The Wolf Intelligencer

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Eurasian Wolf (Canis lupus lupus)

Eurasion Wolf (Canis lupus lupus) – NOMINATE SUBSPECIES (Linnaeus 1758)

Common Names: Eurasian Wolf, Common Wolf
Mech, L. David (1981), The Wolf: The Ecology and Behaviour of an Endangered Species, University of Minnesota Press, p. 354, ISBN 0-8166-1026-6
Middle Russian Forest Wolf
Heptner, V. G. & Naumov, N. P. (1998) Mammals of the Soviet Union Vol.II Part 1a, SIRENIA AND CARNIVORA (Sea cows; Wolves and Bears), Science Publishers, Inc. USA., pp. 184-187, ISBN 1-886106-81-9

Overall population: Unknown. Over a hundred thousand?

Physical description: “The Eurasion Wolf is the largest species of Old World wolves with weights between 150-180lbs approximate range. The Eurasion Wolf has relatively short and coarse hair that is mostly tan in colour with white underbelly and chest extending to the jaw.”
[Miller, G. S. (1912), Catalogue of the mammals of Western Europe (Europe exclusive of Russia) in the collection of the British museum, London, Printed by order of the Trustees of the British Museum, pp. 313-314]

Range:
Original range – Most of Eurasian continent.
Current range – Russia. Central, Eastern and Northern Europe. Central to east Asia, Scandinavia. Mongolia. China. Himalayas

Habitat / Ecology / Prey:
Habitats | Biomes

BIOMES OF EURASIA

Afghanistan – (Montane grasslands and shrublands) (Deserts and xeric shrublands) (Temperate coniferous forest), Albania – (Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub) (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forest) Azerbaijan– (Temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands terrestrial)((Temperate broadleaf and mixed forest) (Deserts and xeric shrublands) Belarus– (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forest biome) (Temperate hardwood forest biome) Bosnia and Herzegovina– (temperate broadleaf and mixed forests biome) (Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub biome) Bulgaria- (temperate broadleaf and mixed forests biome) (Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub biome) (Temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands) China– (Flooded grasslands and savannas) (Montane grasslands and shrublands) (Temperate coniferous forests) (Temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands) (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forest) (Montane grasslands and shrublands) (Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests) (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forest) (Deserts and xeric shrublands) Croatia– (Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub) (temperate broadleaf and mixed forests) Czech Republic– (temperate broadleaf and mixed forests) (temperate coniferous forest) Denmark– (temperate broadleaf and mixed forests) Estonia (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests) Finland (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests) (Taiga) (tundra) France (Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub Biome) (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests Biome) Germany (Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub Biome) (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests Biome) Greece (Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub) (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests) Italy (temperate coniferous forests) (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests) (Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub Biome) Latvia (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests) Lithuania (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests) North Macedonia (Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub) (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests Biome) Norway (tundra) (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests) (temperate coniferous forests Biome) Poland (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests) (temperate coniferous forests) Portugal (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests Biome) (Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub) Romania (temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands) (temperate coniferous forests) (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests) Russia (tundra) (Boreal forests/taiga) (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests) (Flooded grasslands and savannas) (temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands) (Taiga) (temperate coniferous forests) (montane grasslands and shrublands) (deserts and xeric shrublands) Serbia and Montenegro (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests) (Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub) Slovakia (Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests Biome) (Temperate coniferous forests Biome)

Ecology | Ecoregions

AFGHANISTAN ECOREGIONS

Afghan Mountains semi-desert, Badghyz and Karabil semi-desert, Baluchistan xeric woodlands, Central Afghan Mountains xeric woodlands, Central Persian desert basins, East Afghan montane conifer forests, Ghorat-Hazarajat alpine meadow, Hindu Kush alpine meadow, Karakoram-West Tibetan Plateau alpine steppe, Northwestern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows, Pamir alpine desert and tundra, Paropamisus xeric woodlands, Registan-North Pakistan sandy desert, Sulaiman Range alpine meadows

ALBANIA ECOREGIONS

Dinaric Mountains mixed forests, Balkan mixed forests, Illyrian deciduous forests, Pindus Mountains mixed forests

AZERBAIJAN ECOREGION

Azerbaijan shrub desert and steppe, Caspian Hyrcanian Mixed Forests, Caucasus mixed forests, Eastern Anatolian montane steppe

BELARUS ECOREGIONS

Central European mixed forests, Sarmatic mixed forests ecoregion

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA ECOREGIONS

Dinaric Mountains mixed forests, Balkan mixed forests are a terrestrial, Illyrian deciduous forests, Pannonian mixed forests

BULGARIA ECOREGIONS

Aegean and Western Turkey sclerophyllous and mixed forests, Balkan mixed forests, East European forest steppe, Euxine-Colchic deciduous forests, Pontic–Caspian steppe, Rodope montane mixed forests

CHINA ECOREGIONS

Alashan Plateau semi-desert, Altai alpine meadow and tundra, Altai montane forest and forest steppe, Altai steppe and semi-desert, Amur Meadow Steppe, Bohai Sea saline meadow, Central China loess plateau mixed forests, Central Tibetan Plateau alpine steppe, Changbai Mountains mixed forests, Changjiang Plain evergreen forests, Da Hinggan-Dzhagdy Mountains conifer forests, Daba Mountains evergreen forests, Daurian forest steppe, Dzungaria, Eastern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows, Emin Valley, Gobi Desert, Guizhou Plateau broadleaf and mixed forests, Hainan Island monsoon rain forests,
Helanshan montane conifer forests, Hengduan Mountains subalpine conifer forests, Huang He Plain mixed forests, Jiang Nan subtropical evergreen forests, Karakoram-West Tibetan Plateau alpine steppe,
Manchurian mixed forests, Mongolian-Manchurian grassland, Nenjiang River grassland, North Tibetan Plateau-Kunlun Mountains alpine desert, Northeast China Plain deciduous forests, Northeastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests, Northern Indochina subtropical moist forests, Northwestern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows, Nujiang Langcang Gorge alpine conifer and mixed forests, Pamir alpine desert and tundra, Qilian Mountains conifer forests, Qilian Mountains subalpine meadows, Qin Ling Mountains deciduous forests, Qionglai-Minshan conifer forests, Sichuan Basin evergreen broadleaf forests, South China Sea Islands, South China-Vietnam subtropical evergreen forests, South Taiwan monsoon rain forests, Southeast Tibet shrub and meadows, Suiphun-Khanka meadows and forest meadows, Taklamakan Desert, Tarim Basin
Tarim Basin deciduous forests and steppe, Three Parallel Rivers Tian Shan foothill arid steppe, Tian Shan montane conifer forests, Tian Shan montane steppe and meadows, Tibetan Plateau alpine shrublands and meadows, Western Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows, Yarlung Tsangpo arid steppe, Yellow Sea saline meadow, Yunnan Plateau subtropical evergreen forests

CROATIA ECOREGIONS

Dinaric Mountains mixed forests, Illyrian deciduous forests, Pannonian mixed forests, Tyrrhenian-Adriatic sclerophyllous and mixed forests

CZECH REPUBLIC ECOREGIONS

Carpathian montane conifer forests, Central European mixed forests, Pannonian mixed forests, Western European broadleaf forests

DENMARK ECOREGIONS

Atlantic mixed forests, Baltic mixed forests, Baltic Sea

ESTONIA ECOREGIONS

Baltic Sea, Sarmatic mixed forests

FINLAND ECOREGIONS

Baltic Sea, Sarmatic mixed forests, Scandinavian and Russian taiga, Scandinavian montane birch forest and grasslands

FRANCE ECOREGIONS

Matorral shrublands and woodland, Garrigue, Maquis shrubland, Western European broadleaf forests

GERMANY ECOREGIONS

Alps conifer and mixed forests, Atlantic mixed forests, Baltic mixed forests, Baltic Sea,Central European mixed forests, Western European broadleaf forests

GREECE ECOREGIONS

Aegean and Western Turkey sclerophyllous and mixed forests, Balkan mixed forests, Crete Mediterranean forests, Illyrian deciduous forests ecoregion, Garrigue, Pindus Mountains mixed forests, Rodope montane mixed forests

ITALY ECOREGIONS

Alps conifer and mixed forests, Apennine deciduous montane forests, Dinaric Mountains mixed forests, Illyrian deciduous forests, Italian sclerophyllous and semi-deciduous forests, Maquis shrubland, Matorral shrublands and woodland, Po Basin mixed forests, South Apennine mixed montane forests, Tyrrhenian-Adriatic sclerophyllous and mixed forests

LATVIA ECOREGIONS

Baltic Sea, Sarmatic mixed forests

LITHUANIA ECOREGIONS

Baltic Sea,Baltic Sea, Central European mixed forests, Sarmatic mixed forests Sarmatic mixed forests

NORTH MACEDONIA ECOREGIONS

Aegean and Western Turkey sclerophyllous and mixed forests, Balkan mixed forests, Rodope montane mixed forests

NORWAY ECOREGIONS

Arctic desert, Kola Peninsula tundra, Sarmatic mixed forests, Scandinavian and Russian taiga, Scandinavian coastal conifer forests, Scandinavian montane birch forest and grasslands

POLAND ECOREGIONS

Baltic mixed forests, Baltic Sea, Carpathian montane conifer forests, Central European mixed forests, Western European broadleaf forests

PORTUGAL ECOREGIONS

Azores temperate mixed forests, Cantabrian mixed forests, Iberian sclerophyllous and semi-deciduous forests, Madeira evergreen forests, Northwest Iberian montane forests, Southwest Iberian Mediterranean sclerophyllous and mixed forests

ROMANIA ECOREGIONS

Balkan mixed forests, Carpathian montane conifer forest, Central European mixed forests, East European forest steppe, Pannonian mixed forests, Pontic–Caspian steppe

RUSSIA ECOREGIONS

Altai alpine meadow and tundra, Altai montane forest and forest steppe, Amur Meadow Steppe, Arctic desert, Baltic Sea, Bering tundra, Caspian lowland desert, Caucasus mixed forests, Central European mixed forests, Cherskii-Kolyma mountain tundra, Chukchi Peninsula tundra, Crimean Submediterranean forest complex, Da Hinggan-Dzhagdy Mountains conifer forests, Daurian forest steppe, East European forest steppe, East Siberian taiga, Great Lakes Basin desert steppe, Kamchatka Mountain tundra and forest tundra, Kamchatka-Kurile meadows and sparse forests, Kamchatka-Kurile taiga, Kazakh forest steppe, Kazakh Steppe, Kola Peninsula tundra, Manchurian mixed forests, Mongolian-Manchurian grassland, New Siberian Islands, Northeast Siberian coastal tundra, Northeast Siberian taiga, Northwest Russian-Novaya Zemlya tundra, Okhotsk-Manchurian taiga, Pontic–Caspian steppe, Romincka Forest, Sakhalin Island taiga, Sarmatic mixed forests, Sayan alpine meadows and tundra, Sayan Intermontane steppe, Sayan montane conifer forests, Scandinavian and Russian taiga, Selenge-Orkhon forest steppe, South Sakhalin-Kurile mixed forests, South Siberian forest steppe,

Southern Siberian rainforest
Suiphun-Khanka meadows and forest meadows, Taimyr-Central Siberian tundra,

Temperate rainforests of the Russian Far East
Trans-Baikal Bald Mountain tundra, Trans-Baikal conifer forests, Urals montane tundra and taiga, Ussuri broadleaf and mixed forests, West Siberian broadleaf and mixed forests,West Siberian taiga, Wrangel Island, Yamalagydanskaja tundra

SERBIA AND MONTENEGRO ECOREGIONS

Serbia
Balkan mixed forests, Dinaric Mountains mixed forests, Pannonian mixed forests, Rodope montane mixed forests

Montenegro
Balkan mixed forests, Dinaric Mountains mixed forests ecoregion, Illyrian deciduous forests


Prey:

moose (Alces alces), Red Deer (Cervus elaphus), European Roe Deer (Capreolus capreolus), Wild Boar (Sus scrofa), Reindeer (Rangifer tarandus), Argali “mountain sheep” (Ovis ammon}, Mouflon (Ovis orientalis orientalis), European Bison “wisent” calves (Bison bonasus) , Saiga Antelope (Saiga tatarica), Alpine mountain goat “ibex” (Capra ibex), Chamois goat-antelope (Rupicapra rupicapra), Wild Goats (Capra aegagrus), Fallow Deer (Dama dama), Siberian musk deer (Moschus moschiferus), European hares (Lepus europaeus). Raccoon dog (Nyctereutes procyonoides), Eurasian Beaver (Castor fiber), European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus), Mountain Hare (Lepus timidus), Wolverene (Gulo gulo), Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes), Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra), European badger (Meles meles)

(Additional food source – garbage)
[Peterson, R. O. & Ciucci, P. (2003), “The Wolf as a Carnivore”, in Wolves: Behavior, Ecology, and Conservation, edited by L. David Mech and Luigi Boitani, pp. 104-130, Chicago: University Press]

Non-Prey European / Asian SpeciesEurasian brown bear (Ursus arctos arctos), Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx), Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus), European wildcat (Felis silvestris), European jackal (Canis aureus moreoticus)

Beautiful Birds of Eurasia!

Common Raven (Corvus corax), Carrion Crow (Corvus corone), Eurasian magpie (Pica pica), Eurasian jackdaw (Coloeus monedula), hooded crow (Corvus cornix), rook (Corvus frugilegus), Eurasian jay (Garrulus glandarius),

SEE MORE BEAUTIFUL BIRDS OF EURASIA

Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus), Western Marsh Harrier (Circus aeruginosus), eastern marsh harrier (Circus spilonotus), Eurasian hobby (Falco subbuteo), lesser kestrel (Falco naumanni), Eurasian kestrel (Falco tinnunculus), eastern imperial eagle (Aquila heliaca), tawny owl (Strix aluco), little owl (Athene noctua), European green woodpecker (Picus viridis), Eurasian curlew or common curlew (Numenius arquata) Eurasian green-winged teal (Anas crecca), Eurasian skylark (Alauda arvensis), common house martin (Delichon urbicum), western yellow wagtail (Motacilla flava), Eurasian nuthatch (Sitta europaea), Eurasian bullfinch (Pyrrhula pyrrhula), yellowhammer (Emberiza citrinella), European stonechat (Saxicola rubicola), black woodpecker (Dryocopus martius), golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos)


Legal and Cultural Background:

1979 Bern Convention (Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats) Appendix II (Strictly Protected Species)

1992 Habitats Directive (Council Directive 92/43/EEC on the Conservation of Natural Habitats of Wild Fauna and Flora) Appendix II (Habitat Conservation Needs) Appendix IV (Full Protection)

[Boitani, L. (1995), “Ecological and cultural diversities in the evolution of wolf-human relationships”, in Ecology and conservation of wolves in a changing world, eds. Carbyn, L. N., Fritts, S. H., and Seip, D. R., eds. pp. 3-12, Edmonton: Canadian Circumpolar Institute]

Conservation:
Europe
Asia

Taxonomic/Genetic Information:

Genetics and conservation of wolves Canis lupus in Europe. Randi E. Mammal Review. 2011 Apr

LATEST NEWS AND INFORMATION
Wolves in Europe
Wolves in Asia

Further Reading

Eurasian Wolves in Europe and Asia: Albania / Austria / Belgium / Bosnia and Herzegovina / Bulgaria / Croatia / Czech RepublicFrance / Germany / Greece / Hungary / Italy / Macedonia / Netherlands / Poland / Portugal / Romania / Serbia and Montenegro / Slovakia / Slovenia / Spain  / Switzerland / Greenland / Denmark / Finland / Norway / Sweden / Estonia / Latvia / Lithuania / Belarus / Ukraine / Moldova / RussiaAfghanistan / Armenia / Azerbaijan / Georgia / Jordan / Kazakhstan / Kyrgyzstan  / Pakistan / Tajikistan / Turkmenistan / Turkey  / Uzbekistan

International Wolf Center  – Europe
International Wolf Center  – Asia

Journal / Scientific Publications:

Landscape Connectivity and Suitable Habitat Analysis for Wolves (Canis lupus L.) in the Eastern Pyrenees. Garcia-Lozano C, Varga D, Pintó J, Roig-Munar FX. Sustainability. 2020 Jan

The Role of Anthropogenic Influence on Biological Signal Field (BSF) Characteristics of the Wolf, Canis lupus lupus (Canidae, Carnivora). Shkvyria MG, Yakovlev YB. Vestnik zoologii. 2016 Feb

Adaptive diet strategy of the wolf (Canis lupus L.) in Europe: a review
D Zlatanova, A Ahmed, A Valasseva… – Acta zoologica …, 2014 – researchgate.net

Vocalization of European wolves (Canis lupus lupus L.) and various dog breeds (Canis lupus f. fam.); DU Feddersen-Petersen – Archives Animal Breeding, 2000 – arch-anim-breed.net