Canidae-++Conway

==== (Canis lupus baileyi) ====



﻿ Mexican Wolf Classifacation:
﻿ Kingdom: Animalia﻿﻿ ﻿ Phylum: Chordata  ﻿ Subphylum: Vertebrata  ﻿ Class: Mammalia  ﻿ Order: Carnivora Suborder: Caniformia Family: Canidae ﻿ Genus: Canis  <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">﻿ Species: Canis lupus

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">﻿ Subspecies: Canis lupus baileyi
==<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"> == <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Mexican Wolves are members of the family named Canidae. This family contains thirty-four species that are distributed all over the world and are found on every continent except Antarctica. Fossil records of the Canidae date back to the Oligocene and the Miocene, making them one of the oldest extant groups of carnivores. This family is very large and consists of wolves, foxes, jackals, coyotes, domestic dog, and much more.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Characteristics:
<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">· Members of the canidae family either eat meat only (carnivores) or eat both plants and meat (omnivores). · Canidae animals come from two groups- “Dog Like” and “Wolf Like”. · All members of the Canidae family have four legs. · Canidae family members have excellent hearing and smell.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;"><span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">﻿ Movement-
<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Mexican wolves have four paws with foot pads on the bottom. When they run, the foot pads expand to increase stability. Normally, wolf packs travel 8-10 hours a day and can run up to 35 mph for short distances when in a hurry.<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Metabolism-
<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">With 42 teeth, they can produce up to 1,500 lbs. of pressure p/square inch. They eat ungulates (hoofed mammals) and small mammals. Some examples are deer, elk, rabbits, and mice. Wolves hunt with packs and are known to sense the weaker of the prey. Because of this, wolves help the ecosystem very much by weeding out the weaker animals so that species can become stronger. They also steal the prey of other predators and/or scavenge carrion.



<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Reproduction-
<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Wolf gestation is 63 days and wolves can have 4-7 pups at a time. Mating season is Mid February through Mid March. At an average, wolf pups weigh about a pound when born. They are also blind, deaf, and rely on their mother for warmth.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 130%; line-height: 0px; overflow: hidden;">
<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 110%;">Growth is rapid and by the age of 6 months, pups are almost as big as the adult wolves. Mexican wolves are the smallest of all subspecies of the gray wolf. The Lobo (Mexican Wolf) is 26- 32 in. at the shoulder in height and 4.5-5.5 feet from nose to tip of tail. Mexican Wolves usually weigh in at about 60-80 lbs. Males are larger than females.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Difference between Males and Females-
<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Males are about 20% larger than the female wolves.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Response to Stimuli (Adaptations)-
<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Wolves have a thick double layer of fur to protect them. They also have thick foot pads. This helps when running or trotting over rocky terrain. Also, wolves have excellent hearing and smell. They can smell things from about 1.75 miles away in favorable conditions and hear things from about 6 miles away in the forest and 10 miles away in the open.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Appearance-
<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Mexican wolves are the smallest in size of all the subspecies of gray wolves. They are grey with light brown fur on their back (excellent camouflage) and have sleek bodies and long legs (useful when running).

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Endangered!
<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">The Mexican gray wolf is the most endangered mammal in North America and the most endangered subspecies of gray wolf in the world 33 years after receiving protection from the Endangered Species Act. Currently, there are about 300 Mexican wolves in 49 captive facilities. In the wild, there are currently 42 free ranging wolves in the Apache and Gila National Forest in Arizona and New Mexico. In March 1998, 35 Mexican wolves in six packs were released in Apache National Forest in Arizona.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Sources! (click on pictures for picture source)
 * 1) <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Mexicanwolves.org
 * 2) <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Wolf.org
 * 3) <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Wikispecies (from Wikipedia)
 * 4) <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">californiawolfcenter.org
 * 5) <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">cincinnatizoo.org
 * 6) <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">defenders.org
 * 7) <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">caninest.com
 * 8) <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif; line-height: 0px; overflow: hidden;">
 * 9) <span style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="background: white; font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;"> []  <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 80%; line-height: 0px; overflow: hidden;">