Home >> Science & Nature >> Animals & Science

The Habitat of Gray Wolves

Gray wolves once roamed freely across North America. By the 1930s though, wolves were killed off in most areas. Although called gray wolves, these wolves can range in color from black to all white. Gray wolves are the largest member of the canine family and usually live in packs of four to seven animals. Wolves are very social animals and develop close social bonds. Their habitat is very diverse and they can survive in a variety of conditions.

Environment
- Gray wolves are able to survive in a variety of habitats because of their adaptable nature. They live in the tundra, woodlands, forests, grasslands, and even the desert. In the past, the gray wolf inhabited an assortment of biomes in North America such as boreal forest, temperate deciduous forest, and temperate grassland. Up until May of 2011, gray wolves were on the endangered species list. The population of the gray wolf dwindled because of hunting and habitat loss.
United States
- Although gray wolves used to live throughout the United States, they are currently only found in select areas of the country. The majority of gray wolves in the United States live in Alaska. Between 7,000 and 11,000 gray wolves call Alaska home. Gray wolves are also found in Idaho, the upper peninsula of Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. There are more than 5,000 gray wolves living in these states. Gray wolves were almost extinct but have been able to expand their population rapidly in the U.S.
Yellowstone National Park
- Gray wolves were recently reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park as part of a controversial program. Several dozen gray wolves were captured in Canada and transported to Yellowstone in 1995. The gray wolves in Yellowstone have been very successful and there are now various packs living in the park. The species reproduced rapidly enabling them to expand quickly and form new packs. According to the U.S. National Park Service, there were at least 96 gray wolves living in 14 packs in Yellowstone at the end of 2009.
International Wolves
- There are gray wolves found in other parts of the world. The North American gray wolf lives in Canada. Some packs of gray wolves in the northern Rockies travel into Canada. There are also gray wolves found in parts of Europe and Asia. It is believed that the Eurasia gray wolf migrated to North America 300,000 to 400,000 years ago by crossing the Bering land bridge. Today, gray wolves can be found in Italy, Spain, France, Poland, Germany, Finland, Norway, Sweden, and Russia. The Mexican gray wolf, a subspecies of the gray wolf, was reintroduced into the American Southwest in 1998, and cooperation between the U.S. and Mexico, as well as with state and county governments and the White Mountain Apache Tribe, has resulted in a population of 50 wolves living in the wild in Arizona and New Mexico in 2010.

Animals & Science