The food habits and social organization of
Vancouver Island wolves (Canis lupus crassodon Hall) inhabiting
an area on Northeastern Vancouver Island were studied
from January, 1977 through January, 1979. During this
period, two adjacent packs were studied in detail between
March and November, 1978.
Three members of the Upper Adam pack, an adult
male, adult female and yearling female, were captured,
fitted with radio-transmitters and subsequently radio-tracked
for five months (April to August, 1978). The same
procedures were carried out on the adult male and female
of the Lower Adam pack, who were radio-tracked for eight
and five months respectively (April to November; April to
August). A lone male was captured and tracked for eight
months (November, 1978 to June, 1979).
Black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus columbianus)
were the major prey in the diet of both packs,
while Roosevelt elk (Cervus elaphus roosevelti) and
beaver (Castor canadensis leucodontus) were utilized as
secondary food sources. Seasonal variation in the diet
of the wolves was apparent, with deer fawns and elk
calves constituting the bulk of the summer (June 1 to
August 31) diet. Beaver were taken primarily during the
winter months.
Individual packs showed different foraging patterns.
The lower pack depended less upon adult elk during the
winter and more upon ungulate young during the summer,
while the Upper pack utilized relatively more adult elk
during the winter with more emphasis on adult deer as
opposed to ungulate young during the summer.
The Upper pack consisted of ten individuals, two
adult males, one adult female, one yearling femaling, two
unknown, and four pups. The radio-collared members inhabited
a 64 km2 home range. Wolf density within their
home range was one per 6.4 km2.
The Lower pack consisted of five individuals
including one adult male, one adult female, and three
pups which ranged throughout a 75 km2 area. Density
within this area was one wolf per 15 km2.
Den sites were situated within pristine coniferous
timber where hollow logs, tree bases and root systems were
utilized for denning purposes. Both packs occupied densites
from late April until mid-July. During the post-denning
period rendezvous sites were frequented, situated in open
meadows bordering on timber stands or river side areas.
Both types of sites were generally typified by a water
source nearby, structural suitability giving a view of the
surrounding area, activity and resting areas, and several
well used trails.
Seasonal shifts in the use of core areas of home
ranges were apparent for both packs, and den and rendezous
sites were spatio-temporally distributed at significant
distances from adjacent pack sites. / Land and Food Systems, Faculty of / Graduate
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UBC/oai:circle.library.ubc.ca:2429/41956 |
| Date | January 1979 |
| Creators | Scott, Barbara Mary Victoria |
| Publisher | University of British Columbia |
| Source Sets | University of British Columbia |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, Thesis/Dissertation |
| Rights | For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use. |
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