Are wolves cannibalistic?

[SolitaryHowl]

Are wolves cannibalistic? I know they are opportunistic predators, but if a pack member is gravely injured (or they come across one of their members in a trap), or dead, will they eat it just because it would be easy food for them?

Would they eat their dead puppies?

And, if they are cannibalistic, is it only when conditions are very harsh & they're hungry?

[Arva]

No i think they aren't. There are many reasons that can prove it.

[Koa]

No i think they aren't. There are many reasons that can prove it.

If you are going to give an answer in this forum, please make sure you back it up. What "reasons" do you speak of that would contradict what I've found?

Wolves are known to engage in cannibalism during times of food stress; injured members of the pack are especially vulnerable.

page 362, Land Mammals of Oregon, B. J. Verts & Leslie N. Carraway

R.A. Rausch (1967a: 258) wrote the following about cannibalism in wolves: "Once a wolf is injured or handicapped, fellow pack members may consume him. I have recorded six occasions where a wolf caught in a snare or trap was devoured, except for the skull and a few bits of hair and viscera, by remnants of the pack. Aerial hunters who leave unskinned wolf carcasses in the field have returned the following day and found the carcasses being deouvred by the remaining members of the pack.

Wolf, L. David Mech

I'm assuming the same could very well apply to pups.

[SolitaryHowl]

Thanks Koa, that answers my question!

[Koa]

You're welcome.
Topic locked.