Timber wolf: The grey wolf that sings its family through the forest

The timber wolf is the grey wolf of North American forests and the forest predator with the strongest sense of family. They live as family units and keep in touch across vast forests with their howls. Let's meet this "singer" of the woods.

Its body

A timber wolf measures about 1.2 to 2 metres, with a lean body and strong limbs built for long runs. It has keen smell and hearing, able to track prey and detect companions far away. Its coat ranges from grey and white to black, and its thick fur sees it through cold winters.

Its life and its "family"

A wolf pack is really a close family, usually made up of a parent pair and their children. When hunting, they cooperate, running down deer and moose; when raising pups, the whole family pitches in. They howl to keep in touch and gather the team — a single howl carries for kilometres through the trees. This family-based social structure is the key to a pack's success.

Its relationship with us

You may not realise: every pet dog, from Chihuahua to Great Dane, descends from the grey wolf. When wolves returned to Yellowstone National Park in 1995, willows grew back along the rivers, and beavers, birds and small animals increased with them, bringing the whole valley's web of life back to life. It is a classic example of how important a top predator can be.

A note for grown-ups

You could howl along with a child — "awooo!" — then ask why wolves do it. The answer is to "phone home" and gather the family. Helping a child understand that wolves are not the villains of fairy tales but animals that value family builds a fairer, kinder view of nature.