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| gray wolf |
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| dire wolf |
Did you know that the dire wolf and the gray wolf were cousins. It is very weird that the dire wolf would chase his little cousin the gray wolf all around. It is also very weird how the dire wolf was stronger than the gray wolf and the dire wolf did not survive but his little cousin, the gray wolf was weaker than the dire wolf. How did the dire wolf not survive, but his little cousin did?
Please please please someone make a comment on the grey wolf and the dire wolf. Please
ReplyDeleteEthan those are very interesting questions, you would think that the stronger animal would survive, but maybe there wasn't enough food available for the dire wolf to survive. The dire wolf also looks kind of like a cross between a grizzly bear and a wolf. I think your blog is awesome, I love reading about all the new things you learn about science and nature.
ReplyDeleteI came across your page while doing research and decided to comment.
ReplyDeleteThe mostly suspected reasons why the dire wolf hadn't survived and the gray wolf had is largely because of their proportionately shorter legs and smaller brains than the gray wolf. During the end of the last glacial period, when humans crossed over into North America (where both the grey and dire wolf resided), humans began hunting a large variety and population of the wolve's common prey. With what swifter species were left over that humans hadn't hunted, the dire wolf couldn't catch. While overall the dire wolf was larger than the gray wolf, their legs were shorter in relation to their body, making them less able to catch their prey than the gray wolf.
Comparatively, it has been reaffirmed that the gray wolf is THE ancestor for all domestic dogs, the reason being their larger brains. Not only did this make them more capable of working together to form strategies against their prey, but it also gave them the idea that befriending man meant being fed without having to hunt. These survival techniques only further reassured the continuance of their species rather than that of their larger dire cousins.
Basically, it's important to remember that just because one is stronger, it doesn't necessarily mean it is more fit for survival. In fact, during one of the mass extinction eras (I think there were like seven different ones or something) very small rodents such as mice were one of the few, like, 9% of the entire Earth's population to survive, rather than the much larger dinosaur-like early mammals that died out almost instantly.
Thank you for your comment and answering my questions.
ReplyDelete