Exhibit Pack Update – 11 December 2023

Winter is right around the corner and that means that there are some more intense testing of boundaries, posturing, but also some heightened social bonding interactions. We have noticed a change in Grayson the past few weeks; he appears to be initiating more social interaction with Rieka, who is receptive to these social advances more often than not. In this week’s Pack Update on YouTube, a video is included that exemplifies this: “[Grayson] has a T2 tail posture while Rieka is doing some soft muzzle bites and to that Caz also responds with some muzzle licks to Grayson in a submissive manner. Rieka continues seeking Grayson, doing soft muzzle bites and we see them briefly parallel gaiting.”During another instance of Rieka and Grayson social greeting that was captured on video also acts as a reminder of the opportunistic nature of pack rank order: “… we see Grayson seeking some of that social bonding behavior with Rieka, holding a T2 tail while she does a series of soft muzzle bites. And we can’t ignore what the other wolves are doing too. Caz is also trying to participate in this interaction between Rieka and Grayson, but he also is taking advantage of the opportunity to stand over Blackstone who is laying down at the pumphouse. So we know wolves can be very opportunistic to vulnerabilities and take advantage of that moment to test boundaries and assert dominance over some of their packmates.”

While we have witnessed Grayson and Rieka engaging in some social behaviors, we also still see Rieka circling and targeting Grayson’s rear as she did last winter. At this time, we are certainly seeing less frequency and intensity of this type of focus. However, we still have much of the winter season left to go. Caz and Rieka still have a strong relationship; she oftentimes aligns with Caz in times of yearling dominance or when Axel or Grayson display corrective behaviors to him. The wolf care team continues to monitor these social relationships, which provides insight into overall pack dynamics. Proximity while resting, for example, is a good indicator of stronger relationships and alliances. We see a lot of that with Blackstone and Grayson, but the whole pack is pretty cohesive and calm so we do see a lot of resting together between all wolves at some point. One of the main questions we get is if Rieka has pair bonded with one of the males yet. We are seeing some behaviors that relate to pair bonding but we do not see anything definitive yet. What we can say is that we are watching very closely because whatever she decides will have implications for the dynamics of the pack.