Red wolf, or mountain wolf, or Himalayan wolf (Cuon alpinus), also known as buanzu, belongs to the carnivorous mammals of the Canidae family. Today this is the only and rare species belonging to the genus Cuon, which is under threat of complete extinction.
Description of the red wolf
Red wolves differ from other canids in having fewer molars and a large number nipples
Appearance
Red wolves are quite large animals, with a body length ranging from 55-110 cm, a tail size of 45-50 cm and a body weight of 17-21 kg. Appearance wild beast combines the features of a fox, wolf and jackal. The main difference from an ordinary wolf is the color, fluffy fur and a longer tail, which almost reaches the surface of the earth. Representatives of the species are characterized by the presence of a shortened and pointed muzzle.. The ears, set high on the head, are large, erect, with noticeably rounded tops.
The general color of the coat is red, quite variable among many individuals inhabiting different parts of the range. The tip of the tail is black. Until three months of age, wolf cubs are dark brown in color. Hairline in winter it is very high, quite soft and thick. IN summer time the fur is noticeably shorter, coarser and darker. The tail is quite fluffy, like that of an ordinary fox. In accordance with the variability of color and density of fur, as well as body size, ten subspecies have been described today, two of which live in Russia.
Lifestyle, behavior
The red wolf is a typical mountain dweller, rising to a height of up to four thousand meters above sea level. For a significant part of the year, the predatory animal lives in the Alps and subalpine zone, as well as in the mountain taiga with rocky areas and gorges. The animal does not settle in very open and flat areas, but in search of food it is capable of seasonal migrations over long distances. Sometimes representatives of the genus can appear in unusual landscapes, including steppe zones, forest-steppe and desert.
After the mountains get high snow cover, red wolves begin to actively follow numerous wild artiodactyl animals, which include argali, mountain goats, roe deer and deer. At this time of year, predators prefer to be in the foothills, in areas with little snow, including slopes with good sunshine. Red wolves live and hunt in small packs, usually consisting of a dozen individuals of several generations. Sometimes the number of animals in a flock exceeds two or three dozen.
This is interesting! The sounds that red wolves make are more varied compared to an ordinary wolf, vaguely resemble melodic and rather drawn-out singing.
Most often, relationships within such a pack are non-aggressive. Stabilization of hierarchical relationships occurs after seven months of age. Rock crevices of sufficient size, as well as niches and caves usually serve as refuge for the predator. The animal by nature has well-developed hearing, can swim and is able to jump, easily covering a distance of six meters in length. Red wolves prefer to avoid humans, so they are not tamed, but they are quite capable of reproducing quite well in captivity.
How long does a red wolf live?
There are well-known cases when the life expectancy of a red wolf in captivity was 15-16 years, but in wildlife such a predatory mammal lives much shorter. IN natural environment habitat, such predators have to wage an almost constant and very fierce struggle for existence, so animals in nature live, as a rule, about five years.
Sexual dimorphism
As such, sexual dimorphism between females and males of red wolves is not very pronounced and is represented only by minor differences in adult predators in body size.
Range, habitats
The main part of the habitat and range of the red wolf is located in Central and South Asia, southern East Asia, including Indonesia, India, China and Tibet, as well as Mongolia, the islands of Java and Sumatra. Within its habitat, in some places such a predator has been completely exterminated or driven out by people, and in some places it is absent over large areas without human intervention. Mostly beast of prey absent in the desert and steppe parts of the range.
In the north, the border of the red wolf's range runs through a very narrow strip in Russia. Such wild places habitats are represented by the southern outskirts of the Far East, Middle and Eastern Siberia, where red wolves are very rare and infrequently encountered. Throughout their usual range, red wolves prefer mountains and hilly ridges.
Predatory rare beast can live in a wide variety of habitats, ranging from alpine meadows, including high-mountain valleys with abundant steppe vegetation, to cedar-broad-leaved forest zones Far East, including coniferous forests on the territory of Eastern Siberia. However, regardless of the characteristics of the habitat of a pack of red wolves, an indispensable condition remains an insignificant snow cover. Too deep snow always forces the animal to migrate to other, not too snowy areas.
Red wolf diet
The red wolf belongs to the category of typical predators. IN different time years, almost any forest animal is capable of serving such an animal as food. However, the diet of an adult wolf most often consists of a variety of not too large wild ungulates. It is also well known that in summer period such a predatory beast consumes a sufficient amount plant food, in particular, mountain rhubarb greens. In the presence of puppies, mountain rhubarb was constantly found in wolf dens, so it was assumed that adult red wolves feed the young animals with it, regurgitating half-digested, but not yet fully blossomed inflorescences.
Sometimes an adult predatory animal in the wild may well eat all kinds of carrion. Red wolves quite often drive their prey into the water, significantly complicating the movement of the prey and making it more accessible. Before hunting, predators perform a complex mandatory ritual, which includes rubbing and sniffing, as well as hetero- and homosexual positions.
Red wolves go hunting mainly in the daytime, using a variety of hunting methods and traditional forms of attack on their prey, which directly depends on the size of the formed pack, the relief features of the territory and species characteristics production For example, wolves prefer to hunt all kinds of lagomorphs and rodents alone, and only a pack can hunt animals that are too large.
This is interesting! Unlike most wild dogs, the red wolf kills its prey not by grabbing it by the throat, but by attacking sharply from behind, so two or three adult predators are quite capable of killing a 50-kilogram deer in less than a couple of minutes.
A group of wolves, consisting of 15-20 adult individuals, always acts very harmoniously, so it can quite successfully hunt even such a large animal as a buffalo. The red wolf searches for and finds its prey by smell, after which the traditional chase begins. Such a predatory animal runs slower than jackals and foxes, but is distinguished by extreme endurance, thanks to which it pursues its prey until the moment when it is completely exhausted. Having caught up with a prey that is too large, a pack of red wolves bites it, so after a while the prey falls and is eaten by predators. Cases are very well known when a pack of wolves drove the pursued victim to the edge of a cliff, where it forced it to break.
Reproduction and offspring
Representatives in India carnivorous mammals from the Canidae family can breed for about five months a year. Most often, the breeding season of the red wolf falls on the time period from September to January inclusive. When kept in captivity, in zoological parks located on the territory middle zone, the rut of predators is observed from the beginning of January to the end of February.
The total gestation period of red wolves kept in domestic zoological parks is approximately two months or a little more. The average litter sizes that have been recorded in India ranged from four to six pups. There are known cases of twelve wolf cubs being extracted from a wolf hole, but, according to many scientists, such a number of individuals may be a combined brood of two or three females at once. When born, red wolf puppies are dark brown in color.
This is interesting! Unlike wolf pack, in which the mating pair is a food monopolist, red wolves always give priority to their pups, so they allow them to eat first, and members of such a family feed mothers and young by regurgitating food.
Newborn wolf cubs are completely blind, have no teeth and have closed ear canals. Average weight puppy varies between 200-350 grams. Wolf cubs open their eyes at about two weeks of age. In the wild, red wolf pups leave their den only at the age of 70-80 days.
Cubs born in the zoological park can crawl out of their holes for the first time already at the age of one month. By the age of seven months, wolf cubs are already able to participate in collective hunting, but they reach sexual maturity only at two or three years.
The red or mountain wolf, also known as the Himalayan wolf or buanzu, is a predator from the canid family. He is originally from Southeast and Central Asia. There are ten subspecies of the red wolf in the world, two of them have been added to the IUCN Red List. And two more subspecies (Cuon alpinus primaevus and Cuon alpinus laniger) are currently on the verge of extinction.
Red (mountain) wolf: description
This animal looks like a gray wolf, a fox and a jackal at the same time. A medium-sized predator: its body length ranges from 75 to 90 cm, its tail is 40 to 45 cm long, and its height at the withers is about half a meter. The mountain wolf differs from other representatives of its family in having a shorter and more pointed muzzle and the absence of one molar on both sides of the lower jaw.
Coat
The indisputable difference between the red wolf is the color of its fur - these animals can be confused with a fox. Depending on the time of year, the fur changes: in winter the fur is thick and tall, and in summer it is much darker, it becomes short and coarse. The tail is much darker than the body and is covered with thicker hair. Adults are reddish-red in color with lighter areas at the bottom.
Depending on the region of distribution, the coat varies from light gray to brownish-red. Mountain wolf offspring are born with dark brown fur. They acquire a reddish hue by six months.
Spreading
Many animal publications publish information about the mountain wolf. According to these data, the area of this rare species extends from Altai to Manchuria, crossing the Central and East Asia, rushes to the southern forest areas Burma, India and the Malay Archipelago. Of the ten subspecies of the red wolf, only three live in India.
These animals prefer to settle in the mountains. They make their lairs in mountain caves, free niches or crevices. Sometimes the search for food forces animals to descend into the steppe or forest, but not for long. In addition, nomadism is not typical for this predator - the mountain wolf never goes further than 200 km from its lair.
Today, the distribution of the red wolf is limited to several areas:
- on the border of China and Mongolia;
- in Myanmar and Indochina;
- on the island of Sumatra and India;
- on the border of Russia and China.
In the middle of the last century, there was information about the presence of small packs of mountain wolves from the Red Book in the territory of the Republic of Tyva, in Altai, in southwestern Primorye. But competition with its gray brother, as well as poaching, reduced this population, as well as the animal’s habitat in the Russian Federation.
What does the red (or mountain) wolf eat?
Most often, this predator hunts ungulates that are present in its habitat. Its victims include mountain goats, roe deer, wild boars and deer. Often local residents in the habitats of this predator, when asked what the mountain wolf eats, they answer: “Domestic sheep.” And this is not an exaggeration - a wolf will never miss an opportunity to feast on such prey, although it is quite rare that he can compete with his gray relative. Therefore, more often you have to be content with other living creatures: lizards, small rodents, as well as deer and antelopes.
Reading the description of the mountain wolf, you may pay attention to an interesting fact: these predators dilute their diet with food of plant origin. In summer they are in large quantities They eat themselves and bring to newborn wolf cubs, for example, rhubarb.
Lifestyle and behavior
The mountain wolf is an excellent hunter, and he hunts for food almost all day. Daytime hunting often lasts for several hours, thanks to the bloodthirstiness and endurance of these animals. Excellent eyesight and sense of smell leave victims with virtually no chance of escaping their pursuers. It should be noted the excellent interaction and mutual understanding of animals within the pack. Small groups of 10-15 animals surround the victim, leaving only one escape route.
Having got out into the open, predators in an entire flock attack the prey, which sometimes exceeds the hunter in size and weight by more than ten times. Red wolves live in small packs (no more than 15 individuals). In behavior, the mountain wolf resembles the African wild dog, which also prefers group hunting and caring for young animals by the entire pack.
Red wolves are also big water lovers. After eating, they immediately go to a pond, and if it is nearby, the red wolf interrupts the meal to drink. Often, researchers studying the behavior of these animals notice them sitting in shallow water, regardless of the temperature of the water and air. Like domestic dogs, red wolves often wag their tails.
Not a single confirmation of the aggressiveness of these predators among members of the pack has been received. The battles between them are more like a game.
Reproduction
Every pack of predators has a dominant pair. The rest of the pack takes care of their offspring. The red wolf's pregnancy lasts 62 days. Typically, eight puppies are born. They reach sexual maturity by one year. Babies are born from late autumn or early winter until the end of March.
Enemies
For the red wolf, the main competitor in the wild is its gray brother. This is explained by a number of factors, but to a greater extent - due to the better adaptability and excellent hunting skills of the gray predator. It is this population that is growing and displacing mountain wolves, which are already endangered today. In addition to this fact, it is worth highlighting the struggle for survival with the lynx and the snow leopard.
Population and conservation
In addition to all the problems listed, diseases affect the number of red predators. Animals often die from plague and rabies. Man is not left out either. The development of vast territories has affected the reduction of the food supply of wolves. In addition, red wolves often become victims of poachers. Today, the mountain wolf is listed as endangered in the Red Book of the Russian Federation and is under state protection.
Not only in our country, but also in other countries there is a ban on shooting this rare species. Moreover, in many countries, nature reserves are being created in which, by creating favorable conditions, ridding this species of competition and creating the most favorable conditions for hunting, people are attempting to preserve and increase the population of these animals. I really want to believe that future generations will be able to observe the life of the red wolf.
Here are some interesting facts about these animals:
- Lynxes and gray wolves are not afraid of red wolves; they often win the fight for food and territory, even when gray wolves are in the minority and lynxes are physically weaker.
- Mountain wolves often share territory with leopards, but clashes between these two species are rare - only in cases of very serious violations of local orders.
- Mountain wolves have two to three pairs of nipples more than other canids - usually there are six or seven pairs. At the same time, all nipples are equally filled with milk, which is also a rarity in this family. Most representatives of other species have three pairs of nipples, one of which, even at the most favorable conditions fills extremely rarely, regardless of the number of puppies born.
- Foxes often become victims of red wolves. If wolves meet a redhead on the plain, they instantly surround her, and several members of the pack give chase. But having caught up with it, they simply kill the fox, leaving it in place, and almost never eat it.
- Unlike most canids, mountain wolves kill game by attacking from behind rather than by the throat.
- Red wolves breed in captivity, but are not domesticated.
Red wolves also make sounds that resemble a whistle, which is easy to imitate. Indian hunters use this to lure animals.
The red wolf is an unusual and rare animal native to the mountainous regions of South and Central Asia. Outwardly, it resembles a jackal, but in color and fur pattern it is more similar to a fox, and its behavior is similar to the behavior of wolves.
The animal is very rare, due to intensive hunting for it.
They are very smart and beautiful animals, which are called red, as well as mountain or red wolves. The word wolf is present in the name because they are closest to these animals in their family ties. The body size of individuals is quite large:
- Body length is one meter.
- Weight - from 17 to 21 kilograms.
The appearance combines the features of three predators at once: a wolf, a fox and a jackal. At the red wolf distinctive feature from its gray relatives is a bright color. And they also have more a long tail and fluffy fur. The muzzle is pointed, shortened, with big ears. The fangs are the same as those of their gray counterparts.
The color of the animal is most often red, but shades can vary. Sometimes there are colors close to orange or sandy, as well as red. The tail is close to a fox's in fluffiness and ends with a black tip. In winter, their fur becomes very dense and tall, more suitable in tone, so as to stand out less when lying down White snow, and in the summer it gets darker and rougher. The color of the cubs at birth is brown and this shade remains until the age of three months.
Gallery: red wolves (25 photos)
Habitat
According to all the criteria described above, ten subspecies of the animal are distinguished, two of which are found in Russia. The distribution area is quite large - it extends from the Tien Shan and Altai mountains up to the Malay Archipelago and Indochina. Found in South and Central Asia maximum amount these animals.
Despite the large extent of the territories where red wolves live, their numbers are quite small. Just a century and a half ago, the habitat of these predators stretched to the Katun River, but now the animals appear only in the southern regions of the Far East. Nowadays, animals may not appear on the territory of Russia at all or are rare guests.
It is becoming increasingly difficult for these predators to find a place where they would be safe. And their rarity is no less than that of Himalayan bear and other species listed in the Red Book.
Lifestyle
These predators are typical representatives of mountain animals. They can rise to a height of up to four thousand meters. Most During the year, animals live in the subalpine and alpine zones, using rocks and gorges as shelter. They go to flat terrain in search of food, but never live on it. They mainly live high in the mountains, rarely descending into the foothills and trying not to enter into conflicts with humans. They almost never attack livestock, preferring to feed on wild prey.
Red wolves are pack animals, they gather in groups of individuals of different ages and hunt in this composition. As a rule, the group does not exceed twelve individuals. At the same time in the group animals behave without aggression, without identifying a clear leader of the pack. Hunting most often occurs during the day and involves a long pursuit of the prey. In this case, both small rodents and large animals like deer and antelope. A big flock can even attack a bull or leopard. At the same time, the peculiarity of an attack for red predators is that they do this by attacking from behind, and not by seizing the victim’s throat with their teeth, like most canids.
These animals have a secretive nature; they avoid people by all means, hiding in rock crevices and caves. These animals have unique capabilities:
- They have very sensitive hearing.
- They are excellent swimmers.
- And very good jumpers, capable of jumping a distance of up to six meters.
Since red wolves are a small species, their habits and reproductive biology are quite difficult to study. What is known is that these animals are monogamous, A males take the most active part in raising puppies and caring for offspring. In captivity, mating occurs mainly in winter. Pregnancy lasts about sixty days, after which five to nine puppies appear. In warmer climates, mating can occur almost all year round.
Small dark brown puppies resemble wolf cubs. Their eyes open approximately two weeks after birth, and at six months the puppies become almost adults. Sexual maturity occurs at the age of two years.
Red Book
Currently this species listed in the Red Book because it is on the verge of extinction. The small population became noticeable already in the 19th century, and over time it only decreased. Because of this, the species could not be studied well enough. It is still unknown exactly what the population size of red wolves is, the boundaries of their habitat and, most importantly, the reasons why they are dying out so rapidly.
According to one of the assumptions that scientists make, the problem lies with gray wolves as the main competitors of this species. But there are also theories that the extinction is associated with a decrease in suitable food, which occurs due to a reduction in the number of artiodactyl animals, which are the main large prey of these predators. People also played their role, actively hunting animals in pursuit of beautiful exotic skins. The color red is a strong attraction, and hunters have been tracking these animals for centuries.
Now on international level A number of activities are being carried out to preserve the red wolf population. The main task is to identify clear boundaries of their habitat in order to create protected areas there in the future. Conversations are also being held with the population of these regions to tell them how vulnerable this type, what measures need to be taken to save it and how to prevent accidental shooting of animals. Done even short description red wolf for children to educate the population from a young age about the beauty and value of this beast.
Many interested people are making every effort to help this interesting animal stay alive.
Attention, TODAY only!
The red mountain wolf is a canid predator, also known as the buanzu or Himalayan wolf. Actually, this animal has such a name for a reason - the color of its fur is a rich red color, closer to red. It should be noted that this breed combines several species - the body structure is similar to a jackal, the color is similar to a fox, but as for behavior, everything here is from a brave and formidable wolf. Unfortunately, if the situation is soon will not change, the red mountain wolf can only be seen in photographs, as its numbers are rapidly declining. And all because negative influence human - because of the beautiful fur the animal is shot.
Breed characteristics
The red mountain wolf is beautiful and intelligent. The animal is quite large, for this type of predator, in size. The length of the body reaches one meter, and the mass of the red wolf reaches 21 kilograms. The muzzle of a mountain wolf is slightly pointed and shortened, the tail is fluffy and descends almost to the ground. IN winter time years, the fur becomes thicker and longer, and its color also changes slightly - it becomes a little lighter, which allows the wolf to hunt effectively. In the summer, the coat becomes shorter and the color darker.
The habitat is quite extensive - from the Tien Shan mountains to Altai. But, unfortunately, this is not proportional to the number, since the number of adults and calves is negligible.
Habitats and food
As for the terrain, here the mountain wolf fully lives up to its name - mountainous areas are optimal for it, with big amount vegetation. It is noteworthy that the red wolf can easily climb to a height of 4000 meters. The wolf rarely descends to the foothills or slopes. Unlike its relative, the gray wolf, the buanzu does not come into conflict with humans and does not attack their homes, in particular livestock. Therefore, in a sense it is completely safe.
The red wolf lives in small packs - no more than 15 individuals. There is no clear leader, and the predator does not show aggressiveness towards its relatives. An exception may be mating season and then only if another wolf claims the territory of the male.
As for hunting, this can happen either together with the whole pack or alone. It should be noted that when attacking together, wolves can even drive away a leopard. At the same time, the diet is quite varied and even includes lizards, if there is no other, more interesting and tasty prey. It is also noteworthy that the attack on the victim occurs from behind, and not in the form of a grab for the throat, as is the case with most canines.
Lifestyle
Due to the fact that the population of these animals has been reduced, the features of their life activity, with regard to reproduction, have not been well studied. It has been reliably established that the red mountain wolf is monogamous; males take a fairly active part in raising their offspring. If we consider life cycle Himalayan wolf in captivity, the active breeding season occurs in winter. The female's pregnancy lasts approximately 60 days, and one litter can have up to 9 puppies. Newborns in their own way appearance very similar to German Shepherd, after about 2 weeks their eyes open. By the age of six months, the cubs are almost the same in size and appearance as adult wolves. It should be noted that in India, puppies are born throughout the year, which, in fact, is quite logical, since the climate there is warm.
Researchers in this field note that if measures are not taken to prevent the death of this breed, it may soon disappear altogether.
Video about red wolves
Are in danger of extinction red wolves , which are also called wild Indian dogs. These mammals are listed in the Red Book.
Since red wolves prefer to hunt in packs, killing a large animal is not difficult for them. These animals are very hardy and can chase prey for several kilometers. To intimidate, they bark and howl loudly. Predators kill game by attacking from behind.
Thanks to their coordinated actions during the hunt, wolves can even kill a tiger or leopard. They surround the beast from all sides, and he does not have the slightest chance to escape. This happens extremely rarely, but cases of attacks on large predators have still been recorded.
Methods for gutting prey differ from other animals. They start eating even before the victim dies and eat everything quite quickly. Most often, game dies from blood loss.
There are no known cases of attacks on people. Most likely, they were not there, since animals try to avoid people.
Red wolf breeding
Little information has been obtained about the reproduction of red wolves, since they are not domesticated. It is known that pregnancy lasts about 60 days; wolf cubs are born mainly in winter. Both parents take part in raising children.
Newborn wolves are no different in appearance from ordinary puppies.
The offspring gains the mass of an adult wolf by the sixth month of life. It is known that cubs do not leave their parents. Several generations unite into a flock.
Interestingly, references to red wolves can also be found in fiction. Rudyard Kipling portrayed these predators as red dogs in The Jungle Book.
Reasons for the decline in red wolf numbers
Red wolf population very low, there are several reasons for this. Firstly, human activity. People have reduced the number of deer and roe deer, which form the basis of the wolves' diet.
Secondly, the population decline is due to the active reproduction of the gray wolf, which is considered the enemy of red wolves. Except gray wolves, the Reds' competitors are Snow Leopard and lynx.
Diseases such as rabies and plague also contribute to the extinction of the species.
Red wolves suffer from persecution by humans. They are hunted and deprived of their habitats.
More recently, these predators were quite widespread. But many factors contributed to the species' decline in record time.
Like many other animals, the red wolf needs help and careful attitude from the people. Although it is still unknown whether the population has been affected by humans or nature, measures must be taken to protect these animals. To preserve the species were created National parks and nature reserves.
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