-Wolfdog- wrote:Yeah, I didn't expect this idea to gain much traction. I probably should've posted it in general wolf discussion.
No need to have posted this in General Wolf Discussion as the topic discussion still pertains to the plausibility of adding a specific game feature. General Wolf Discussion is strictly for non-game-related discussion about wolves.
I don't think misinformation would be the main concern re: game implementation. The main concern would be, as I said on the fish topic, whether its worthwhile to add such a feature in the first place in the context of gameplay. I agree it would be neat to show other foraging behaviors in general. But compare your idea about showing aquatic moose foraging behaviors to (wolves or prey) foraging berries. The former is more visual; the latter, not so much because we're probably talking about mere pixels on a bush (that may not be as visible once you go down on the graphics scale) for a low food reward for wolves and (perhaps not as low for) other animals. It's interesting, but not exciting and I don't think the payoff is there from a gameplay standpoint, in my opinion. Then add
all of that on top of "We're not sure if wolves forage berries in Yellowstone" and there's even less incentive to add it. Again, there's no evidence of wolves preying on beavers in Yellowstone, but it's a (1 an exciting addition in terms of gameplay with (2 a decent and plausible food reward payoff.
-Wolfdog- wrote:That being said, according to the post, this is perhaps one of the first documented cases of wolves actively consuming berries (at least in Northern Minnesota), and it's not conclusive enough to say whether or not it's restricted only to Voyageur wolves. However, I couldn't find any articles about Yellowstone wolf scat containing berries. So, this would probably be the biggest issue regarding my suggestion's eligibility, not misinformation.
VWP's post notes that it's the first documented
footage of wolves actively eating
blueberries and mentions there are other clips of wolves eating other fruits.
Berry consumption is not linked to just wolves in VNP and has been documented elsewhere via scat analysis and personal observation for some time, per the abstract of "Estimating Biomass of Berries Consumed by Gray Wolves":
Wolves also consume fruits such as wild blueberries (Vaccinium spp.) and raspberries (Rubus spp.) when these fruits are abundant. In areas where berry consumption occurs, berries typically constitute a minor (<10% frequency) portion of the summer diet (Messier and Cr^ete 1985) [study performed in Quebec]. However, in some areas, berries can be a significant summer food item for wolves. Berries (primarily blueberries) constituted 10–30% (frequency) of the diet of wolves from 1 June to 15 September in southern
Quebec, Canada (Tremblay et al. 2001). Similarly, vegetation (primarily berries) occurred in 52% of scats collected at home sites in July and 20% of scats collected on trails in August and September in north-central Minnesota, USA (Fuller 1989). In Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota, berries constituted 30–50% (volume) of wolf diets in July and August 2015 (T. D. Gable, personal observation). Though
berries can be an important summer food for wolves in boreal systems, the percent biomass of wolf diets composed of berries is largely unknown.
https://www.jstor.org/stable/90003996
A broader citation on wolf foraging habits as it pertains to berries/fruits, for your reference:
Perhaps because of the greater availability of fruit, wolves in southern portions of Eurasia may feed on plant material more extensively than those in North America. Radio-collared wolves in the lowlands of central Italy have been monitored as they moved through mature vineyards (P. Ciucci, unpublished data). Fruit may pro vide vitamins for wolves in summer, as even in North America it is not uncommon to find seeds from rasp berries and blueberries in wolf scats (Van Ballenber ghe et al. 1975; Peterson 1977; Fuller 1989b). Cherries, berries (Hell 1993; Ciucci 1994), apples, pears, figs, plums, grapes (Castroviejo et al. 1975; Guitian et al. 1979; Bibi kov et al. 1985; Gao 1990; Cuesta et al. 1991; Papageorgiou et al. 1994), melon, and watermelon (Gao 1990) have been reported in wolf scats. Grass (Graminae) merits brief mention, as it appears in wolf scats in North America as well as in Eurasia with 14–43% frequency (Ragni et al. 1985; Salvador and Abad 1987; Patalano and Lovari 1993; Ciucci 1994; Papageor giou et al. 1994). Possibly grass acts as a scour or inducement to vomit, ridding the intestine of parasites or the stomach of long guard hairs that delay passage of food through the gut, or as a source of vitamins (Mech 1970; Kelly 1991).
"The Wolf as a Carnivore" via Wolves: Behavior Ecology and Conservation, page 109