Wolves Can Swim for Miles Thanks to This Unique Feature

To many people, wolves may seem like little more than wild dogs that live in the wilderness, but they’re so much more than that. In fact, wolves are some of the most interesting animals on the planet, especially when it comes to the unique traits that make them expert hunters. For instance, did you know that they can smell, hear, and bite better than most other animals or that they have monogamous relationships? Check out this list of wolf facts to learn about all of that and more.

Wolves Mate for Life

First on our list of astonishing wolf facts is that once these animals find a mate, they stick with them for life, at least most of the time. While there are exceptions, wolves are monogamous. Typically, two wolves—an alpha male and a female—will mate and produce offspring. They will produce a litter of about six cubs.

Once the babies are born, the mother and father wolf will stay with them and lead the pack until the cubs are old enough to start their own pack. The couple will continue to be monogamous as the years go on. They may not always be seen together, but the same two wolves generally stay within 100 meters of each other and mate once a year.

Wolves are Much Larger Than You Think

To the untrained eye, a wolf may look like nothing more than a large dog, but there’s a reason why so many movies feature wolves as the villain. Many of them are huge and can appear a bit menacing. Gray wolves can measure as long as six feet from head to tail. Most males also measure about 30 inches tall at the shoulder. That’s taller than many of the largest dog breeds. In terms of weight, males can reach up to about 100 pounds, while females can reach up to 80 pounds.

All in all, wolves are the largest members of the expansive Canidae family, which also includes dingoes, coyotes, domestic dogs, and African hunting dogs. They’re so large that the footprint of many wolves is larger than a human hand.

Wolves Are Afraid of Humans

Yes, there are many movies and stories about the scary wolf, including the antagonist in Little Red Riding Hood. However, the fact is that these stories are mostly grounded in myth. In reality, wolves are very shy and mostly afraid of humans. Many wolves will go out of their way to avoid humans, roads, and buildings whenever possible. Even the stories about wolves eating pets are mostly false, though it does happen from time to time. One study conducted between 1900 and 2000 found that there were only 16 instances of a wild and healthy wolf biting a human.

Wolves Don’t Actually Howl at the Moon

Another reason why wolves are often seen as bad guys in movies is due to the many misconceptions that people believe about them. One of the most common myths is that wolves howl at the moon, but that’s not accurate. Yes, they may howl at night, but the moon just happens to be out at the same time.

With that said, wolves do howl a lot. In fact, it’s an important part of how they communicate. It’s how wolves communicate with other wolves that are far away. One wolf can hear another wolf from up to 10 miles away, which is why you may also hear them, especially if you live near the woods. Not all howling sounds are the same, either. Each wolf has its own distinct howl. Why do they howl? Wolves howl to defend their territory, find lost pack members, and more.

Wolves Can Swim Over 7 Miles

Wolves can swim great distances of over seven miles. How? It’s due to special webbing between their toes. Many wolves, including the red wolf, will hunt in the water. They’ll slowly and silently swim up to their prey, and at the right time, they lunge forward and nab their victim with their powerful jaws. The webbing between their toes also helps them to maintain traction when walking across slick surfaces, like wet rocks.

All Wolves Are Born With Blue Eyes

Here’s one of the wolf facts you probably didn’t know. Every purebred wolf is born with blue eyes. As time goes on, their eyes change colors, typically either to a dark brown or amber yellow. If you ever see a grown wolf with blue eyes, it is likely a wolf-dog hybrid, such as a husky. Their eyes are incredible for another reason as well. While they can’t see particularly far, they do have the ability to detect and sense movement in complete darkness, which makes them amazing predators.

Wolves Can Run Over 30 MPH

Wolves need to eat, so it makes sense that they have many adaptations for hunting prey. In addition to the ability to swim, wolves can also run incredibly fast. They don’t run fast all the time; most of the time, they move at about five miles per hour. However, they’re known to run at speeds between 36 and 38 MPH in short bursts when chasing prey.

Wolves Have 42 Teeth

You’ve probably heard the part in the famous story where the little girl looks at the wolf and says, “What big teeth you have.” Well, that’s true. A wolf’s diet is mostly made up of meat, so they need to be able to hunt and chew. One of the most interesting wolf facts is that adult wolves have 42 teeth. Many of these teeth are over two inches long.

Their teeth are strong and sharp, and their bite is even stronger. The bite force of a wolf can be as strong as 400 pounds per square inch. Compare that to a human’s bite force of 120 pounds per square inch, and you can imagine how powerful a wolf’s bite is.

Wolves Can Smell 100 Times Better Than Humans

Many of a wolf’s senses are highly developed due to their need to hunt and communicate within their community. Their smell is one of these amazing senses. A wolf can smell prey that is up to 1.5 miles away. How? It’s because their noses have 280 million scent receptors that are working overtime so the wolves can eat and feed their families. Plus, each nostril can move independently, allowing them to better determine the direction of a scent.

In addition to hunting, wolves also use their sense of smell to determine if they’re in another wolf’s territory. Wolves mark their territory by urinating or defecating on rocks and tree stumps. Other wolves can detect these scents immediately and know to stay away.

Not All Grey Wolves are Grey

Finally, no list of wolf facts would be complete without mentioning that, despite their name, not all grey wolves are actually grey. Yes, many are grey, but others can be tan, white, or black. Grey wolves also aren’t native to just one region. Their range includes Europe, Asia, and North America. Grey wolves were once put on the endangered species list back in 1978, and while they were removed from the list in 2021, most populations in the contiguous United States are currently protected under the Endangered Species Act as of 2025, except for the Northern Rocky Mountain population.

However, hunting, deforestation, and urban expansion have put some wolf populations at risk. So, if you see these amazing creatures, be sure to enjoy them from a distance.

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