الذئب Wolf

يصل طول الذئب بين 80 و 115 سنتم.
يشاهد ليلاً ولكنه يصطاد في بعض الأحيان نهاراً. يعتبر الذئب مهدداً بخطر الإنقراض على المستوى العالمي ولكنه مهدد أكثر في لبنان بسبب قتله من دون مبرر. يتغذى على الخنازير البرية الصغيرة والأرانب والماشية والطيور، وويتنقل في الليلة الواحدة لمسافة 40 الى 70 كلم بحثاً عن الطعام.

Wolf (Canis Lupus pallipes)
Status: The wolf is extremely rare in Lebanon, with the total population being only a handful of individuals.
Description: Similar in appearance to the Jackal but generally much larger (head and body measure approximately 89 cm), the wolf resembles a large German Shepherd dog, but with a thicker head and broader neck. A wolf’s size and color of fur can vary significantly by region. They have relatively short tails and long ears that stand upright.
Habitat: During the daytime, these canines often retreat to caves, thickets, reed beds, or their burrows. They have a very large home range (up to 1000 km square) and can adapt to a variety of habitats, but generally prefer open areas with cover nearby.
Habits: Wolves are mostly nocturnal animals. They hunt individually, in pairs, or in packs depending upon available prey. In the Middle East, wolves tend to hunt individually or in pairs because the size of their prey is usually not larger than a gazelle. They are opportunistic feeders, and their food includes a variety of vertebrates including livestock, foxes and dogs. They will eat fruit or vegetable matter if nothing else is available, and have even been known to feed at garbage dumps. Mating occurs in the spring; gestation is around 63 days. Young are raised in a den and litter size ranges from three to seven.
Distribution: Wolves are widely distributed but rare throughout the northern hemisphere from North America to Japan. They are also widely distributed but very rare in the Middle East.