Index

Phylogeny

• Range Maps

  North America	Great Smokies

• Great Smoky Mountains National Park: The first mention of the status of wolves in this area came in 1844 when a letter to a member of the House of Representatives (Lanman, 1849) stated that sheep were destroyed by wolves "which have not yet been entirely eliminated."

  The following account of the history of the gray wolf is taken from Linzey and Linzey (1968): "The gray wolf once occurred in the Great Smoky Mountains in fair numbers but became increasingly less common as more of the land was settled. Buckley (1859) reported that wolves were "troublesome" to the mountain farmers of North Carolina and Tennessee. In 1887, C.H. Merriam ( 1888) noted that wolves "still occur" in the Great Smokies. John Oliver, a former resident of the Park, remembered hearing wolves howling in Cades Cove when he was a boy (1880-90). A resident of Gatlinburg recalled seeing one of these animals that had been caught in a bear trap near the Sugarlands during the 1890's. He also heard two wolves howling near the area that was formerly Chimneys Campground. Brimley (1944) wrote that wolves were "apparently finally exterminated in or about 1890, up to which time they still occurred sparingly in the mountains." Hamnett and Thornton (1953) stated: "In the Mountain Region, wolves existed in the more remote sections until the late 1800's and possibly until the very early 1900's."

  "There have been occasional unconfirmed reports of wolves in the mountains after 1900. The Knoxville News-Sentinel (Brewer, 1964) printed a column indicating that wolves were seen on Mt. LeConte as late as 1925. Ganier (1928) speculated that a few might still be present in the "wilder mountainous sections." An animal that was reported to be a gray wolf was killed near Waynesville, Haywood County, North Carolina, Feburary 27, 1933. Official verification is lacking for all of these reports."

Index

Natural History

• Reproduction
  After a courtship that may last from days to months, wolves copulate during estrus, which occurs once per year and lasts 5-14 days. The receptive period may be as early as January in low latitudes or as late as April in high latitudes. During copulation the pair remains coupled for as long as 30 minutes, during which ejaculation occurs many times. Gestation lasts 63 days, and litters average six young. The young are born blind and helpless, usually in an underground burrow. The same den may be used year after year ( Mech, 1999).

  The female usually stays near the young for at least three weeks. During this time, the male and other pack members hunt and feed her and the pups. The pups' eyes open between 11 and 15 days of age, and they are weaned when 9 weeks old. Healthy pups join adults in their travels as early as October. In the wild, wolves do not breed until they are 2, 3, or 4 years of age. Both sexes may continue to breed through at least 10 years of age (Mech, 1999).

• Longevity
  In the wild, wolves can live to be about 16 years of age (Mech, 1999).

• Terrestrial Ecology
  The wolf is a social animal, usually living in packs of 5-10 members, although packs of up to 36 have been reported. Generally wolf packs contain a set of parents (the "alpha pair") and some of the offspring of their past 2-3 litters.

  Wolves are primarily predators on ungulates, beavers, and hares, although almost any species of animal may be eaten, including any type of domestic animal.

• Predators and Defense
  Humans are the only enemy of gray wolves.

• Parasites
  None recorded from the park.

• University of Michigan, Museum of Zoology
• eNature

Index

Acknowledgements

• Text
  • Dr. Donald W. Linzey, Wytheville Community College - wclinzd@wcc.vccs.edu
  • Christy Brecht, Wytheville Community College - wcbrecc@wcc.vccs.edu

• Photographs
  • Roger Barbour

• Map development
  • Richard Schulz, Great Smoky Mountains National Park - richard_schulz@nps.gov

• Web page design & coding
  • Denise Lim, University of Georgia, Athens
  • John Pickering, University of Georgia, Athens

• Brewer, C. 1964. Hike recalls tales of tall guide, panther wrestling. The Knoxville News-Sentinel. June 28.

• Brimley, C.S. 1944-46. The mammals of North Carolina. Eighteen installments in Carolina Tips. Carolina Biological Supply Co., Elon College, North Carolina.

• Buckley, S.B. 1859. Mountains of North Carolina and Tennessee. American Journal of Science and Arts, 2nd Series 27: 286-294.

• Ganier, A. F. 1928. The wild life of Tennessee. Journal of the Tennessee Academy of Science 3 (3): 10-22.

• Hamnett, W. L., and D. C. Thornton. 1953. Tar Heel Wildlife. North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, Raleigh, North Carolina.

• Lanman, C. 1849. Letters from the Alleghany Mountains. New York: George P. Putnam.

• Linzey, D. W. 1995a. Mammals of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Blacksburg, Virginia: The McDonald & Woodward Publishing Company, Inc.

• Linzey, D. W. 1995b. Mammals of Great Smoky Mountains National Park-1995 Update. Journal of the Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society 111(1):1-81.

• Linzey, D.W. 1998. The Mammals of Virginia. Blacksburg, Virginia: The McDonald and Woodward Publishing Company.

• Linzey, D. W. and A. V. Linzey. 1968. Mammals of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Journal of the Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society 84 (3): 384-414.

• Mech, L. D. 1999. Gray Wolf. Pages 141-143. In: D. E. Wilson, and S. Ruff (eds.). The Smithsonian Book of North American Mammals. Washington, D. C.: Smithsonian Institution Press.

• Mech, L. D. 1981. Canis lupus. Mammalian Species No. 37. American Society of Mammalogists.

• Merriam, C.H. 1888. Remarks on the fauna of the Great Smoky Mountains; with description of a new species of red-backed mouse (Evotomys Carolinensis). American Journal of Science. 3rd Series 36 (216): 458-460.

• Stupka, A. 1935-63. Nature Journal, Great Smoky Mountains National Park. 28 vols. (years) each with index. (Typewritten copy in files of Great Smoky Mountains National Park.)