Common Wolf (Canis lupus L) is a large carnivore from the dog family. Its original area of distribution covered Eurasia and North America. At our territory, it occurs especially in north-eastern and central Slovakia. The length of body in grown-up individuals reaches 120-150 cm, height in shoulders 65-80 cm, and weight 30-50 (65) kg. Its fur coat is predominantly grey, sometimes with a rusty-brown shade, being darker at the back and paler at the bottom. Wolf hunts by chasing a prey, mostly ungulates (deer, roe deer, wild boar), and it occasionally feeds on carcasses. Wolf may form a pack, in which the strongest individual becomes a leader. It mates in winter time (January-March), bearing 4-7 cubs in a den, after nine weeks. Wolf cubs reach sexual maturity at the end of second year, and they live 14 -16 years.

Vladimír Janský