Timber Wolf

[pierre girard]

Saw a timber wolf at work about an hour ago (never a camera when you need one). While they are very common in our area, tracks everywhere, seeing them is not that common. They see you a lot more than you see them.

At first I thought it was a deer, then as I got closer, a dog. There is just something about the way they move that quickly dispells the thought. Even a malumute, or dog similar in looks to a wolf just doesn't have that same nonchalant, yet predetory look to it.

This appeared to be a large male, with a darker coat, grey and black.

I enjoy seeing wolves. I guess for me it means I live somewhere that is not yet wholly tamed. Maybe if I owned livestock, I wouldn't be so happy to see them.

 

[British Red]

Pierre,

You are indeed a lucky man. I'm not sure about the owning livestock thing - I remember last year when I was helping move the poults out to the release pens (red legged partridge). Drove up to one of the pens with about 300 and perched on the top was a common buzzard whilst circling overhead was a Red Kite. The gamekeeper wasn't wildly pleased bu had a sort of "<shrug> what can you do?" attitude. I'm not certain how many buzzards there are on the farm now but I've seen 11 in the air at one time (we also have sparrow hawks, kestrels, peregrine falcons, tawny and barn owls occasional kites etc.). The farm is kept pesticide free for the game birds but everything else benefits from a clean food chain. I spoke to the farm owner about the huge increase and he smiled and said "great isn't it?". To be honest the gamekeeper does have to control fox numbers when they get too prevalent but I think thats more commercial necessity than anything. Do the wolves take much livestock from farms?

Red

 

[tomtom]

nice spot pierre, i saw a stoat today but thats not as exciting as a wolf

 

[fred gordon]

I don't know. My father was once chased by 6 stoats whilst he was out cycling. Bet he thought that was as exciting as a wolf!

 

[tomtom]

I don't know. My father was once chased by 6 stoats whilst he was out cycling. Bet he thought that was as exciting as a wolf!

hahaha thats a good story but still i bet he would have been even more excited had it been 6 timber wolves on his tail

 

[fred gordon]

Good point tomtom. But then again he wouldn't have lived to tell the tale and I wouldn't be here to pass it on!

 

[leon-1]

Nice Pierre.

I have only ever seen one in the wild and that was in Suffield in Canada. He was watching my boss and I watching another bunch of people.

I envy you

 

[stone]

Nice Pierre.

I have only ever seen one in the wild and that was in Suffield in Canada. He was watching my boss and I watching another bunch of people.

I envy you

Was that at the Army base Leon? I'm just west, up the highway from there by about 2 hours...Lots of rattlers in the "Hat" area!

~mike

 

[pierre girard]

Pierre,

Do the wolves take much livestock from farms?

Red

It is a problem. In the area I live, there really aren't too many farms. Growing season is very short. But people who have livestock - have problems with wolves. The gov't is supposed to pay anyone for wolf kills (livestock killed by wolves) but they are not particularly quick about it.

Deer hunters are always upset about wolves too - claim they kill off too many deer. By the size of the deer herd - wolves aren't doing their job too well. It is to the point in some areas where you can't find green on a tree - high as a deer can reach. Actually looks kind of nice on some lakes - like a super gardner has been at work pruning.

Saw a large hawk yesterday too, but I don't know my hawks, so I can't tell you what kind. We are on some kind of hawk flyway here and one local area is called hawk ridge. There you can see hundreds of hawks in a day in the autumn. Bird people come from all over the world to watch the hawks. Bird people are a bit different, and one local has started a business as a bird watch guide. He didn't know squat about birds when he started, but he's learned fast.

 

[leon-1]

Was that at the Army base Leon? I'm just west, up the highway from there by about 2 hours...Lots of rattlers in the "Hat" area!

~mike

Hi there Mike, yep it was indeed and yes there are a few rattlers, we had to get one to leave one of the shelters set up on the side of the vehicle. It was reluctant and because it was a protected species we had to just coax it out.

There's a good sized herd of Pronghorn up there as well

 

[sionhughes]

To be fair to the wolves, they might have chased him, but its unlikely they'd have injured him. I used to work with a pack of captive wolves and a gentler, more 'civilised' animal you'd be hard pushed to find. Inquisitiveness and a fondness for digging were the main problems, never aggression.

 

[pierre girard]

To be fair to the wolves, they might have chased him, but its unlikely they'd have injured him. I used to work with a pack of captive wolves and a gentler, more 'civilised' animal you'd be hard pushed to find. Inquisitiveness and a fondness for digging were the main problems, never aggression.

They are interesting to watch in captivity. They are also interesting to watch in the wild, and definitely more agressive. I'd imagine the ones you were watching were relatively well fed. Watching them take down a deer or a moose may give you different ideas about their agression level.

While the few wolf attacks on humans, that I'm aware of, seem to have been more in error than anything, it is always a good idea to remember you are made of meat - and wolves eat meat.