Gray Wolf Canis lupus

A symbol of the wild, the gray wolf has been the center of much study and controversy. Their fur is gray, black and/or yellowish brown with reddish coloring, but can also be completely black. Compared to coyotes, gray wolves are bigger, have squarish instead of pointed muzzles, and have rounded, short ears instead of the pointed, long ears of a coyote. Wolves are social animals with 4 to 8 family members in a Minnesota pack. As predators at the top of the food chain, they eat mainly deer and moose, but also feed on beaver, snowshoe hare, and sometimes birds and small mammals. Wolves can go several days without eating. They can run up to 40 miles (64 km) without resting. The gray wolf has a sense of smell 100 times stronger than humans. After years of protection from hunting, wolf numbers have grown. Of the lower 48 states, the gray wolf population is highest in Minnesota. The Minnesota wolf population has increased enough to be removed from the federal endangered species list, another successful recovery effort.