Species Who've Learned to Rely on Wolves L. David Mech, in The Wolves of Isle Royale, described the “peculiar relationship” between a flock of ravens and a large wolf pack, and wrote that wolves and ravens “often seem to play together.”
So as questioned by The Wolf Preservation Blog...
What do Ravens and Wolves have in common you say? The following information comes from “The Wolf Almanac,” a celebration of wolves and their world, 1995/1998 by Robert Busch. He explains the relationship and proves once again one of the many contributions wolves give to the environment.
"One of the most fascinating relationships between animals is the one that seems to exist between wolves and ravens. The raven, scavenger of food of all types, will often follow wolf packs in hopes of morsels of food. And wolves have learned to watch for circling ravens as a sign of of possible food below. But there seems to be more than just a symbiosis based on food between the two species; many observations have been made that can only be described as a friendship between the big predator and the wily bird.
In Arctic Wild, Lois Crisler states her belief that “ravens and wolves just like eachother’s company.” She described one play session between the two species, with the raven diving at the wolves and jumping around just out of reach. “He played this raven tag for ten minutes at a time. If the wolves ever tired of it, he sat squawking till they came over to him again.”
Picture this... a freshly killed elk is surrounded by ravens and magpies waiting for a wolf to finish its meal. The remains of animals killed by wolves is so important to the scavenger community that they arrive on the scene immediately after a kill is made.
No comments:
Post a Comment