Grizzer has been enjoying his second ranking male status, as long as Shadow is close by to keep Malik in line. During Saturday night's feeding, Grizzer and Shadow guarded the deer carcass from Malik (no problem with Maya), and nearly finished it off. This left Malik a bit hungry. An extra deer carcass was fed on Sunday night to satiate all appetites. Malik was full on Monday morning, and most of the deer carcass remained. Grizzer was eating another meal on it Monday afternoon.
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Lakota is doing well, she continues to climb on the den boxes for a better view of the exhibit pack and of the construction that's started another season across the road. As I write this, all retired wolves are catching some sun in their den boxes. Similar behavior is going on in the wild. Last week, during a mid-day telemetry flight, the group saw a pack of wolves from the air, all bedded down in the sun.
Much to our suprise, MacKenzie is doing very well with the start of the construction season of the new Forest Service complex across the road. The noise levels have been increasing, but she's not showing signs of anxiety. She's been eating well and we even saw her defend her deer leg from Lakota, something she doesn't normally do. We would also like to take this time to thank Jen and Betty Magnuson for their recent donation of vitamins. At 13 years of age, the nutritional supplements provided on a daily basis help to strengthen the immune system and results in a good quality of life in these later years.
Intern, Mary Murphy, noted in the wolf logs that Malik may have been kept from the deer carcass by Shadow and Grizzer. This is important information to observe and pass on to the wolf care staff. In response, a second deer carcass was fed on Sunday night, with plenty available for all wolves. Malik had a full stomach on Monday's check, and was very social toward the wolf care handlers.
Shadow's been displaying some interesting behavior lately. For years, he's been reluctant to eat in front of large crowds at the What's for Dinner program. Wolf Care Staff always made sure he had enough to eat, even if it meant that he had individual meals prepared, but his shyness towards strangers left him out of the carcass feeds. Since the 2004 pup introduction, Shadow seems to have developed more confidence as he clearly has a role in leading this pack, rather than just living with a brother. This confidence is most noteable in the last few months of pack feedings. Shadow actively guards the carcass, and dictates who feeds. On Saturday during the What's for Dinner program, Grizzer and Shadow guarded the carcass from Malik, and between Grizzer, Shadow and Maya, nearly consumed the entire deer in less than 24 hours, leaving little for Malik. Intern, Mary Murphy, notified wolf care staff and a fresh road-kill deer was fed to the pack on Sunday night. All is well, Shadow is full and has not defended the second carcass, leaving Malik and the ravens to have a few meals.
Grizzer has been less assertive with the arctics lately. Today, when all were resting up in the wooded area of the enclosure, Grizzer did a full submission when Shadow and Malik approached. The warm weather may be influencing the mellow behavior, although when staff washed the observation windows later during the check, Grizzer proceeded to scent roll on the clean windows. It's a full time job doing wolf care and facilities maintenance during the mud season.
MacKenzie continues to surprise the staff in her tolerance of the warm season noises: construction, increased traffic, motorcycles, and humans going for walks on the adjacent road. With the leaves about 3 weeks from emerging, the sound will continue to carry through the woods until a thick layer of green vegetation appears. Staff are spending a lot of time around the retired pack to reinforce more relaxed behavior. Assistant Curator, Donna Prichard is here for the month assisting the wolf care program and she spends many hours in the lab and adjacent wolf yard. The wolves welcome her back to the enclosure and look forward to the day when she may make her move to Northern Minnesota.
Maya has been the most active during the recent warm spell. While Grizzer and the arctics are bedded down, Maya continues to stalk ravens, and the daily emerging flies in the exhibit. Last week, observers spotted an immature bald eagle perched in the large white pine tree in front of the exhibit, and 5 turkey vultures circling overhead during the feeding. So far, these large predators/scavengers haven't landed in the enclosure. We're not sure about Maya's response to these larger birds.
Shadow is doing well, there's some concern about the reoccurence of an ear mite problem as he's shown some scratching behavior. A vet visit is scheduled for May 4th, at which time, both arctics will be lightly sedated to allow a full inspection and ear cleaning. The drug we will use will be fully reversable, allowing them to return to the enclosure within 10 minutes of the procedure. Grizzer and Maya will not be sedated, as they willingly allow full inspection and cleaning of their ears. Care will be given to avoid affecting the male rank order during these medical procedures. Wolf care staff will be meeting to discuss scenarios and management decisions. The Center veterinarian, Dr. Chip Hanson, will be on site for the full procedures, and a Wolf Watch program will be offered on the evening of the 4th to allow for full 24 hour, post exam observation. If you are interested in signing up for the Wolf Watch program, please check out the website under Northern Minnesota Learning Adventures.
Today, Grizz is 20 days old. He has been chewing on the nipple with molars. He also let out a bark when Nubee approached. He has also started to wag his tail during interactions with his littermates.
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