There are many myths and legends around wolves, the big bad wolf of fairytales, the werewolf of nightmares but none seem to be as prevalent as the lone wolf lore. The person who is self- reliant and prefers to live and work alone. A trail blazing sigma who is aloof and detached. The problem with this is that in reality wolves are far from solitary animals. To celebrate the Wolf Moon on January 3, also known by some indigenous Great Plains tribes as the “Wolves Run Together Moon” we will take a closer look at these misunderstood wild neighbours.

The Gray Wolf is spread across the globe in various subspecies. All of these subspecies have one thing in common; they travel in packs. The wolf pack is one of the most social cohesive units found in nature. It usually consists of an Alpha male and female who give birth to the litters of pups, and then further generations extend around this pair. Depending on a wolf ’s size and physical ability their role may change within the pack from provider to teacher to protector. The largest pack on record was 37 members, but most are between 4 to 7. The strength of the pack is reliant on the ability of the pack members to care for one another and pass their knowledge from one generation to the next. Wolves have complex body language, howls, and other vocalizations to communicate with one another. The more researchers study wolves, the more their behaviour is likened to that of humans.

However, if you look at traditional Blackfoot knowledge it is said that humans learned the skills of cooperative hunting with one another from Makoyiwa the wolf. When a Blackfoot family was starving in winter Makoyiwa took pity on them and showed them how larger prey animals could be hunted by working together. As apex predators wolves will kill larger herbivores like elk and bison. A pack can spend hours splitting up herds, separating weaker herbivores from the group before finally taking one down. Then they feast. So perhaps the more we research wolves, the more we are discovering what we forgot we learned from watching them originally.

Enter the lone wolf. This is not an end goal for a wolf; being a lone wolf in winter where there are no pack mates to break trail in the deep snow or provide food when you are ill can be a death sentence. Lone wolves have simply come to a place where they don’t quite fit in their current pack. When they break away it is to start their own pack or join another one who has a void they can fill. Using their howls that can be heard up to 10 kilometres away, they can seek out new companions. A lone wolf is just a traveller searching for another family to join.

Perhaps as we head into the new year we can reflect on the blessings our current packs provide for us. Our reliance on their companionship and generational wisdom. How cooperation increases our bounties in the good times and is our lifeline through the dark times. It is good to be self-reliant, and comfortable in our own company, but if we our true lone wolves, then we must embrace the desire and need to make social connections. Spend time in solitude to connect with ourselves and then send out a howl to find and bond with our wolf-like brethren who in times of need will respond with the protectiveness and generosity of a true pack.

Photos by Laura Griffin