Malik embodied the opportunistic nature of wolves.
Malik and his littermate, Shadow, were born on May 8, 2000. Malik had his own distinct personality. Even though Shadow was larger and more dominant than Malik, Malik was quick to respond to his littermate’s behavior with a growl when anxious. With the arrival of the 2004 litter of pups in the Exhibit Pack, Malik took the opportunity to assert rank over the younger pack members. When Grizzer reached maturity at 2 years of age, he began to test Malik’s more dominant status. This focus was amplified upon the arrival of the 2008 litter, with Malik displaying high energy ritualized dominance over Aidan and Denali. This ultimately lead to his retirement in November 2009; he was joined by his Shadow 7 months later. Following an extremely quick decline in his physical condition, Malik had lost the ability to stand on his own. He was humanely euthanized on March 22, 2014. Malik taught the wolf care team about the opportunistic nature of wolves, a lesson that aids us in our management practices to this day.
