Sorry for the lack of logs over the past week. The curator was at a State Wildlife Society meeting. It was a great meeting and one of the most important messages from this meeting is the need to preserve contiguous tracts of habitat for species. As the human population grows and land development occurs, we need to always plan for the greenspaces that keep wildlife populations viable. Even in a captive facility, we have a need to manage for vegetation and quality habitat. This weeks photos of Grizzer and Maya prove why this is a challenge, but the Workin' for Wolves programs and the Adults at Two Years programs that are offered this summer, will aid in the endeavor of planting more trees. So, in the interest of getting photos up on the log, all the text will be the same. For each log, all wolves are healthy and during the curators absence, they were in the capable hands of wolf care staff Jen Westlund, Matt Fetterer, Jess Edberg, Andrea Lorek Strauss and Laurie Fella.
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Again, we apologize for the delay in wolf logs, our intent is to post once a week, but wolf care is always the priority over every other job. These past few weeks, the facility and grounds area of wolf care has needed our attention. This season is best known as the ice season, when daytime temperatures create melting, but nighttime temperatures revert back to freezing. Conditions are slippery and hazardous, not only for the staff, but the wolves as well. Thanks to the kind donation of straw from Theresa Williams, the enclosures are getting a fresh layer of straw to increase traction. This is most problematic for the retired wolves, as any slip on the ice can affect older, more brittle bones and joints. The wolves are doing well, and are spending a significant amount of time sleeping in the sun. Lakota seems to have been up to a few other things, as she has a new canine bite on the nose. Staff seem to think the bite was from MacKenzie, but based on our interactions with Lakota, she pushes the limit with both Lucas and MacKenzie. Our plans are to return to weekly logs next week.
Maya has been observed in some very active predatory behavior lately. She frequently stalks the chickadees and nuthatches that feed on the carcass as well as Grizzer when he's in the middle of a chase or just walking through the front of the exhibit. She has an intense eye stare that was very characterisitic of Kiana. The exhibit is definitely more lively with the juvenile wolves.
Shadow has been in very good spirits lately, greeting staff, running through the exhibit with a high tail and spending time with the yearlings. There seems to be a special bond between Shadow and Maya, which we saw last winter, but Shadow and Grizzer are often observed shoulder to shoulder doing some classic jaw sparring behavior. The interesting thing about their relationship, is that we don't see Shadow do much dominance towards the yearlings, but they both readily submit. Whereas Malik has some high intensity growling toward both Maya and Grizzer, but it doesn't result in them submitting to him, it generally results in Shadow intervening.
Lucas has been a bit shy towards staff lately, but his interest in his packmates has increased. He's also been more agitated with the chasing and sometimes noisy behavior of the Exhibit pack. During the winter seasons, hormone levels tend to increase as wolves begin the breeding season. Even though the wolves at the Center have been spayed and neutered, they still display hormonal increases this time of the year. Lucas, nearing 13 years of age, still shows interest in pair bonding and defensive behavior. Thanks to Pam Dolajeck for the donation of pigs ears for the wolves.
Shadow is doing great. He seems to really thrive as the dominant male in this pack. He spend a lot of time in social play behavior, especially with Maya and Grizzer. He's very excited to see staff and does stimulate many chase behaviors, encouraging Grizzer to interact. Lori Rhodes visited the Center on November 11th and 12th and contributes this week's photos of the Exhibit Pack.
The weather has been extremely mild this winter, with daily temperatures generally between 20 – 30 degrees farenheit. This has impacted the hunger levels of the wolves, leaving a lot of left over carcasses in the enclosure. With the extra meat, scavengers such as nuthatches, chickadees and ravens have been plentiful. Grizzer continues to be a bit shy with groups, likely in response to Shadow's bark howling towards people he doesn't know.
The retired wolves continue to have a good, mild winter. Lakota had a bit more stimulus today as new handlers were entering the enclosure. She's known for checking people out and attempting to see what loose clothing she can take from the human. She also has a bad habit of sticking her cold nose under a coat or shirt in search for flesh. Even at the age of 13, these wolves still look for opportunities to take advantage of situations.
Lucas is more social than he's been in previous weeks. It's hard to say what was bothering him, sometimes a stiff, aching body makes an animal avoid contact. The warmer weather seems to keep Lucas moving pretty smoothly.
Maya enjoys the life of being the only female, and the preferred female of Shadow. On Saturday night's feeding, Shadow guarded Maya from Malik while she was feeding on the carcass. Although, Shadow didn't guard her from Grizzer. It's interesting to watch the dynamics between these social pack animals.
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