Maya's photo again shows her in the stalk mode. It has been an interesting winter, but we will all be glad when spring finally arrives and she calms down a bit. The influences of hormones and stress on behavior has been a learning experience for wolf care staff, and we continue to video and study this situation to assist us in future management decisions.
Archives
As a friend of mine recently wrote, this week's photo for Shadow doesn't fit with my constant comments that Shadow is a great pack leader, but even the great ones need a break once in a while. Between Grizzer and Malik's issues, the pups and their relentless wrestling and active submission, and Maya's obsessive stalking and ambushing Aidan, Shadow looks like he needs a break. The 1993 litter was retired in the fall of their 9th year, and Shadow and Malik will be 9 in May. It will be an interesting year to see if we can extend the life of these older animals in the main exhibit. After the spring Working for Wolves program, the retired pack will be ready for new residents.
Spring weather is arriving very slowly in Northern Minnesota, and has an impact on wolf behavior. Usually by this time, temperatures in the 40's or 50's would be expected and the wolves would respond by being very lethargic. With temperatures still near zero at night, and daytime high's reaching into the 30's, the wolves are up and active. This means that Aidan hasn't gotten much relief from Maya, but he is tolerating the situation well, although Maya has a new scrape under her eye, one of Aidan's defensive moves. Snow is predicted for this week, and we anticipate another month before the spring melt allows us to begin enclosure clean up.
Denali continues to be a pup with a good temperament, except when it comes to a possession. Wolf care staff must be very diligent to maintain possession of all tools. Staff took advantage of a warm day last week to wash the windows, and Denali tried every maneuver to take over the bucket, and window washing poles. He is still learning and testing, which is what young wolves do. By the end of the process, he did respect the staff, but it is a continuous process that must be consistent.
Malik's nervous behavior is calming a bit, with only sporadic growling sessions when the pack gets excited by a howl. This calming trend has resulted in increased staff time with Malik, something that wasn't happening on a regular basis over the last few months. He always took meds from staff, but didn't stand on the rock for a full inspection. Malik is the barometer of this enclosure, if he's calm, then things must be good.
Shadow continues to earn the pups respect, and they are frequently showing submissive postures to him. This is true of Grizzer and on occasion, Maya. Malik doesn't interact with Shadow in a submissive posture, probably because it would show vulnerability in front of Grizzer. Shadow continues to be intimidated by strangers in the wolf yard, and staff are aware that any vulnerabilities for Shadow can affect his status. Behind the Scenes programs don't begin until May, so usually, he is less sensitive during the summer season.
An April 1st snowstorm created a great stimulus, especially for the new pups. Spring storms tend to have wet, heavy snow that hangs on the branches, causing branches to be in reach of young wolves. In this week's video, both Aidan and Denali spent a fair amount of time jumping at the branches and attempting to break tree limbs. This is great entertainment for the wolves, but not so great on the vegetation. Aidan has also made great strides in accepting one of the handlers with whom he had some fear avoidance behavior. We will be very slow in making this reintroduction of the handler, trying to keep things positive.
Denali continues to be very food focused, and the recent donation of deer from the Minnesota DNR's deer management activities in the Northwestern portion of the state has been a salvation to a freezer that was near empty. The food consumption here continues to be 100% by Monday, which results in 2 things, some very loose stools from wolves eating more than they can digest and some very calm wolves that are too full to do much chasing or following. Of course, by Wednesday, Denali thinks he needs another deer and checks later in the week are more active.
We know that the season is getting calmer when Malik stays in the front of the exhibit long enough to greet wolf care staff. This past weekend, Malik consumed a large quantity of the deer and was very content on Monday morning with a full stomach. While the wolf care staff were conducting an exhibit cleaning session, all the wolves went over to visit the retired enclosure. Initially, Malik didn't enter the holding area, but with a little meatball persuasion, he went in willingly. It is still critical that we don't isolate Malik from the pack, or he may receive redirected aggression from the pack, especially Grizzer.
Shadow had an enjoyable visit with the pack to the Retired Enclosure. When staff needs to do some intensive work in the Exhibit, it's easier to move the pack off. Shadow ran to retirement with a high tail, marking several spots in the fresh snow and interacting with the pups. It is a good sign that he's so relaxed in this enclosure, especially since he is getting near the age of retirement, although he has shown none of the signs of intimidation that were evident from MacKenzie and Lucas at this age.
The International Wolf Center uses science-based education to teach and inspire the world about wolves, their ecology, and the wolf-human relationship.