The Majestic Wolf Trivia Quiz

Answer: The omega wolf

Wolf packs are led by an alpha male and his mate, the alpha female. Wolves will usually mate for life.

Answer: False

Although the Alpha female is the only one who's allowed to bear pups, the whole pack helps to look after them. All of the adult females produce milk so they can suckle the pups, while the males vie for babysitting roles and protect the den from predators such as brown bears.

Answer: All of these.

Howling is the most iconic symbol of the grey wolf and of wilderness in general, capable of sending a shiver down anyone's spine. Did you know that when several wolves are howling together, they all howl at different pitches? If you replicate the pitch of a wolf's howl, it will quickly switch so that no two pitches are ever alike.

It is thought that this is to enable rival packs to hear exactly how many wolves there are howling.

Answer: Broad paws to spread their weight evenly.

A full-grown wolf's paw is about the size of a large man's fist.

Answer: Red fox

While the grizzly bear is the only animal on this list that has much chance of winning a fight against a pack of adult wolves, coyotes and bald eagles will try sneaking up to the feast in the hope that the wolves are too full to chase them away. Little red foxes, however, usually avoid taking the risk.

Answer: Ravens and crows

Ravens and crows often follow wolf packs around in the hope of scavenging a meal from their leftovers, but the arrangement seems to be beneficial to the wolves as well. If the birds find an animal corpse somewhere, they will alert the wolves and lead them to it.

The wolves get a meal and so do the birds, who would never have been able to get through the tough hide to eat the flesh if it weren't for the wolves' sharp teeth.

Answer: False

Although some people are great fans of the wolf/dog mix, it is widely accepted that they are far from the ideal pet and certainly not as well suited for domestic life as an ordinary dog. They tend to be more difficult to train and handle than normal dogs because they do not have the desire to please humans which has been bred into all domestic dogs, and many experts agree that they cannot be trusted in terms of temperament (though their fans would protest otherwise).

Answer: Threatening to bite.

Often, a stern glare from a dominant wolf is all that is needed to make a subordinate wolf back down. Any fights that occur are usually between two subordinate wolves, where there isn't a big difference in rank to subdue them. Although wolf fights may look and sound nasty, the animals rarely hurt each other.

Answer: True

Large ungulates such as moose are always on the move, migrating with the season in search of food, so the wolves which prey on them have to keep moving too without settling in one fixed territory. Conversely, smaller animals such as rodents tend to stay in the same place, so the wolves which eat them can stay in one place too, which they spend a lot of time marking out and defending against rival packs and intruders.

Answer: Yes

Although they are quite at home in water and are strong swimmers, wolves generally find it harder to keep up with moose in water. Moose have the advantage of long legs for wading, and are also surprisingly good swimmers (they're also very adept at diving). Also in very cold weather, wolves may decide that following their prey into a river isn't worth the risk of freezing to death in the icy water.