Gray Wolf

Hello from the pack! My name is Gray Wolf, and I have a beautiful, thick coat of fur that keeps me warm. My fur can be many shades, from gray and white to even solid black. I don't live by myself. I live with my family, which is called a pack. We are a team, and we do everything together, from playing to finding our next meal. One of my favorite things to do is talk to my pack. We don't use words like you do. Instead, we lift our heads to the sky and let out a big howl! Awoooo! Our howls travel for miles and are our special way of saying 'hello' to each other or letting other wolves know, 'This is our home, please stay away!'. It’s how we keep our family safe and together.

A day in my paws is always busy and full of adventure. My pack works together to hunt for our food, which is usually big animals like deer and elk. We have very strong legs that help us run for a long, long time without getting tired. This is how we can travel across our big territory to find food and make sure our home is safe. One of the most important jobs we have is taking care of the little ones. The new pups in our pack are so playful! The whole pack helps look after them. We bring them food and teach them all the things they need to know, like how to play nicely and, one day, how to become great hunters just like us. It's a big job, but we love our pups and want them to grow up strong.

My story wasn't always so happy. A long time ago, people didn't understand us very well, and they became scared of us. Because of this, there weren't many of us left in some of the beautiful places we used to call home. But then, something wonderful happened. People started to learn that we were an important part of nature. They realized that we had a special job to do. I’ll never forget the exciting year of 1995. That year, some of my wolf relatives were brought back to a wonderful, wild place called Yellowstone National Park. They were brought there to help make the forest healthy and strong again, just by being themselves.

My important job is to help keep nature in balance. By hunting animals like deer and elk, my pack and I make sure there aren't too many of them in one place. When there are too many, they eat all the small trees and green plants, which isn't good for the forest. When we keep the number of deer and elk just right, the fields and forests can grow lush and green. This helps all the other plants and animals that live there, too. My home is a better and healthier place for everyone because of the work my pack does. We all have a part to play in keeping the wild wonderful.