malik – May 16, 2005 12:00 AM

Malik and Shadow continue to display some issues concerning status. Normally, springtime behavior is less aggressive than the dominance issues common in winter. Hormonally, the male wolves are driven by a heightened level of testosterone in winter, with a lower level in spring. In the 5 years that I've worked with Malik and Shadow (they turned 5 on May 8th), this is the longest (into the Spring) we've observed some intense interactions. The posturing of bodies, the averting of gazes and the positioning of tails indicates that there's no clear acceptance of the top order here. There are many things that can impact it. Shadow is timid around strangers and a Behind the Scenes visit that can leave Shadow with a tucked tail, will often result in Malik in high tail. Staff are very cognitive of these specialized programs and the behavior of the wolves after a session. Shadow seems to have the most social behavior with Grizzer and Maya, while Malik may not share in the intensity of the greetings. The relationships between wolves often helps dictate the status of individuals. The Center is offering some specialized programs called "Wolf Watchers", where program participants spend an overnight observation period in the auditorium watching the dynamics of the pack. These observations will be more important than ever as the pack transitions their relationships and rank orders.