Domain: Eukaryotes
Kingdom: Animals
Type: Chordata
Class: Mammals
Squad: Predatory
Family: Canids
Genus: Red wolves (Cuon Hodgson, 1838)
View: Red Wolf
Habitats
The main part of the habitat and range of the red wolf is located in Central and South Asia, south East Asia, including Indonesia, India, China and Tibet, as well as Mongolia, 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. Basically, the predatory animal is absent in the desert and steppe parts of its 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 insignificant in height snow cover. Too deep snow always forces the animal to migrate to other, not too snowy areas.
Appearance
You can give it right away short description wolf - it is usually compared immediately with the gray wolf, jackal and fox. Individuals of this species have relatively large dimensions - length reaches 75-110 cm, height - up to half a meter at the withers, and adult wolves weigh from 18 to 21 kg. Possess impressive size tail - length can reach 50 cm.
The undoubted difference between a red or mountain wolf is the color of its coat - reddish wolves can easily be confused with a fox. Wool changes its properties with the seasons: in winter the fur is tall and thick, and in summer it is darker, coarser and shorter. The tail is darker than the body, and the fur on it is thicker.
The muzzle, in comparison with the gray wolf, is sharper and shorter. The ears stand out on the head, erect, but with rounded tops. The number of teeth is less than that of counterparts from other species. The structure of the fingers is also slightly different - the middle fingers are connected into a shape reminiscent of a horseshoe.
In total, there are 10 subspecies of red wolves, of which only 2 of them can be observed in Russia. The red wolf should also not be confused with the red wolf, which is a subspecies of the common gray wolf.
Lifestyle and habits
Although red wolves are one of the most poorly studied members of the canid family (Canidae), it is reliably known that they live in groups (packs), hunt together and raise offspring together.
A pack of red wolves is an overgrown family, usually including 5-12 individuals, rarely more than 20 animals in a group. They are active mainly during the day, but hunting in the moonlight is also quite common. All adult members of the pack participate in the hunt for large animals. The flock hunts in an area of about 40 square meters. km. They track prey by smell.
Dholis use two hunting strategies, which depend on the interaction of the animals in the pack. Firstly, the flock moves through the thickets in an extended line. Any adult wolf capable of killing prey will attack when it finds a suitable victim. When the prey is small, one wolf can get it. If the prey is large, such as an Axis male, the sound of pursuit and the high-pitched cry of the deer attracts other members of the pack. Wolves rush to the rescue. More than one large animal is rarely killed in one hunt.
Using the second strategy, some wolves remain in ambush at the edge of dense vegetation. They intercept a fleeing prey that is being chased by other members of the pack. In the dense jungle the pursuit does not last long. Hunting strong animals armed big horns, such as Axis or Sambar males, wolves grab them by the nose, which does not allow the ungulates to use their deadly weapon. By making throws on the croup or sides of the deer, predators tear the victim, who dies as a result of injuries and blood loss. 2 or 3 wolves can kill a 50 kg deer in just a few minutes.
When hunting in packs, they usually eat their prey together, but some may drag a piece of carcass aside to eat without interference. When there is water nearby, red wolves often drink while eating, but if not, they look for a watering hole immediately after eating.
The diet of wolves includes not only large ungulates, but also small mammals, as well as birds, lizards, insects and berries. They sometimes eat unguarded prey of leopards and tigers.
The red wolf has a reputation as a cruel and bloodthirsty killer due to the fact that it does not always immediately kill its prey, as ordinary (gray) wolves do, gnawing the throat of the prey, but attacks with bites from behind. When the pursued animal is exhausted, the wolf begins to eat the still living victim. But in fairness, it should be noted that red wolves, unlike gray wolves, extremely rarely attack livestock and do not annoy humans, preferring to stay away from them.
Nutrition
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.
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
Little is known about how this species reproduces. There are guesses that females give birth to offspring directly in the crevices in which the family lives. Predators reach puberty in the second year of life, and pregnancy in females lasts 2-2.5 months.
Both parents take whatever part they can in raising the pups, of which there can be from 6 to 10 in one litter. Puppies are born blind and begin to see only after a few weeks of life. At the same time, they develop quite quickly: it takes them a little more than six months of life to reach the size of their parents.
It is also believed that young animals do not leave their parents, and several of their generations unite and form a full-fledged pack.
Enemies and competitors
The number of red wolves is estimated to be extremely low. The decline in numbers was apparently facilitated by the economic development of the territory, as well as due to human activity, a reduction in the number of sika deer and roe deer, which form the basis of the diet of this species.
Besides, negative role the gray wolf appears as a competitor and enemy, which has multiplied greatly over Lately. Also competitors and enemies of the red wolf are Snow Leopard and lynx.
Diseases such as plague and rabies also contribute to the increased mortality of the red wolf. However, be that as it may, only the thoughtless destruction of these furry predators by humans in the future can have an impact Negative influence on future fate this already vanishing species from the planet.
Population reduction and conservation
The red wolf is a rare species. Listed in the IUCN Red Book and the Red Book of the Russian Federation, it is endangered in Russia. In India, hunting is permitted under licenses.
In the recent past, the distribution area of the red wolf was much wider. The change in the boundaries of the range occurred under the influence of humans - hunting, due to a reduction in the area of natural natural areas habitat of the species. The number of animals that serve as food sources for the red wolf also decreased.
Another negative factor of human activity that affected the red wolf was the almost complete destruction of the tiger and the subsequent rapid increase the number of gray wolves, which are successfully displacing the red wolf.
An essential role for the conservation of the species is played by the last decades wide network national parks and reserves where predators find protection.
Video
Sources
- https://ohota.guru/dikie-zhivotnye/prekrasnyy-i-redkiy-krasnyy-volk.html http://www.krasnouhie.ru/krasnyj-volk.html
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 rare view, belonging to the genus Cuon, is endangered.
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 high snow cover is established in the mountains, 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 not in large flocks, consisting, as a rule, 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. Basically, the predatory animal is absent in the desert and steppe parts of its range.
In the north, the border of the red wolf's range runs through a very narrow strip in Russia. Such wild habitats are represented by the southern outskirts of the Far East, Central and Eastern Siberia, where red wolves are very rare and infrequently encountered. Throughout their usual range, red wolves prefer mountains and hilly ridges.
This rare predatory animal 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 of the Far East, including coniferous forests in 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. At different times of the year, 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 a well-known fact that in the summer such predatory animals consume a sufficient amount of plant food, in particular, green mountain rhubarb. 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 during 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 the species characteristics of the prey. 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.
Red wolf - a rare species beast of prey, found in the wild, mainly in rocky areas of Asia. In Russia this species is practically never found. A few flocks of red wolves have been spotted only in the Far Eastern regions of our country. This predator is listed in the Red Book, as their population is significantly declining every year. The most important and fatal role in the destruction of this beast is played by man. Indiscriminate poaching and extermination of entire flocks of these animals for the sake of beautiful fur may soon lead to the complete disappearance of this rare and unique species of wild dog. To prevent extinction, in many countries of the world special reserves and sanctuaries are created for this predator so that they can live and reproduce there without fear.
Family
Outwardly, the red wolf looks more like a fox due to its reddish coat. But in character and habits it is closer to an ordinary gray wolf. They are also loyal to their pack and choose a mate for life. This species was the result of a cross between a common wolf and an American coyote. According to some sources, the oldest rock paintings of a red wolf are more than 2000 years old.
Red wolves start a family when they reach the age of two. It takes a she-wolf about two months to bear puppies. Puppies are born blind, with a brown coat color. The male of this species is caring parent, he, along with the female, takes an active part in raising the offspring. Grown-up puppies do not leave their parents, but remain in the pack. In terms of the number of individuals, a pack of red wolves can reach 30 predators of different ages.
Behavior
Red Wolf - Interesting Facts about behavior. These wolves never attack a person; on the contrary, they try to avoid him and his home. They are very careful and sensitive animals, and the red wolf also runs very fast. While hunting, it can reach speeds of up to 60 kilometers per hour. The length of the predatory athlete's jump is about 6 meters. Once, in one of the zoos, a wolf was able to overcome the fence of an enclosure more than two meters high. Then he escaped to freedom by jumping over a six-meter ditch.
Red wolves hunt with their entire large and friendly pack. Since they are very fast and resilient, they can track and pursue prey for a long time. When hunting, they make whistling, clicking sounds, and also a sound similar to a howl. In this way they try to scare the prey and give signs to their fellow tribesmen.
Their diet includes both small artiodactyls - wild goats, deer, antelopes, and some large herbivores, for example a bull or bison. Sometimes even a huge tiger cannot withstand the onslaught of a large flock. Attacking him from all sides simultaneously, they exhaust predatory cat. They do not hesitate to feast on voles and other steppe rodents. These animals are very voracious. A hungry predator of this species can devour a whole fawn weighing up to 10 kilograms in one sitting, which is about half the weight of the animal itself.
Peculiarities
Red wolves have a very keen sense of smell and excellent hearing. They are able to smell their prey by ear, being hundreds of meters away from it. And with their incredibly sensitive nose, they can recognize thousands of different variations of aromas.
Also, these animals are very different developed intellect and intelligence. Red wolves easily bypass all traps and snares set by poachers. They are always on guard and it is very difficult to take them by surprise. They also have excellent, clear vision; from a distance they can very accurately understand the gestures and facial expressions of their fellow creatures.
In the wild, red wolves are oppressed by their gray brothers and even lynxes. In competition for hunting grounds and food, Gray wolves and smaller lynxes often defeat the red predator, despite the large composition of their pack.
A lot of effort is being put into maintaining and restoring the red wolf population. In all the regions where it lives, animal advocates are spreading awareness about this endangered wolf species. The importance of preserving and protecting this rare canine species from extinction is described in brochures that are distributed throughout educational institutions. People are fighting for the survival of this rare and mysterious wild predator.
Red wolves live in southeastern and central Asia, the Malay Archipelago, Altai, and the islands of Sumatra and Java. On the territory of Russia, these predators are only rarely found in the Far East, where they come from China and Mongolia. Places for living are mainly chosen in the mountains at an altitude of no more than 4000 m above sea level, setting up lairs in caves, rock crevices or niches. In the southern part of their range, wolves are more drawn to forests. In search of food, animals can go to extreme short time and to other habitats such as deserts, steppes or forest-steppes. But everywhere their stay is confined to gorges and rocky places with a concentration of ungulates.
Red wolves live in fairly large packs, consisting of pairs of different generations and numbering from 5 to 12 individuals. Members of the pack maintain very friendly relations with each other and lead a very active, almost 24-hour lifestyle. When searching for prey in dense thickets predators are guided by its smell, and in order to smell it even better, they jump up almost 3 meters. They hunt mainly during the day and only together, in groups of 10 - 15 animals. They act very cunningly, tirelessly pursuing the chosen victim. Wolves stretch out like a living chain, creating an arc as they move. Then, gradually encircling the flanks of the prey, they try to drive it into an open place or in winter onto the ice, where the ungulates become helpless.
This cooperation during hunting allows mountain wolves to kill animals 10 times larger in weight and body size than their own in a few minutes. Unlike other predators, red wolves, when killing a prey, do not grab it by the throat, but attack from behind. Moreover, the meal begins even before the prey becomes completely dead, striking the speed with which they eat.
The main food of red wolves are quite large animals: wild boars, roe deer, musk deer, gorals, wapiti, sometimes domestic sheep and even leopards and tigers. On occasion, they will not refuse to feast on lizards, marmots, rabbits, birds and other small animals. Among plant foods, predators adore sour and juicy mountain rhubarb, rich in vitamins, which is often brought to the wolf cubs’ den.
Small wolf cubs are usually born in January-February. After completing an almost two-month pregnancy, females give birth to 5 to 9 blind, dark brown cubs, which look very similar to puppies of ordinary dogs. In the second week, newborns' eyes open, adult they recruit at six months of age and reach puberty by the second year of life.
The main reason for the disappearance of red wolves is considered to be their stronger gray relatives - the main competitors in the struggle for food supply. Regardless of their habitat, wolves of this species are constantly persecuted by humans, who hunt them, deprive them of food and poison them. Diseases such as plague and rabies also contribute to the disappearance of these animals. There are only about 2.5 thousand of them left in the wild.
The red wolf is registered in the Russian and international Red Books as an endangered and protected species. These animals are not tamed, but they reproduce well in captivity. IN natural conditions live about 8 years.
The red wolf is distinguished by its color, fluffy fur and more long tail almost reaching the ground. Characterized by a shortened, pointed muzzle. The ears are large, erect, with rounded tops, set high on the head.
The general color tone is reddish, highly variable in individual individuals and in different parts range. The end of the tail is black. Wolf cubs up to 3 months are dark brown. The hair in winter is very high, thick and soft; in summer it is noticeably shorter, coarser and darker. The tail is fluffy, like a fox's. Based on the variability of color, fur density and body size, 10 subspecies of the red wolf have been described, 2 of them are found in Russia.
The red wolf differs from other representatives of the canine family in its reduced number of molars (there are 2 in each half of the jaw) and big amount nipples (6-7 pairs).
Distribution and subspecies
The red wolf is distributed from the Tien Shan and Altai south to the tip of Hindustan, Indochina and the Malay Archipelago. The bulk of its range is in the mountainous forest regions of Central and South Asia. There are 10 subspecies of the red wolf:
- Cuon alpinus adustus- northern Myanmar and Indochina,
- Cuon alpinus dukhunensis- India south of the river Ganges, Pakistan, Afghanistan, middle Asia, Iran
- Cuon alpinus fumosus- from western Sichuan (China) to Mongolia,
- Cuon alpinus hesperius- Far East of Russia and China,
- Cuon alpinus infuscus- southern Myanmar, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam,
- Cuon alpinus javanocus- Java,
- Cuon alpinus laniger- Kashmir, Waziristan and southern Tibet,
- Cuon alpinus lepturus- China, south of the Yangtze River,
- Cuon alpinus primaevus- Himalayan regions of Nepal, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Sikkim (India) and Bhutan,
- Cuon alpinus sumatrensis- Sumatra.
Still quite common in many areas of India south of the Ganges, in the Indus Valley of Pakistan, southern Iran and the Himalayas; in other parts of the range it became rare (Vietnam, North Korea) or almost completely disappeared (in Iraq and Syria it has not been found since the 1970s of the last century, in Azerbaijan too).
Red wolf in Russia
In Russia it was found mainly in the south of the Far East, where it probably entered from the adjacent territories of Mongolia and China. There is no reliable evidence that the species lives permanently within Russia today.
Notes
Links
- ARKive (red wolf photos and videos)
| Endangered species IUCN 3.1 Endangered : |
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