Plains wolf

		Plains wolf
		He is a wild animal


Origin			Canada and U.S.A.
Translation			Francis Vandersteen

The possession of this animal is not authorized Royal Decree establishing the list of mammals not kept for production purposes that may be kept (M.B. 24.08.2009)

The plains wolf (Canis lupus nubilus) or buffalo wolf is a wolf subspecies of the Canis lupus species. Its range extends from eastern Canada to the western Great Lakes region of the United States.

The plains wolf measures 135 cm to 190 cm in length, including the tail. Adult males weigh between 35 and 50 kg, and adult females between 30 and 40 kg. Its coat is often a mixture of gray, cream, russet, brown and black.

The plains wolf used to be found in large parts of the USA and Canada. Today, it is present in eastern Canada and is re-establishing itself in certain parts of the USA. A 2004 census counted nearly 3,700 individuals in the U.S.A., spread across the states of Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Grey wolves vary greatly in appearance depending on their region of origin. Many subspecies have been described on the basis of a few individuals, without taking into account the natural phenotypic variability of the species. Edward Alphonso Goldman described 24 different American subspecies in 1944.

Current research is based on multifactorial criteria such as morphology, paleontology, behavior and genetic analysis. This reorientation of subspecies description has led to a considerable reduction in the number of subspecies, considering that most are local adaptations of the Canis lupus species.

In 1983, Nowak proposed reducing American wolves to five subspecies: Canis lupus occidentalis, arctos, baileyi, nubilus and lycaon. His argument was based on the geographic separation of five wolf populations in North America during the Pleistocene glaciation, a lasting isolation that would have enabled the different forms to be formed. The five wolf forms were later confirmed by genetic studies, although the Canis lupus lycaon subspecies is now recognized as a species, the Algonquin Park Wolf.