Wolf Packs Size Is Relative to Prey

New research shows Yellowstone wolves pick their prey based on pack size

The saying “safety in numbers” is typically a phrase associated with animals considered prey.

The idea being: More eyes and ears in a group help alert wildlife to approaching predators. And the more animals in a group, the less likely a specific individual will fall during the hunt.

As it turns out, the saying means something very different when it comes to predators and might be changed to “success in numbers,” particularly when applied to the wolves and bison of Yellowstone National Park.

In a research project published on the the peer-reviewed Public Library of Science website Tuesday, Utah State University’s Department of Wildland Resources and Ecology Center researchers found wolf hunting behavior changes based on pack numbers and terrain.

Elk are the preferred prey of wolves in Yellowstone. And USU wildland resources assistant professor Dan MacNulty says the reintroduced predators will go out of their way to find their favorite food and it may not be a matter of taste, but rather their own safety.

But when a pack of wolves is large enough and the conditions are right, the canines will turn their attention to bison.

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