Up Next on Stage: Wolf Chorus Concert!
If you’ve ever been camping in the woods or watched the Twilight Saga you know about wolves and moons. The lure of wolves being especially vocal during full moons begs the question when a group of wolves howl together, what are they communicating? Funnily enough, when a group of wolves vocalize together it is known as “chorus howls”. It is hypothesized that the complex structure of noises is responsible for broadcasting territory, room between packs, strengthening bonds, and the coordination of daily activities. Wolves’ behavior can sometimes be determined by their howls or communication. The chorus howls start with a lone wolf vocalizing until many others join in.
On average, wolf packs have 2-11 members, many times including a mating pair and their offspring (parents and their kids!). Recently, scientists found that howling within a pack is vital for pack communication such as in cases of reuniting pack members who are temporarily lost or by pups who howl to help their mother find their den. Additionally, wolf howls can be used as a warning signal for intruders or predators because they can signal their location over an area between 7.8 to 129.5 km2 (Joslin 1967).
The variation in vocals in a pack is determined by the members’ age, sex, and social status. For example, longer sounds are especially used for territorial defense strategies and are mostly produced by adults since it costs more energy to produce longer notes (Maynard-Smith 2004).
One study tested how the different members of wolf packs contribute to the chorus howl using wolves held in captivity. The study consisted of video recordings in four places including Madrid, Portugal, Malaga, and Minnesota. In total 46 chorus howls derived from 10 packs comprising 30 wolves from 5 different subspecies were analyzed.
The howls were studied and analyzed for four sound categories including howl, woa, bark, and other sounds. Along with sound analysis, researchers observed the bodily actions of wolves while they emitted the howl vocalizations. The wolf was considered to be howling when the wolf stayed in a stationary position (like in the freeze game!), showing teeth (smiling) and emitting a constant long signal. The other determination of howling is multiple woa-woa howls, along with long, loud consistent howls that are of higher pitch and frequency than howls. The bodily determination is where the mouth is wide open and the lips are retracted (giving their biggest smiles!).
The most common vocalization of the studied wolves was howles with around a 60% majority. The next most common was the woa howls at about 21%, other vocalizations 19%, and barks were the least common at 2%. During the chorus howls they also looked to see which age group participated the most which they found to be adults with around 73% whereas subadult vocalized only 42% of the time. This means that older wolves like to sing more than younger wolves!
Now you know if you are ever an observer or listener to a wolf chorus howl, they have something to say to the other wolves and aren’t just performing for your entertainment! Try to guess the makeup of the chorus based on the length and volume of howls! Is it mostly an adult choir or are there younger wolves in there too? Don’t forget to pack popcorn and snacks for your next full moon that you spend in the woods in wolf territory!
Works Cited
Joslin PWB (1967) Movements and home sites of timber wolves in Algonquin Park. Am Zool 7:279–288
Marti-Domken, B., Sanchez, V. P., & Monzón, A. (2022). Pack members shape the acoustic structure of a wolf chorus. acta ethologica, 25(2), 79-87.
Maynard-Smith J, Harper D (2004) Animal signals
