Gray Wolf

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Gray Wolf

Getting lost in the wilderness can be a scary experience, after all, it can be very easy to end up in life threatening situations, such as being stalked by wild animals, such as wolves. This is the gist behind the movie, The Grey, released in 2012. The movie stars Liam Neeson, who protects Alaskan oil workers from wolves. As the workers head home for a two-week vacation, their plane dives into a vicious show storm which causes it to crash somewhere in Alaska’s wilderness. Here, the eight surviving oil workers need to survive the wild and find a way back to civilization. They encounter many obstacles, such as finding food and shelter, and fighting off a pack of gray wolves.

Although gray wolves are commonly portrayed as man-eaters in movies, these wild animals are actually shy of people, preferring to escape instead of engaging men. These dogs are commonly found in the forest of Eurasia, North America and North Africa. They are the largest amongst all species of wolves and once faced near extinction because of over poaching. They are prized for their fur, which is used to make clothing in cold areas. The gray wolf now occupies a small portion of their former dwelling grounds because of man encroachment and widespread destruction of their natural habitat.

Many of our domestic dog breeds originated from the gray wolf. These big canines communicate using body posture, barks, growls and their famous howls, which can be heard from many miles away. Like all types of wolves, the gray wolf has a keen sense of smell and hearing, helping them track down their prey’s scent even if it has departed for many days. Many people are afraid of these wild animals, but with proper education, wolves and humans can live together in peace.

Gray Wolf Pictures