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Home , Arctic wolf, Devon Island, Grise Fiord (Nunavut), Jones Sound

The High tracks of three or four were noted in the vicinity of Bear Bay (R.C.M.P. record - in the Region seebelow). From my own observations, I of the Canadian High Arctic* haveconciuded that over the period from May 1970 to October 1971 there were only three -or possibly four -wolves inhabiting The high arctic wolf lupus arctos the entire north shore of Devon ; and to (Fig. l), awhite, medium-sized subspecies my knowledge no wolves, or traces of them, of the arctic wolf, and a considerable carni- were sighted in that area between November vore, ranges overthe Queen Elizabeth 1971 and July 1973. of the Canadian Arctic ArchipelagoV. Little On the evidence of local records of the is knownabout it, however, sinceit is natural- Royal Canadian Mounted Police (R.C.M.P.), ly scarce and there are fewfield biologists wolves have been rather more numerous on working inthe region.With the object of , especially on its southeast adding to the meagre literature on the high coastbetween and Harbour arctic wolf, I present in this paper the results Fiord, and Makimon Inlet of observations I made on it overa total -the areas most commonly traversedby the period of 425 days spent in the field in the and by R.C.M.P. patrols. The greatest Jones Soundregion (Fig. 2), collecting in- concentrations have been in the vicinity of formation on the local wildlife and InuitV.6. Baumann Fiord. The high arctic wolf isscattered thinly The actual number of wolves present on throughout the Jones Sound region, usually southern Ellesmere Island is undoubtedly in those areas occupiedby ungulates. On much smaller than the number of tracks ob- , wolves or traces of them were served might suggest, since the home ranges recorded as having been present on the major of individual wolves are enormous. This fact grounds of Ovibos moschatus around came to light during agrbund survey I the lowlands between Cape Newman Smith did of the BjornePeninsula (77'45' N, andSverdrup during the years 86"lO' W)3. On 9 May 1973 my Inuit com- 1951-52, 1954-55, 1960-61, 1968-69, panions1969-70 and I crossed a pair of fresh tracks and 1970-71. In 1957-58 asingle wolf was leading northwards across the Peninsula. One seen at Viks Fiord, while in 1958-59 tracks of them was peculiar in that a toe was missing of four or five of the were observed from it. We observed this odd track again in nearDragleybeck Inlet. Later, in 1965-66, the southwestern section of Baumann Fiord, on 10 Mayand 21 May. The Inuit were "Contribution no. 30, Devon Island Project, certain it was the track of a wolf which had International Biological Program. been repeatedlyseen in the vicinity of the

FM. 1. hillqUiSitiVehigh on the plateau west of Sverdrup Glacier. Devon Island, 25 May 1910. Photograph by W. O. F'ruitt, Jr. 210 SHORT PAPERS

Grise Fiord settlement on various occasions travel singly or in pairs. The largest pack I since1970- the last in April 1973. The sightedmyself consisted of four animals, hunters had unsuccessfully attempted to trap though from Table 1 it can be seen that other the on numerous occasions. The short- persons have encountered larger packs. The est possibleroute from the settlement through two largest packs observed in the study area the mountains to the pointof the most were at Baumann Fiord in1965-66 (15-20 northerly sighting of this wolf track on the animals), and along the southern coast of Bjorne Peninsula was180 km. EllesmereIsland inthe autumn of1961 During anaerial survey I conductedin (about 24) - according to reports provided July 1973 overthe northwestern sectionof the by the Detachment of the Jones Sound region3, a total of twelve wolves R.C.M.P.A still larger pack (of about 30) werespotted in an area ofapproximately was observed just to the north of the study 22,000 kmz. It is quite likely that some wolves area in the early spring of 1970 (A. Kirbyson were missed on the survey, but even if the and A. Peejameenee, R.C.M.P., Grise Fiord, numberactually present is assumed to be personal communications). Packs of as many double those seen, one wolf lives on average as20-30 wolves are unusualanywhere in off approximately 900 km2 of territory. Here North America', and such numbers are even however it needs to be mentioned that this more exceptional in the High Arctic in view densityconcerns thearea of thegreatest of the barrennessof the land4.6. Perhaps concentration of wolves in the Jones Sound severalsmaller groups had combined into region. Such sparsity is not surprising when the larger ones because of dependence upon the barrenness ofmuch of the terrestrial one of the few herbivore oases in the region, environment is taken into consideratione. The such as the ones on the Fosheim or Raanes overkillingwhich followed the introduction peninsulas3?. of the snowmobile (see below) needs also to Little is actually known about the wolf's be taken into account. predatorybehaviour in the easternHigh In the Jones Sound region wolves usually Arctic, and much of.what is attributed to the

PIG. 2. Thestudy area. The cross-hatching indicates the areas of greatestconcentration of the high arctic wolf. SHORT PAPERS 21 1

TABLE 1. Wolf pack size in the The wolves in the Jones Sound region are primarily reliant uponmuskox, Peary’s Jones Sound region. caribou, &pus arcticus and, oc- Pack size Pack Numbe~of casionally, trapped arctic fox Alopex lagopus (no. of wolves) of (no. observations* for their nutritional requirements. Asidefrom these terrestrial creatures, the wolves also 1 50.. feed on ringed seal Phocu hispitfa.On 10 May 2 17 1973, two hunters and I were at the place in 3 7 4 4 Baumann Fiord where between two and four 5 1 wolves had dug through 50 cm of dense snow 6 3 and 38 cmof sea ice to feed on an adult 7 2 ringed seal which had obviously died earlier 9 1 that winter beneath the ice. The Inuit have 15-20 1 related to me how wolves also feed on seals 24 1 that they (the Inuit) have killed and cached. *Sightings of wolves or their tracks obtained There is also informationwhich suggests that from: wolvesmight actually stalk liveseals. One Author’s records...... 54 observations of the Grise Fiord hunters claimed that his R.C.M.P. reports...... 19 observations dogs had successfully stalked and killed seals C. R. Harington, basking on the ice. This hunter was also of Canadian Wildlife Service the opinion that wolvescan do likewise, (unpublished manuscript). . 7 observations though he had never witnessed such an act. W. Blair, West Coast Dr. M. Curtishas observedwolves near Petroleum Ltd., Calgary Tanquary Camp, northern Ellmere Island, (personal communication) . 3 observations lying in waitat a seal holeand foundevidence Various researchers working that theyattacked seals coming out of the at theDevon Island water(G. Hattersley-Smith, personal com- Research Station of the munication, 1972). Arctic Instituteof North From data based on reports of members of America...... 4 observations the Grise Fiord Detachmentof the R.C.M.P. high arctic wolf is merely hearsayor specula- Ihave been able to derive the following tion. For example, in the Jones Sound region average numbers of wolves taken: muskox carcasses which bear signs of atten- 1956-57 to 1962-63: 1.7 tion from wolves are usually referred to as 1963-64 to 1967-68:4.4 wolf-killsQ. It is possible that some of these 1968-69 to 1970-71: 9.6 carcasseshave simply been scavenged by The sharp increase from 1.7 to 4.4 was a wolves. During the spring of 1971, four adult result of the reintroductionin 1964 of bounty muskoxenwere found dead or dying of payments in the for the natural causes on the Truelove Lowland of capture of wolvesll. A hunter receives $40 DevonIsland (W. 0. Pruitt, Jr., University for each animal captured, aswell as the pelt of Manitoba, personal communication). Their which has a value ranging between $10 and deaths wouldconceivably have been at- $150. Somepelts are used locally forthe tributed to wolves, had any of the latter trimming of parkas, for which they are how- scavengedthem before theywere found. ever considered inferior to the pelts of dogs Teners has discussed the difficulties that or imported wolverine. wolves have in preying upon healthy musk- Most wolves taken up to 1968 were either oxen. The onlydocumented account of a poisoned, accidentally caught in fox traps, or wolf killing an adultmuskox is that of Greylo, shot as they approached huntersor their dogs who unfortunately was not able to carry out out of curiosity. Sincethe coming into general an autopsy on it to determine what its state use of snowmobiles in the area, however, of health hadbeen. hunters haveusually followed any fresh wolf Over the years, some of the residents of track in the hope of catching up with one of GriseFiord have attributed the decline in the animals. The fact that the average number numbers of Peary’s caribou Rungiferturundus caught over the three years ending in 1971 peuryi in the region to the predatory habits wasas high as 9.6 per year was therefore of wolves, in spite of the absence of any proof the result of overhunting by snowmobile, and that they have a controlling effect upon the not of an increase innumbers of the animals. size of caribou populations. It appears in The overhunting which took place over the actual fact that man has been blaming his years 1968-71 is the presumable explanation competitor,the wolf, forthe problems he of the fact that not onewolf was taken during himself has createds. the years1971-72. 212 SHORT PAPERS

The average weight of a wolf in the Jones andNorthern Development(unpublished Sound region isabout 32 kg a figureobtained manuscript). fromthe respectiveweights of two males rRiewe, R. R. 1975. The utilization of wild- (34 kg and 43 kg) and two females (23.5 kg life in the Jones Soundregion by the Grise and 24.9 kg).Wolf carcasses are not eaten Fiord Inuit. In: Bliss,L. C. (ea.), Devon either by the Inuit or their dogs. Island Project, InternationalBiological Program(Productivity, Terrestrial), Ed- ACKNOWLEDQEMENTS monton,Alberta: University of Alberta The field research wassupported by grants Press (in press). to the Devon Island Project of the Interna- sRiewe, R. R.1975. Mammalian carnivores tional BiologicalProgram, by theArctic utilizing the Truelove Lowland. In: Bliss, Institute of North America, by the Inuit Land L. C. (ed.), Devon Island Project, Znterna- Useand Occupancy Project at McMaster tionalBiological Program(Productivity, University, Hamilton,Ontario, and by the Terrestrial), Edmonton, Alberta: University Canadian Department of Indian and North- of Alberta Press (in press). ern Affairs.Without the hospitalityand cooperation of the residents of Grise Fiord eBabb, T. A. and Bliss, L. C. 1974. Suscepti- study would not have been possible. bility to environmental impact in the Queen this Elizabeth Islands. Arctic, 27(3): 234-7. Roderick R. Riewe Department of Zoology TMech,L. D. 1970. The Wolf: theEcology University of Manitoba and Behavior of an EndangeredSpecies. Winnipeg, Manitoba, . New York Natural HistoryPress. STener, J. S. 1965. Muskoxen in Canada. REFERENCES Canada,Department of NorthernAflairs llruitt, W. O., Jr. 1973. Encounter with an and Natural Resources, Canadian Wildlife arctic wolf. Animals (London), 15(4): 148-9. Service, Monograph no. 2. ZPocock, R. I. 1935. The races of Canis lupus. Wmpson, M. 1970. DueNorth. London: Zoological Society of London Proceedings: Gollancz. 647-86. IOGray, D. 1970. The killing of a bull muskox sRiewe, R. R. 1973. Final report on a survey by a single wolf.Arctic, 23(3): 197-9. of ungulatepopulations onthe Bjorne IlRutter, R. J. and Pimlott, D. H. 1968. The Peninsula,Ellesmere Island. Yellowknife, World of the Wolf. Philadelphia: J. B. N.W.T.: Department of Indian Affairs Lippincott.