Fauna Series No. 5

Fauna of the National Parks — No. 5 The Wolves of Mount McKinley

CHAPTER FOUR:
CARIBOU (continued)

Wolf Predation (continued)

HUNTING INCIDENTS

For a better understanding of the hunting habits of wolves and the behavior of the hunted caribou, a number of illustrative incidents are here described.

Typical Wolf Hunt.—On June 16, 1939, I had my first full view of a wolf capturing a caribou calf. My assistant, Emmett Edwards, and I were sitting on a ridge high enough above the river bars to give us a good view of the prospect before us. We were classifying according to sex and age the bands of caribou passing up the river. All day, band after band passed us, going up the west fork of the Teklanika River to the glaciers of the high Alaska Range; others were coming down this fork and going up the east fork. About noon we noticed in the distance a band of about 250 caribou, mainly cows and calves, coming downstream. Soon they were near enough so that we could make out that they were galloping. Suspecting that they were being disturbed, I looked through the field glasses and saw a black wolf galloping after them. When the caribou reached the triangular flat between the forks of the river in front of us, the wolf was close upon their heels. The caribou in the rear fanned out so that they were deployed on three sides of the wolf. He continued straight ahead, continuously causing those nearest him to fan out to either side, making an open lane through the herd. Those on the sides stopped and watched the wolf go past. Soon most of the caribou were on either side of the wolf's course.

On the flat the wolf stopped for a moment and so did all the caribou. Then he continued straight ahead after a band of about 30, and these again fanned out, whereupon he swerved to his left after 15 of them, which then started back in the direction from which they had come. The wolf chased these for about 50 yards and stopped. Small bands of caribou, some of them only 100 yards away, almost surrounded him. It seemed strange that they did not run away from the vicinity of danger. Then the wolf seemed to have come to a decision, for he started after 25 cows and calves farther from him than those he had just been chasing. Before they got under way he gained rapidly. For a time the race seemed to be going quite evenly, and I felt sure the band would outdistance their enemy. But this was my first view of such hunting activity and I was mistaken.

The gap commenced to close, at first almost imperceptibly. The wolf was stretched out, long and sinewy, doing his best. Then I noticed a calf dropping behind the fleeing band. It could not keep the pace. The space between the band and the calf increased while that between the calf and the wolf decreased. The calf began to lose ground more rapidly. The wolf seemed to increase his speed a notch and rapidly gained on the calf. When about 10 yards ahead of the wolf the calf began to veer from one side to the other to dodge him. Quickly the wolf closed in and at the moment of contact the calf went down. I could not be sure where the wolf seized it, but it appeared to be about at the shoulder. The chase had covered about 500 yards and the victim was about 50 yards behind the herd when overtaken.

In a few minutes the black wolf trotted a short distance to meet a silvery-maned gray wolf which was limping badly on a front foot. Together they returned to the dead calf, sniffed it, then moved off, and circled to the left side of the ridge at the forks and climbed it slowly. Halfway up the slope they rested for a half hour, and then they continued to the top of a promontory about 1,000 feet above the river bars. On the way they flushed an eagle which circled and twice swooped low over them. The wolves lay down on the point of the ridge until 7 p. m. At this time we decided to examine the calf carcass and descended from our ridge, taking advantage of a high bank along the river to keep out of sight of the wolves.

When we reached a point on the bar opposite the kill we saw the limping gray wolf coming down the slope. Then we saw the black one feeding on its prey about 300 yards up the slope from where the kill had been made. He had no doubt carried the carcass while we were walking along the bar. Several runs were made at six or seven magpies which were feeding with him. Soon the wolf left, returning once to chase the magpies from the meat. The gray animal which had been lying a short distance above the black one then approached the meat and carried off a large piece. When we reached the spot there were only a few ribs and some entrails left. As we walked towards camp the gray female was again seen resting on top of the ridge.

Unsuccessful Hunt.—On June 17 we returned to the forks of the Teklanika to watch the wolves. A band of 15 caribou, without calves, trotted along the bar followed by a trotting gray wolf. When the wolf stopped to sniff at a fox den the caribou stood watching him from a distance of only 75 yards. The caribou moved off and the wolf disappeared, perhaps to rest.

Later in the morning (about 10 o'clock) eight or nine cows and four calves were seen galloping across the river bar followed by a gray wolf loping easily. They all crossed the east fork of the Teklanika River and came out on the flat where the day before a calf had been killed. The wolf galloped rapidly across the flat after the fleeing caribou, which with a long lead reached the rough country at the base of the ridge. The wolf gained on the caribou while they ran up and down the slopes and it ran on the level, but when the wolf also reached the rough country it was quickly left behind. On top of the first slope it gave up the chase after running somewhat over a half mile.

An Afternoon Hunt.—On June 1, 1940, from a lookout near the East Fork den I saw an interesting hunt. At this time there were many bands of cows with calves, some feeding only a quarter of a mile from the den. One group walked within 50 yards of it. From the lookout I counted 1,500 caribou. At 4:40 p. m. the black-mantled male looked into the den and then walked down to the bar. He was followed closely by Grandpa, and shortly the black male came out of the den and also followed. It looked as though the black-mantled male had looked into the den to let the black male know he was going hunting. The three disappeared in a ravine leading up the long slope. Grandpa was limping badly on a hind leg, not using it at all when he galloped. The gray female started late, after the others were in the ravine. The black female was left to watch the den, resting near the entrance.

Far up the ravine the black-mantled male, followed closely by the black male, appeared on a large snowdrift. The black-mantled male waited for the black male and when it came up, jumped and romped with him. The wolves seem to enjoy romping on these late spring snowdrifts, and I have seen mountain sheep also jump about and play on them. The female wolf was following a couple of hundred yards behind. The black-mantled male turned southward at right angles and followed a bench. The others turned also, about 100 yards lower down the slope. Far in the rear appeared Grandpa, still limping badly. He turned about a third of a mile below the others, being out of their sight on the slope below the bench on which they were traveling. They moved southward, the black-mantled male loping in a rocking-horse fashion, apparently from excessive spirits. Several bands of caribou in front of the advancing wolves galloped rapidly up the steep slope. A mile or more to the south I lost sight of all except Grandpa, who had stopped and howled.

Soon the others had swung around Grandpa, who acted as a pivot, and they all moved northward again toward the den. The black-mantled male was just below Grandpa and far down the slope came the black male and the gray female. By the time these three came abreast of Grandpa, about 200 caribou in one band, and some smaller bands, were galloping northward ahead of them. Some of the caribou ran up the slope. The larger band was followed by a grizzly galloping below and parallel with it. The bear seemed to be hurrying to get away from the general commotion. He veered off to the river bar and there stood up on his hind legs and looked up the slope in the direction from which he had come. Then he dropped to all fours and continued across the bar.

The wolves stopped soon after they had started northward, and the black male howled. When the black-mantled male answered him from up the slope, all the wolves assembled on the high point where he stood. They lay down for a few minutes, then the black male moved down the slope at an angle and chased some caribou. For a time the caribou did not run, so the black male was well within 250 yards before they began to flee. He galloped hard up a low ridge and down into a shallow ravine where he captured a calf after following it in a small half circle. In about 10 minutes the black male came out in the open and howled, whereupon the three wolves on the point started toward him. The black male trotted toward the den, turning aside on the way to follow the fresh tracks of a cow and calf for several yards. The black male arrived at the den at 6:20 p. m., 1 hour and 40 minutes after leaving it. He disappeared in the den for a few minutes. Soon the other three wolves returned and the gray female immediately went into the den, while the two gray males walked up above to lie down. The last three wolves arriving had not gone to the kill but had come directly to the den.

The first part of the hunt seemed to follow a system of herding the caribou, but after the wolves assembled on the point three of them took no further part in the hunt.

Three Male Wolves Seek Calves.—Preceding the departure for this hunt there had been much tail wagging and some howling, which has been described in the wolf chapter beginning on p. 32. After the ceremonies, at 7:30 p. m., the three males trotted across the bar westward parallel to the highway. The two females remained behind, lying a few feet apart near the den and watching the departing hunters. The males were out for the regular night hunt. All day caribou had been in the vicinity of the den, but the resting wolves did not molest them.

Soon after their departure, caribou on the flats ran off in various directions, showing that they had seen the hunters. The wolves kept trotting southwestward. The black male, ahead and to the right, soon passed out of my sight behind a ridge. The black-mantled male was far out on the bar, and Grandpa was out of sight near the black male. The wolves crossed the neck of tundra between two forks of the East Fork River. In the meantime I hurriedly returned to the road and drove westward in my car, stopping on Polychrome Pass high above the rolling tundra over which the wolves were traveling.

Small bands of caribou were scattered over the tundra below me. Now the black male was far ahead of his two companions. As usual he seemed to be doing most of the hunting. He approached two or three bands in his course and watched them while they ran away. In these bands there happened to be no calves so I wondered if the wolf was looking over each band to see if calves were present. The two grays caught up with the black male, and part of the time the large black-mantled one was in the lead, trotting gaily and briskly with tail waving. Once he dashed at a band, then stopped to watch. The scattered caribou came together in a bunch and ran off. There were no calves. Once the black male galloped hard after a herd but stopped to watch when he was near to it. As the wolves continued traveling the mantled male lingered far behind and from a knoll in the tundra raised his muzzle and howled. He was answered by the deep, hoarse howl of one of the wolves in the lead. After traveling 5 miles they again were together and as yet had made no serious effort to kill caribou. There were many calves in the country, but the small bands containing 15 or 20 caribou which the wolves had encountered along the way happened not to have any. It appeared that the wolves were searching for calves. At 10 p. m. the wolves crossed the road and went out of sight behind a ridge.

Some of the bands that ran from the wolves went off to one side only a few hundred yards. Others which went straight ahead in the course taken by the wolves ran as much as a mile. Some bands fled because they saw others run, and on a few occasions took a course nearer the wolves.

The Black-Mantled Male Feeds Alone.—On June 4, 1940, at 5:45 p. m., I saw the black-mantled male howling as I was going to the den. He was lying on a knoll a mile from the den. In order not to disturb the wolves I retraced my steps. For 5 minutes after I reached the road the wolf continued howling at short intervals and then he trotted briskly toward Sable Mountain. When I arrived at a point where I could get a view of the slope, I saw about 250 caribou, including calves, running hard. Then I noticed the wolf feeding on something, probably a calf caribou. Whether he had just made a kill or had returned to an old kill I do not know but I suspect that it was an old kill. He fed about 10 minutes, then lay down beside the carcass and stretched out on his side. At intervals of 10 or 15 minutes he raised his head for a look around. While the wolf was lying there, small bands of caribou passed near him. One band of 10 adults and 3 calves passed within 50 yards of him. After these had passed he looked up, then galloped easily after them for a hundred yards, stopped, and after watching them a few moments, slowly returned to his resting spot. The cows and calves fled full speed along the base of the mountain, a calf leading the flight. At 9 o'clock the wolf trotted slowly westward.

The Two Gray Males Chase Caribou.—In the dim twilight of June 13, 1940, south of Polychrome Pass, two wolves which appeared to be the black-mantled male and Grandpa were harrassing some bears which probably had raided their kill. After a half hour the two wolves trotted westward and from above approached a herd of about 200 caribou which included many calves. Both wolves galloped hard toward the caribou, which angled up a slope. After a few hundred yards of running, the rear wolf stopped, and then chased a lone adult caribou which was standing nearby. This caribou was chased for 200 yards and then the wolf started up the long slope toward the herd its companion was chasing. Near the main Alaska Range where the chase led, the shadows were so deep I could not see all that happened. But after the herd had gone almost up to the rugged slopes it had turned westward to a broad flat between two ridges. A little later the wolves were chasing the herd up this relatively level flat to near the head of the valley but then the animals were again lost in the deep shadows and I could not see if a kill was made. A half hour later the two wolves were back harassing the bears. The early return of the wolves suggested that they had not been successful, but in any event the caribou had given the wolves a long chase.

A Cow and Calf Hurry Away From the Wolves.—Usually the caribou did not run far from a wolf unless pursued, but on June 16, 1940, a cow and calf were seen galloping across the east side of Sable Pass. Evidently they had winded four wolves which were approaching. The caribou traveled a mile and a half or more while we watched and, still hurrying, disappeared behind some hills. Later the four wolves appeared but were not on the trail of the cow and calf.

To hunt, the wolves had gone to Teklanika Forks, 10 miles or more from the den, and yet during the day at least 400 caribou had been feeding a mile or two west of the wolves, and at least two bands with calves had passed within a quarter of a mile of them. Wolves seem to enjoy traveling and probably have favorite hunting grounds.

Black Female Goes on a Short Lone Hunt.—On June 17, 1940, only the two females were seen at the den. Grandpa was seen at Teklanika Forks 10 miles away and perhaps the other two males were also spending the day there. The black female seemed restless all day; perhaps she was hungry. At 5:30 p. m., as it commenced to rain, she trotted to the den, then over to the gray female lying 50 yards away, and, after stopping with her a moment, trotted across the river bar. In about 5 minutes she appeared south of me, about a mile from the den, chasing a large band of caribou containing many calves. Some of the caribou ran off to one side and soon began to feed. A calf brought up the rear of a group she was chasing. When it appeared that the wolf might overtake the calf, most of the band and the rear calf veered upward to the left and seemed to increase their speed. The wolf singled out another calf which was running straight ahead with four or five adults, but in a moment the chase went over the ridge. Then it commenced to rain so hard that the visibility became too low to see anything. It seemed to me that the wolf might be successful.

Caribou Escape After Short Run.—On June 19, 1940, the five adult wolves were observed near the den from 8:30 a. m. until 6:10 p. m. A half mile north of the den at 11 a. m. one of the black wolves chased a band of 35 cows and calves for about 400 yards and then gave up without catching any calves. During the day five bands of cows with calves, averaging about 100 animals in a band, passed within a third of a mile of the den without being molested.

A Maneuver by Two Wolves.—On June 22, 1940, at 8:35 p. m., the black-mantled male and the black male followed the river bar southward from the den. About 3 miles away 200 or 300 caribou were feeding on a grass-covered flat. For about a mile the two wolves trotted together; then the gray one fell far behind. He moved along the east bank while the black one trotted briskly diagonally across the river bar toward the caribou. When about 200 yards from them he watched for about a minute as though to size up the situation, then started galloping forward. He ran in such a way as to drive all the caribou off the grass-covered flat toward the gravel bar. He did not try to catch any of them but was definitely herding the scattered animals. When he had run the length of the scattered herd and had the caribou all galloping out on the bar he swung around the front end of the herd and then came back chasing them all before him. As the wolf caught up with a band it would veer off to one side. Then he continued straight ahead to the next little band which in turn would veer off to one side. Finally he stopped, sauntered over to the bank, wandered around as though investigating the area, then trotted across the bar in the general direction of the den. He went into some willows where he probably lay down for I saw him no more. The caribou moved on westward along their migration route, feeding as they went, behaving as though they had completely forgotten the chase.

The black-mantled male wolf in this hunt lingered on the other side of the bar. Some of the caribou which had been driven out on the bar had drifted over near him and he had chased a band up in the tundra. They ran far to the east, but the shadows were so deep that I could not follow the hunt closely enough to learn whether any calves were killed. I was able to see the running caribou, but caught only an occasional fleeting glimpse of the wolf.

I do not know whether the hunt had followed a general pattern of cooperative maneuvering but it might be so interpreted. In this case there was no great advantage gained by the wolves but under different conditions the maneuvers could be advantageous to them. If the black wolf had chased the caribou toward the gray wolf far enough to tire the caribou somewhat then the gray wolf could have taken up the chase fresh.

A Long Chose.—On June 23, 1940, at 9:30 a. m. I saw 250 or more cows and calves running hard, a mile or more east of Toklat River. A wolf, apparently the black male of the band, was chasing them. The wolf chased one group after another, so that he finally had the various groups running in different directions. Although galloping hard he did not bear down on any herd. It looked as though he were testing the groups, looking for a specially vulnerable calf. After considerable chasing, the wolf ran after four adults and one calf, driving them off by themselves. The calf broke off to one side and kept veering as though trying to return to the herd, and in so doing lost ground, for the wolf could then cut corners. When the wolf was apparently about 20 yards behind the calf, it was unable to reduce the gap for some time, but when the calf began to zigzag it lost ground. The wolf gradually reduced the distance to a few yards, but still the chase continued for another 200 yards or so. For a time I thought the calf might escape, so well was it holding up. But the wolf finally closed in, and the calf went down. While the wolf stood over the calf, apparently biting it, it jumped up suddenly and ran for 75 yards before it was again overtaken. A few minutes after disposing of the calf the wolf trotted a short distance toward the herd, then returned to his prey. The caribou herd continued on its way westward.

Caribou Undisturbed By Wolf Howling.—On June 25, 1940, at about 5 p. m., more than 200 cows and calves came out on the bars above the East Fork wolf den. They were strung out in a long straggly line, feeding as they moved. A wolf howled from a short distance above the caribou and soon its howls were answered by two or three wolves at the den. Although the caribou were between the lone wolf and those at the den, they continued feeding. I could not see that any of them heeded the howling. About this time a heavy rain obliterated the view, and it continued raining all evening so no further observations could be made.

Three Calves Killed By Wolves.—When the calves are only a few days old the wolves can kill them with little effort. On May 29, 1941, two calves, probably 2 or 3 days old, were found dead, 25 yards apart, between Sanctuary and Savage Rivers, where hundreds of calves were being born. Birds had fed a little on each. Bloodshot wounds on neck and back were such as to make it plain that the calves had been killed by wolves. Some neck vertebrae of one were crushed. Very likely the two calves had been killed about the same time. Less than a half mile from these two carcasses I saw a lone cow smelling of a calf. She walked away a few steps and then returned to smell again. Then she moved off 200 yards to feed. I walked to the calf and found that it was dead. On skinning it, I found tooth marks around the head and back, which apparently had been made by a wolf. The calf was only a day or two old. The three calves had been killed within the preceding 24 hours.

The Black Male Easily Captures a Calf.—On June 29, 1941, at about 3 p. m., my attention was attracted by a band of about 400 caribou running over the rolling tundra a mile west of the wolf den. The black male wolf first ran toward one end of the band so as to chase the caribou forward. The herd broke up into groups of 50 or 60, and the wolf dashed along in the middle, and I could not be sure of the status of the chase. Then the wolf started after 50 cows and calves. There was a chase of about a half mile, and the wolf kept closing in upon the herd. Once he stumbled as he galloped, and rolled completely over. But he was quickly on his feet, and little time was lost. Then a calf dropped behind the others. This seemed to encourage the wolf to put on added speed, and in less than a quarter of a mile he overtook the calf, knocking it over as he closed in. The wolf was hungry and fed for about half an hour. This calf was captured more readily than usual.

Crippled Wolf Hunting Caribou Calves.—Foreman Brown of the Alaska Road Commission camp told me that on June 29, 1941, at Stony Creek, he had seen a gray wolf with a crippled hind leg chasing calves with no success. After chasing some bands without catching any calves the wolf moved off and waited for the herds to approach. But while the caribou were still some distance away it jumped up and gave chase. It had good speed for a short distance but quickly tired and fell behind. It caught no calves while Mr. Brown was watching.

A Lone Calf Captured.—About 10 a. m., July 19, I saw the black female wolf on the East Fork bar circling back and forth with her nose to the gravel. She made a sweep of 100 yards downstream, then returned up stream, and finally waded the river. After crossing the stream her ears were cocked forward and she started on an easy lope up the creek, apparently focused on a definite point. I looked ahead of her and saw a caribou calf lying on the bar beside the creek, watching the wolf. When the wolf was about 150 yards away the calf jumped up and galloped upstream. It crossed and recrossed the creek a dozen times, and every time the wolf followed. The calf did not seem to be as speedy as much younger ones had been, for the wolf was running rather easily and gaining. A full half mile from the start the calf, now hard pressed, wallowed in a deep part of the stream and on the next leap stumbled and fell. In a jump or two the wolf caught up and pulled the struggling calf, which once gained its feet for a moment, across the deep part of the stream to the shore where it was quickly killed. The main herds had passed westward some time before, so this calf was a straggler and may therefore have been a weakling. Upon examining the gravel where the wolf had been sniffing around in circles, I found fresh calf tracks. I believe the wolf had not seen the calf before I arrived because a short while before she had been observed 3 miles up the road.

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