the other hand, captive wolves that live together are often unrelated. WolfLink Virtual Learning for adults & groupsĪlphas – The term sometimes used to describe the dominant wolves in the social order of the wolf pack. ![]()
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