Wolves are well known animals because with them are associated many stories. Many moves have been made to show how wolves are not just animals. Some people believe these stories to be true and some call them a work of fiction. They are carnivores. Whatever the stories or fiction associated with wolves, the fact is that they are beautiful animals. Below are given some facts that will describe them better.
1: Family and species
Wolves’ genus is called canis. They are carnivores’ means, they eat meat only. There are two well known species of wolves, the gray wolf called “canis lupus” and the red wolf called “canis rufus”. Canis also includes dogs, jackals, coyotes and dingo.
2. Subspecies
The gray wolf of North America has 5 known species of canis lupus namely: arctus, baileyi, laycaon, nubilis and occidentalis. The three known species of red wolf are: canis rufus floridanus, gregoryi and C.r. rufus, these species are extinct now.
3. Once had the widest range
Wolves were so many in numbers and found at so many places once that they had the widest range of mammals on earth. From arctic plains to deserts and forests, they were found in Europe, Asia, Japan, and all North America except southwest California.
4. Highly intelligent
Wolves are highly intelligent animals. A study on wolves and dogs has showed that the domestic dogs have 15 to 30 percent smaller brain than wolves.
5. Skin color
The skin color of wolves varies from all shades of gray to pure black. They are also tan and brown in color; some of the arctic wolves have creamy white color. About 30 percent of the Canadian wolves are black.
6. Their hair
Wolves have two types of hair on their skin. One is called guard and the other are called undercoat. Guards repel moisture and the undercoat insulates.
7. Their tale
We see that the dogs have a tail that curls. But wolves’ tails do not curl. They have a straight tail.
8. Hearing power
Wolves have bestowed with great hearing power. They have 16 times sharper hearing power than humans. In open areas they can hear a voice from a distance of ten miles while in forests this shrinks to six miles.
9. Height and weight
The wolves have an average height of 34 inches from shoulder while from their nose to tail; their length is 5 to 7.5 feet. They weigh from 40 to 140 pounds. Some of wolves were reported to have weight around 175 pounds.
10. Smelling sense
Wolves have extremely sharp smelling sense as compared to humans. Their smelling sense is 100 times sharper than that of human beings. They have 200 million olfactory cells.