Introductory
WILDLIFE SPECIES: Canis lupus | Wolf 



ABBREVIATION : 
CALU

COMMON NAMES : 
   gray wolf
   timber wolf
   eastern timber wolf
   Rocky Mountain wolf
   lobo
   buffalo wolf
   brown wolf


TAXONOMY : 
There are 32 subspecies of gray wolf worldwide; 24 of these occur in North
America.  They are differentiated by size, weight, color, cranial
measurements, and geographic location [16,22,34].  However, these
characteristics vary within each subspecies.  Also their ranges can
overlap and interbreeding occurs.  Mech [22] stated that too many
subspecies have been identified, and that some were distinguished from a
small, insignificant sample size.  All 24 North American subspecies are
listed below.  Those thought to be extinct are marked with an asterisk.

Canis lupus ssp. irremotus
C.l. ssp. columbianus	Northern Rocky Mountain wolf
C.l. ssp. occidentalis	British Columbia wolf
C.l. ssp. lycaon
C.l. ssp. nubilus*	plains wolf
C.l. ssp. alces
C.l. ssp. pambasileus	northern timber wolf
C.l. ssp. tundrarum		barren ground or arctic wolf
C.l. ssp. hudsonicus	Hudson Bay wolf
C.l. ssp. arctos	American arctic or arctic tundra wolf
C.l. ssp. orion		Greenland wolf
C.l. ssp. labradorius	Labrador wolf
C.l. ssp. beothucus*	Newfoundland wolf
C.l. ssp. ligoni	Alexander Archipelago wolf
C.l. ssp. fuscus*	Cascade wolf
C.l. ssp. crassodon
C.l. ssp. youngi*	Southern Rocky Mountain wolf
C.l. ssp. mogollonensis*	Mogollon Mountain wolf
C.l. ssp. monstrabilis*	Texas gray wolf
C.l. ssp. baileyi	Mexican gray wolf
C.l. ssp. bernardi	Banks Island tundra wolf
C.l. ssp. mackenzii
C.l. ssp. manningi
C.l. ssp. griseoalbus	Saskatchewan timber wolf


ORDER : 
Carnivora

CLASS : 
Mammal

FEDERAL LEGAL STATUS : 
Endangered

OTHER STATUS : 
The gray wolf is threatened in Minnesota [6].  Alaskan and Canadian gray wolf
populations are considered viable [24].  The wolf is rare in Michigan's
Upper Peninsula [28].  In Montana the gray wolf is recolonizing areas around
Glacier and Yellowstone National Parks.  It has also been seen
denning in isolated areas of northern Washington [37] and is listed as
endangered in that state [38]. 


COMPILED BY AND DATE : 
S. A. Snyder, April 1991


LAST REVISED BY AND DATE : 
NO-ENTRY


AUTHORSHIP AND CITATION : 
Snyder, S. A. 1991. Canis lupus. In: Remainder of Citation

Related categories for Wildlife Species: Canis lupus | Wolf