penandpatience

WRITERS WORDS: “In a world of lions and tigers entertaining the masses, have you ever seen a wolf performing in a circus? – Akilnathan Logeswaran

APRIL 2020 MONTHLY MUSING

HOWL LIKE A WRITER WOLF

     My favorite wild animal is a wolf. My love for this wild creature is influenced by the many animal stories read as a child. I recall Jack London’s, “White Fang,” “Call of the Wild” and a great movie, “Dances with Wolves” starring Kevin Costner. Throughout the years I’ve continued to devour wolf articles and stories. Wolf pack behavior is familial in nature and the  reason why I find wolves lives so extraordinary.

The grey wolf (Canis lupus) is a large canine native to North America. They live in packs with the strongest male and female, called Alphas, the pack leaders. Only Alphas are allowed to mate. It’s amazing how these wild wolves utilize this inherent birth control assuring a proper pack size usually 6-8 in number. And there’s no “wolf divorce.”  Alphas mate for life. And once the pups are born, all pack members participate in raising them. What’s not to love?

I can’t ignore wolves are predatory carnivores with hearing twenty times greater than humans and hyper-sensitive noses 100 times greater (200 million scent cells versus fifty million scent cells) than humans. They can smell prey over a mile away. Wolves prefer larger prey (i.e. elk, deer) and the pack works as a team to bring down large prey, a goal many may not accomplish alone.  Each wolf has a specific role in bringing down supper and I’m impressed with wolves’ instincts in getting the job done. (Hmmm… Politicians could learn teamwork from these predators😊) Once dinner is served, wolves within the pack eat according to pecking order with alphas first. Eventually, as offspring reach sexual maturity and tire of eating table scraps, some wolves may leave to form their own pack.

Territorial, wolves sometimes traveling 50-1000 miles per day in search of food. They fight to protect their territories from invading packs, a major cause of their mortality. They are nocturnal and there is nothing more spine-tingling than a wolf howl in the dead of night.  Each wolf howl is distinct from others and howling can be a communication method to others within the pack. I muse. What will the future hold for the survival of these wild, howling species?

Unfortunately, in the early 1900’s wolves raided cattle ranches out Yellowstone way. Many were killed almost annihilating the species. The good news. Yellowstone National Park began a successful reintroduction of the grey wolf in 1995 that is ongoing and monitored. It is presently one of the few protective wolf havens in the United States. For me, and perhaps for many others, I’ve recently reviewed unfortunate news. President Trump and his Interior Administrative officials are proposing removal of the grey wolf from the endangered species list losing federal protection under the Endangered Species Act.

I ’m hopeful the grey wolf will continue to be protected and successfully integrated within our country’s appropriate wild areas. While I wrote this musing, I realized it’s time for me to write one of my short stories with the protagonist a “renegade” wolf.  Perhaps the Musing might inspire other authors to include the grey wolf in future projects — you might hear authors howling at the moon in support of this plight😊  If you are a writer interested in animal stories check out:  http://www.bark.com.

Write on! … Be well during this Corona Virus pandemic. To Your Good Health and Happy Easter Holiday to you and yours.

Note:  April is Autism Month. In honor of my wonderful grandson, Nicholas, and other autistic children, please “Light it Up Blue” this month