Interesting facts about wolves. Myths and misconceptions about wolves What is the dream of a wolf

The wolf, or gray wolf, or common wolf, belongs to the species of predatory mammals from the canine family. It is one of the ancestors of the usual and familiar to us domestic dog. It is also considered the largest representative of its kind.

The wolf has always had a wide distribution around the world, in particular in Europe, Asia and North Africa. Most of all, human activity has influenced the decline in numbers, namely: uncontrolled hunting, deforestation, and urbanization. In some regions of the world, the wolf is on the verge of extinction, and only in the north of Europe does it retain a more or less stable population.

Appearance of wolves

The appearance of a wolf depends on its habitat. Some species are very different from their counterparts in other regions. In many ways, weight and height depend on the temperature regime of the environment in which the wolf lives. The colder the climate, the larger the individual.

The wolf has rather sharp ears, powerful and long limbs. The body is strong, the head is broad, the muzzle is elongated, the mouth has many teeth necessary for hunting. The tail is 20-30 centimeters long. By the behavior of the tail, you can determine the mood of the wolf at the moment. The coat is thick, long, consists of two layers. The first layer is coarse hair, the second layer is the so-called undercoat, which warms the animal.

Interesting:

Phenomenal abilities in animals

The wolf prefers open areas of terrain, avoids forests. When the pack breaks up, the wolves are fixed in a separate territory, while the main pair of the pack keeps the best area with them. For the birth and breeding of offspring, wolves arrange a den. It is mainly used by the female. Wolf cubs grow up in the most reliable places, for example, in dense bushes. For safety reasons, wolves hunt as far as possible from the den, at a distance of at least 8-10 kilometers.

Who do wolves prey on?

The wolf is a predator, so elks, deer, wild boars, and hares make up most of its diet. Sometimes smaller predators, such as foxes, also become victims. Wolves prefer to hunt at night, announcing their appearance by howling, which is different among different social groups in the pack. Of all the senses, sight is considered the weakest. The sense of smell and hearing are well developed. Together with well-developed physical data, as well as good nervous activity, the sense of smell and hearing make the wolf a very dangerous predator.

While hunting, the flock kills several animals at once. Everything that is not eaten is left for later. It is also worth noting that the wolf is a collective animal. This is reflected both in his lifestyle and in the methods of hunting. The wolf is well developed mentally, which allows him to navigate well in the environment. Many hunting techniques are quite resourceful for an animal. For example, many cases are known when the whole flock was divided, and while one group was chasing prey, the second was waiting in ambush.

The wolf is a smart animal, and therefore it perfectly feels what will happen to it if it starts to show aggression towards a person. Therefore, the attack of wolves on people is extremely rare. This is more the exception than the rule. Gray predators live in forests and prefer to eat the living creatures that nature gives them. Even livestock they attack only in case of starvation.

But there are separate cases when the most base essence of a gray predator manifests itself, and it encroaches on human life. In what situations does this happen? Most often, attacks on people are recorded during the war. Human corpses appear in the war zone and the wolves eat them.

After that comes the turn of the wounded and helpless people. And then, making sure that a person is an easy prey, wolves begin to show aggression towards healthy people. But wars do not happen often and take a large number of human lives. And the proportion of deaths from wolves is so small that it is not taken into account at all in the general statistics.

As for peacetime, here individual attacks also take place. Most often they are committed by lone wolves who have strayed from the pack. The gray predator is a social animal, and cannot live alone. If, for some reason, he finds himself outside the wolf team, then he begins to behave inappropriately and is able to attack a person.

Attacks also provoke hunger. There are times when there is little prey in the forest. Then the wolves begin to move closer to human habitation. The subject of their interest are sheep and calves. But if a flock meets a person in the forest, it can attack him as well. When the hungry times pass, the wolves go deep into the forest thicket, and attacks on people and cattle stop.

Rabies also provokes the attack of wolves on people. This is a fairly common infectious disease among predators. Foxes and dogs are more susceptible to it, but wolves are no exception. In the 16th century, they infected a large number of people in France. The rabies virus can only enter the body through a bite. Therefore, gray predators bit the French, and this is possible only when attacked.

In many cases, the aggression of wolves is provoked by people themselves. For example, in no case should you destroy a wolf's lair, and even more so take cubs in your hands. A she-wolf in such a situation will definitely attack, and out of a sense of solidarity, the whole pack will help her.

In case of a chance meeting with wolves in the forest, an attack can also occur. The wolf is a predator, and he lives, obeying bestial instincts. Therefore, the end of an unexpected meeting cannot be predicted. For decency, the beast may growl and leave, or it may attack. Everything will depend on the behavior of a particular person. And therefore, in case of a chance meeting in the forest, it is necessary to follow certain rules.

Imagine that you are walking carelessly through the forest. Breathe fresh air, listen to the birds, and suddenly a wolf appears from behind the nearest bush. And what to do in a similar situation, when you only have a thin twig in your hands?

Of course, you can, showing miracles of courage and heroism, immediately fearlessly rush at a dangerous predator with a cry: “Well, I’ll give you pepper now!” But hardly anyone is ready to commit such a short-sighted and stupid act. Do not forget that the weight of a large wolf can reach up to 70 kg. And it's solid muscles. The usual weight is 40-55 kg, which is also not small. The height at the withers reaches 80-85 cm.

When running, a predator easily develops a speed of 65 km / h. True, he quickly fizzles out, but 15-20 minutes are enough for him behind the eyes to catch up with a person. Wolf jaws are much more powerful than dog jaws, and therefore they say “wolf grip” for a reason. And here is a creature perfectly adapted to murder you met on a forest path.

Here we must immediately understand that if the wolf did not want to attack, it would run away. And once it stands still, it considers you a potential victim. At the same time, he hesitates, because he does not know your capabilities. Therefore, when meeting with a wolf, you need to show that you are a strong and confident person.

It is necessary to straighten up and straighten your shoulders in order to visually look larger. You should look directly at the wolf and in no case turn your back on him. In this case, you can not meet with the gray predator's eyes. It is believed that this forest dweller has a telepathic gift. Therefore, if you look eye to eye, he will easily feel your fear and immediately attack.

The ideal option is to slowly move backwards, keeping your eyes on the predator. If he disappears in the thicket, then the danger has passed, and if he follows you, then it is necessary to show aggression. You can scream, clap your hands, stomp your feet. Make as much noise as possible, but never turn your back and run away.

If you feel that the wolf is about to jump, lean back against the tree trunk and get ready to defend. The gray predator is much smaller and weaker than the bear, and its main weapon is its mouth with sharp fangs. But it is better not to allow an attack, since its outcome is unpredictable. So try to look calm and confident. The beast must feel your inner strength. If that works, then he'll leave.

Remember that wolf attacks on humans are no more common than shark attacks on swimmers. These are statistics, dry figures, and they are insignificant, as they are calculated in hundredths of a percent. But it is good to get acquainted with statistical data, sitting in a comfortable chair in your own city apartment. But when the wolf is standing in front of you, then all the statistics with its insignificant percentages go to hell.

From all of the above, a very simple conclusion suggests itself: if you do not want to become prey for wolves, do not go to the forest where gray predators live. And if you went, then equip yourself in full. Take with you a dog, a gun, a flare, a strong thick stick. And don't smirk. The thicket does not like frivolous people who do not give a damn about their own safety.

On the ninth of September, I was a member of the expert commission at the regional Rodiono-Nesvetayskaya brood of hunting dogs, held in the village of Agrafenovka, Rostov Region. There I met a wonderful, simple and sociable person, the head of the Neklinovsky interdistrict department of the Department of the Animal World of the Ministry of Natural Resources of the Rostov Region Chernovolov Alexander Vasilyevich. He told me about one of the unique cases of a wolf attacking a person in those places.

Photo by Tambako The Jaguar/flickr.com (CC BY-ND 2.0)

Here is how it was. On the fourth of September, the beekeeper Alexander Egorovich Kiyanov was sitting in his apiary and stuffing coals with a smoker, or, as it is also called, a smoker, designed to facilitate work with bees in the hives. And suddenly he felt the eyes of the beast on him.

A person always feels this way. I myself have had to feel it more than once: some kind of wave of either fear, or horror, or something else is rolling in, but this feeling immediately covers you, you feel very uncomfortable at this time.

The wolf does not look like a dog: it examines a person with an attentive, piercing look, it seems that he knows something about him that the person himself does not know about himself.

Most likely, based on my experience, I think wolves also have telepathic abilities, judging by the way they correctly calculated everything and left me.

The beekeeper, feeling the eyes on him, turned around and saw a wolf crawling towards him. The wolf really hunted him, hid him like prey, and tried to attack him from behind.

At that moment, the beast jumped, the beekeeper managed to raise his hands - in front of the face, the wolf began to tear them, trying to get to the throat.

Alexander Yegorovich, although he was under sixty, but a rather big man, strong and tall, fighting off the wolf, managed to move away and hide in the summer kitchen.

The wolf slurped unsaltedly, having lost his prey, ran away. The victim called for help on the phone, although he himself was very badly injured, his fingers on his left hand still do not bend.

Alexander Vasilyevich personally organized the round-up, it was good that it had rained the day before, and the tracks of the wolf were clearly imprinted on the damp earth. According to them, they found the place of the possible occurrence of the beast.

The raid was organized quickly (already two and a half hours after the attack), consistently and competently by staff members of the Rostov GOOiR.

The wolf, even after the shot of the huntsman Alexander Kharchenko, managed to get out of the salary as a wounded animal, but was still obtained by a long-range, but successful shot of the senior huntsman Gennady Shambarov.

I want to draw attention to this: someone will say that it was a wolf with rabies, so he was not afraid of a man and attacked him. So, the wolf was precisely hiding and hunting a person and at the same time quickly managed to get out of the salary and almost ran away. A sick animal will not behave like that, it was a healthy animal.

He turned out to be over-bright, weighing a little over thirty kilograms, only with a muzzle cut by fragments and the front of the body. Perhaps this beast came to them from the war zone, from the Donetsk region, where he ran into a trip wire and was wounded. Then he rested, but was no longer able to hunt, like all wolves, so he began to hunt people as more accessible food.

Maybe he, in his homeland, most likely, has already tasted "little men" or corpses, or, even worse, he finished off and ate the wounded soldiers, but it became "hot", so he fled, where it is calmer, to us, to Russia, where it was quickly destroyed.

From the information on the Internet, you can find out that a lot of fearless stray dogs have divorced in the war zone. Serhiy Gordienko, a 56-year-old professional traveler, says: “Today, more Ukrainians die from attacks by dog ​​packs than in the ATO zone.

Something happened in the animal kingdom, wolves used to gather in packs, in fact, wolves feel a lot of blood. Wandering Ukrainian animals are accustomed to human flesh. Flocks go hunting for people, and not everyone is content with corpses.

Feral dogs pose a particular danger, he himself became almost a victim of their attack during one of his travels in the steppes of the Dnieper region, he was saved by people who drove up in a truck. If a person is injured, meeting with a pack of dogs means guaranteed death.

In the same place, on the brood, I met the most experienced hunter-racer Sergey Repenko, he lives in a village located not far from the border.

He said that literally this year a lot of foxes appeared in the nearby hunting grounds and even under his village, most likely they came from the war zone. Sergei promised to show a beautiful fox hunt with hounds in those places, but that will be another story.

Wolves are strong and dangerous predators. Usually they do not attack people, but it is worth knowing how to behave in the territory where wolves are found. If you encounter a wolf, do not run away. Don't look away, try to appear bigger (don't cringe or crouch), make loud, intimidating noises, and move to safety as soon as possible.

Steps

Part 1

Try not to go where wolves have been seen before. Try to remain inconspicuous. If you spot the wolf before he spots you, quietly walk away. Be alert. Sometimes wolves roam alone, but they most often hunt in packs.

If the wolf sees you, back away slowly. Never look away or turn your back on the wolf. If you are trying to leave, do it facing the animal. If the wolves are behind you, their predatory instincts may kick in. Step back slowly, facing the pack.

Don't run away. Wolves run faster than you, especially when moving through the forest. In addition, at the sight of running prey, the wolf's hunting instinct will work. Even if the wolves didn't initially chase you, they will most likely do so if you run.

Part 2

How to act when attacked

1. If a wolf approaches you, make as much noise as possible and act aggressively. Take a step towards the wolf, start making noise, shouting, clapping your hands. Back away slowly. Continue to imitate aggression and make noise. Don't take your eyes off the wolf and don't turn your back on it.

   Reflect the attack. If a wolf attacks, fight back with sticks, rocks, pepper spray, or whatever weapon is at hand. Find a position that is easier to defend: stand with your back to a tree or a large rock. Don't let the wolf get behind you.

   • Don't try to "hide out of the blue" or cower in the fetal position. It won't save your life. The attacking wolf, as a rule, can change his mind and leave only if he sees you as a large and dangerous opponent.

2. Don't lose your vigilance. If you managed to drive the wolf away, quietly and quickly head to the nearest shelter. Climb a tree, tall boulder, or other tall object. If possible, take cover in the nearest building or vehicle.

   • Don't relax too early. The wolf can sneak up on you or your camp, waiting for the right moment. If he is very hungry, he may attack again.

3. Stick together. If there are several of you in the group and you are attacked by wolves, the children and the wounded should remain in the center of the group. When wolves attack a herd, they target the weakest prey: cubs, old and sick. Whatever happens, stay close and do not scatter. Let someone follow each direction: you cannot allow the wolves to bypass you and attack unexpectedly.

   Keep an eye on your dog. If you have a dog with you and you find yourself in a territory where wolves are found, never lose sight of it. Clean up after her excrement, forbid her to vote, and try to make sure she doesn't mark her territory. All this can attract wolves, for which you and your dog are uninvited guests. Both wolves and dogs urinate to mark their territory (and also leave scratches and roll on the ground to leave their scent), so a wolf may attack a dog if he senses that he has encroached on his property.

Part 3

How to secure the camp

Make a fire . If wolves are prowling around your camp, light a smoky fire to keep them at bay. Throw green leaves and damp wood into the fire to make it smoke as much as possible. Move some of the embers under a tree, or scatter them between several trees. Dip the branches in resin and set them on fire. Try to blow the smoke towards the wolves.

• Wolves do not like fire and smoke, as they feel danger from them. When little wolf cubs are nearby (which is very likely in the spring), fire can even force adult wolves to look for a new den if the female feels threatened by her offspring.

1. Make a safe haven. Use branches, rocks, sharp sticks, and other durable objects to build a fence around your camp. If it's strong enough, the wolves won't get in, but remember that they can still hear and smell you.

   Try to make as much noise as possible. Wolves howl to claim territory, so they may take noise as a signal that the territory is occupied. If there are several of you, sing and shout in unison. Make noise as loud and aggressive as possible.

• A lone wolf is unlikely to attack from the front, especially a tall person. Try to appear even bigger: spread your arms, flap your jacket, hold large objects in your hands. By nature, wolves are afraid of people.
• If wolves attack, don't run! Wolves have an instinct to chase fleeing prey.
• When going to where wolves are found, try to find out in advance about their behavior. The more you know about wolves, the better your chances of survival will be.
• Wolves protect their offspring, and will definitely not be happy if someone touches their cubs (and can even abandon them after contact with a person). If you see a wolf cub, stay away!
• Don't think that the wolf is like a big dog. The jaws of a wolf are much more powerful than a dog's!
• If you see a wolf near human habitation in winter or spring, it will probably be a young animal that until recently did not leave the pack and knows nothing about people. In this case, you can arouse his natural curiosity. However, it is better to scare the wolf so that he stays away from people.
• Keep your eyes on the wolf, but NEVER look him in the eyes! This will cause even more aggression.
• Don't go hiking alone. A group of people have a better chance of coping with a wolf.
• Wolves, like many other predators, are cautious and do not risk themselves for food. If the wolf sees that you are too dangerous prey, he will most likely retreat.
• If you come across a sleeping wolf, move away slowly and silently. Never approach a wolf - he may pounce. Remember that in front of you is a wild animal, whose actions are unpredictable!

Why is a wolf dangerous to humans? and got the best answer

Answer from
Silly question, if the wolf is not tamed, then you will become his lunch or dinner ..
If you are so smart, then let's send you to the forest and see if they eat you or not. The ox is the only animal that can attack the one who is stronger than him! Fucking connoisseur

Answer from Ilya Shevelev[active]
A wolf can be scared away by shining a flashlight into its eyes.

Answer from Evridikta[guru]
Because he is a predator.

Answer from Dima Makarov[expert]
The wolf is a predator and it feeds on Elks, roe deer, wild boars, ground squirrels, voles, birds, and sometimes in winter, when the wolf is very hungry, it can destroy the Bear's lair or attack a person. In principle, a wolf is a very smart animal, it is capable of various tricks and is in no way inferior to the Fox, usually a wolf does not attack a person, he tries to bypass him, but if the cubs are in danger, and there is a person nearby, then a pack of wolves can pounce and bite a person. There are about 12-16 individuals in a pack of wolves and the same number of cubs. They have a huge flock and the pack has its own leaders, they are also called Mothers, mothers are wolf and she-wolf Leaders! These are usually the strongest, fastest, dexterous animals. A wolf can sometimes travel 5-8 km when hunting, and because of this, he sometimes meets a person. The wolf occupies the territory of residence: Canada, Alaska, the European and southern part of Russia. Especially large wolves live in Alaska, where they are white and very large) The body length of the wolf is 58-100 cm, the tail length is 35-50 cm, and the weight reaches 3-11 kg! The wolf is the main caretaker of the forest, the taiga, it is the owner of the forest, which is second only to the Bear or the Tiger (if he lives there) in strength in his forest. stole sheep, goats, chickens. There are special breeds against the wolf: Wolfhound, Caucasian Shepherd Dog. Basically everything)

Answer from 3 answers[guru]