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Wolf (Canis lupus)

India Ashutosh Online
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( This post was last modified: 01-23-2022, 03:20 PM by Ashutosh )

Himalayan Wolf (oldest lineage of wolves and a different species as per latest research):







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United Kingdom Sully Offline
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 "Gray pelt wolves were found more often in areas with higher road densities than black wolves. As predicted, black, but not gray, wolves were positively associated with forest cover. "

*This image is copyright of its original author

I'm fairly sceptical about any explanatory power this has but interesting nonetheless
Carnivores in color: pelt color patterns among carnivores in Idaho
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India Ashutosh Online
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( This post was last modified: 05-02-2022, 10:12 PM by Ashutosh )

A Himalayan Wolf pack (they are rarely seen in such numbers):

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United Kingdom Sully Offline
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Exploring durophagy among modern gray wolves from the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem with dental microwear texture analysis

Abstract

Gray wolf (Canis lupus) dietary behavior can be highly variable; prey species for wolves span a range of ungulates to the consumption of smaller animals. While prey species for wolves are well documented, carcass utilization within and between wolf populations is less understood. This paper examines a modern population of wolves from the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE) with dental microwear texture analysis (DMTA) to gauge utilization of bone resources, or durophagy, across biological, physical, social, geographical, and temporal variables. Results indicate gradation in durophagous behavior among GYE wolves does not correlate with sex, intra-population body size (as inferred from skeletal and soft tissue measurements), pack association, or age class. Together, findings suggest that feeding ecologies for wolves are not specific to these factors. We also found that antemortem tooth breakage rates are not positively correlated with dental microwear textures that infer durophagy. We further compare dental microwear measures with previously published data from Alaskan wolves, who were collected decades before the GYE wolf sample. Results imply elevated carcass exploitation in the contemporary GYE wolf population sample. If minimal inter-population differences are assumed, data presented here show dietary behaviors of North American gray wolves have changed over the past fifty years, indicating a possible long-term trend that may be linked to decreased winter severity and climate change.
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India Ashutosh Online
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( This post was last modified: 11-15-2022, 03:20 PM by Ashutosh )

Himalayan wolves vs domestic yak:




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Oman Lycaon Offline
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Pretty intense shot of a pair of indian wolves.

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United Kingdom Sully Offline
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Wolves infected with a parasite that increases risk taking makes them 46x more likely to become pack leaders

Parasitic infection increases risk-taking in a social, intermediate host carnivore


Toxoplasma gondii is a protozoan parasite capable of infecting any warm-blooded species and can increase risk-taking in intermediate hosts. Despite extensive laboratory research on the effects of T. gondii infection on behaviour, little is understood about the effects of toxoplasmosis on wild intermediate host behavior. Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, USA, has a diverse carnivore community including gray wolves (Canis lupus) and cougars (Puma concolor), intermediate and definitive hosts of T. gondii, respectively. Here, we used 26 years of wolf behavioural, spatial, and serological data to show that wolf territory overlap with areas of high cougar density was an important predictor of infection. In addition, seropositive wolves were more likely to make high-risk decisions such as dispersing and becoming a pack leader, both factors critical to individual fitness and wolf vital rates. Due to the social hierarchy within a wolf pack, we hypothesize that the behavioural effects of toxoplasmosis may create a feedback loop that increases spatial overlap and disease transmission between wolves and cougars. These findings demonstrate that parasites have important implications for intermediate hosts, beyond acute infections, through behavioural impacts. Particularly in a social species, these impacts can surge beyond individuals to affect groups, populations, and even ecosystem processes.
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