Wolves (Canis lupus) in northeastern Minnesota cached six radio-collars (four in winter, two in spring-summer) of 202 radio-collared White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) they killed or consumed from 1975 to 2010. A Wolf bedded on top of one collar cached in snow. We found one collar each at a Wolf den and Wolf rendezvous site, 2.5 km and 0.5 km respectively, from each deer’s previous locations

Mech, L. David

Nelson, Michael E.

English

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University of Nebraska - Lincoln
DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln
USGS Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center Wildlife Damage Management, Internet Center for
2011
Wolves, Canis lupus, Carry and Cache the Collars of
Radio-collared White-tailed Deer, Odocoileus
virginianus, they Killed
Michael E. Nelson
U.S. Geological Survey, Michael_nelson@usgs.gov
L. David Mech
USGS Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, david_mech@usgs.gov
Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/usgsnpwrc
Part of the Animal Sciences Commons, Behavior and Ethology Commons, Biodiversity
Commons, Environmental Policy Commons, Recreation, Parks and Tourism Administration
Commons, and the Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology Commons
This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Wildlife Damage Management, Internet Center for at DigitalCommons@University of
Nebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in USGS Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center by an authorized administrator of
DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln.
Nelson, Michael E. and Mech, L. David, "Wolves, Canis lupus, Carry and Cache the Collars of Radio-collared White-tailed Deer,
Odocoileus virginianus, they Killed" (2011). USGS Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center. 357.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/usgsnpwrc/357
2011 NOTES 67
Wolves (Canis lupus) cache food in summer when
they travel alone or in small groups (Murie 1944,
Cowan 1947, Magoun 1976; Mech and Adams
1999). Caching stores excess food, protects it from
scavengers and maggots, and provides a buffer dur-
ing periods of prey scarcity (Mech 1970). However,
caching by free-ranging Wolves has not been report-
ed during winter (Peterson and Cuicci 2003). This is
not surprising because much of the Wolf literature is
based on forest-dwelling Wolves that have primarily
been observed from small aircraft during winter, con-
ditions that have precluded detailed observations of
caching. Wolves do return to old kills in winter and
conceivably may uncover caches made earlier (Mech
1966).
In a long-term radio-telemetry study of White-tailed
Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) preyed upon by Wolves
in northeastern Minnesota (48oN, 91oW; Nelson and
Mech 1986), retrieving the collars of radio-collared
deer killed by Wolves revealed that Wolves cached
radio-collars. Aerially locating deer 1-3 days/week and
retrieving radio-collars of killed deer within 24 hours
of discovery presented an unbiased method to docu-
ment caching in winter, as well as during other seasons.
Of 202 radio-collared deer killed and/or consumed
by Wolves during 1975-2010, Wolves cached the col-
lars of six (3%) deer, one each in January, April, Au-
gust and November, and two in March. Wolves buried
four collars in 25-76 cm of snow and two in soil cov-
ered by duff and leaf litter. The collar was still attached
to the neck and head of research animals for two col-
lars buried in snow, and one of those was beneath a
Wolf bed. We found one collar 200 m from the kill site
and another in a Wolf summer homesite 500 m from
the deer’s location just before being killed, although
the kill site was not found. Of the remaining 196 radio-
collared deer,Wolves in April and May (0-15 cm snow)
carried and dropped two collars 300 and 400 m from
kill sites. We found a third collar dropped at aWolf den
the first week inApril, 2.5 km from the deer’s previous
26 January–March locations, and like the previous
homesite observation, the kill site was unknown.
Our observations document thatWolves make caches
during winter and confirm that Wolves will bed on top
of their caches, behavior reported for the Red Fox
(Vulpes vulpes, Mech 1967) but only suspected for
Wolves (Mech 1970).
Presumably caching a radio-collar must be far less
frequent than caching food because a collar has no
nutritional value. As a nonfood item, it is unclear why
Wolves would cache a radio-collar, although, deer hair,
blood, scent, and bone-like rigidity of the collar could
conceivably play a role in eliciting caching behavior.
However, well-fed captive Wolves carry away and
cache nonfood objects belonging to their caretakers
(Schmidt, International Wolf Center, personal com-
munication). Carrying a radio-collar for considerable
distances appears similar to this behavior, which sug-
gests that aspects of caching behavior may be more
complex than simply a response to nutritional pres-
sures. Awareness of and attraction to physical objects
may be a deep-seated trait in the genome. Hiestand
(1989) found that Wolves spontaneously oriented to
physical objects in fewer experimental trials than dogs
(Canis familiaris), a finding corroborated by obser-
vations of captive Wolves (Fentress 1967, 1992; Mac-
Donald 1980, Zimen 1981). The selective breeding of
dogs for retrieving objects for humans is evidence that
possession of objects plays a role in canid social behav-
ior. Because Wolves are the progenitors of dogs, the
propensity for this trait must have its origins in the
Wolf genome.
Acknowledgements
This research was supported by the U.S. Geologi-
cal Survey, United States Department of Agriculture
North Central Research Station, and the Special Proj-
ects Foundation. We also acknowledge volunteer wild-
life technicians who assisted in live capture of deer and
who helped retrieve collars. We also thank the pilots
Wolves, Canis lupus, Carry and Cache the Collars of Radio-collared
White-tailed Deer, Odocoileus virginianus, they Killed
MICHAEL E. NELSON1,2 and L. DAVID MECH1,3
1 U.S. Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, 8711-37th Street, SE, Jamestown, North Dakota 58401
USA
2 Mailing address: 7332 Tracy Road, Duluth, Minnesota N 55803 USA; e-mail: Michael_nelson@usgs.gov
3 Mailing address: The Raptor Center, 1920 Fitch Avenue, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota 55108 USA
Nelson, Michael E., and L. David Mech. 2011. Wolves, Canis lupus, carry and cache the collars of radio-collared White-
tailed Deer, Odocoileus virginianus, they killed. Canadian Field-Naturalist 125(1): 67–68.
Wolves (Canis lupus) in northeastern Minnesota cached six radio-collars (four in winter, two in spring-summer) of 202 radio-
collared White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) they killed or consumed from 1975 to 2010. A Wolf bedded on top of one
collar cached in snow. We found one collar each at a Wolf den and Wolf rendezvous site, 2.5 km and 0.5 km respectively,
from each deer’s previous locations.
Key Words: Wolf, Canis lupus, White-tailed Deer, Odocoileus virginianus, caching, radio-collars, den, homesite, Minnesota.
68 THE CANADIAN FIELD-NATURALIST Vol. 125
of the U.S. Forest Service for skillful and safe flying.
We followed the American Society of Mammalogists
Guidelines (Animal Care and Use Committee 1998)
for animal handling and care in conducting research.
Literature Cited
Animal Care and Use Committee. 1998. Guidelines for the
capture, handling, and care of mammals as approved by the
American Society of Mammalogists. Journal of Mammal-
ogy 79: 1416-1431.
Cowan, I. M. 1947. The timber wolf in the Rocky Mountain
national parks of Canada. Canadian Journal of Research
D 25: 139-74.
Fentress, J. C. 1967. Observations on the behavioral develop-
ment of a hand-reared male timber wolf. American Zool-
ogist 7: 339-51.
Fentress, J. C. 1992. The covalent animal: On bonds and
their boundaries in behavioral research. Pages 44-71 in The
inevitable bond: Examining scientist-animal interactions.
Edited by H. Davis and D. Balfour. Cambridge University
Press, Cambridge.
Hiestand, N. L. 1989. A comparison of problem-solving and
spatial orientation in the wolf (Canis lupus) and dog (Canis
familiaris). Ph.D. dissertation, University of Connecticut,
Storrs.
Magoun, A. 1976. Summer scavenging activity in northeast-
ern Alaska. Master’s thesis, University of Alaska, Fair-
banks. 168 pages.
MacDonald, K. B. 1980. Activity patterns in a captive wolf
pack. Carnivore 3:62-64.
Mech, L. D. 1966. The Wolves of Isle Royale. National Parks
Fauna Series Number 7. U.S. Government Printing Office.
210 pages. [Reprinted 2002. University of the Pacific, Hon-
olulu Hawaii].
Mech, L. D. 1967. Telemetry as a technique in the study of
predation. Journal of Wildlife Management 31: 492-496.
Mech, L. D. 1970. The wolf: The ecology and behavior of an
endangered species. Natural History Press, Garden City,
NewYork.
Mech, L. D., and L. G. Adams. 1999. Killing of a muskox,
Ovibos mochatus, by two wolves, Canis lupus, and sub-
sequent caching. Canadian Field-Naturalist 113: 673-75.
Murie, A. 1944. The wolves of Mount McKinley. U.S.
National Park Service Fauna Series, no. 5. U.S. Govern-
ment Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 238 pages.
Nelson, M. E., and L. D. Mech. 1986. Mortality of white-
tailed deer in northeastern Minnesota. Journal of Wildlife
Management 50: 691-98.
Peterson, R. O., and P. Ciucci. 2003. The wolf as a carnivore.
Pages 104-130 in Wolves, behavior, ecology, and conserva-
tion. Edited by Mech, L. D. and L. Boitani. University of
Chicago Press, Chicago, Illinois. 448 pages.
Zimen, E. 1981. The wolf: A species in danger. Delacorte
Press, NewYork.
Received 27 October 2010
Accepted 16 November 2010


Wolves, \u3ci\u3eCanis lupus\u3c/i\u3e, Carry and Cache the Collars of Radio-collared White-tailed Deer, \u3ci\u3eOdocoileus virginianus\u3c/i\u3e, they Killed

DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska

University of Nebraska - LincolnDigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - LincolnUSGS Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center Wildlife Damage Management, Internet Center for2011Wolves, Canis lupus, Carry and Cache the Collars ofRadio-collared White-tailed Deer, Odocoileusvirginianus, they KilledMichael E. NelsonU.S. Geological Survey, Michael_nelson@usgs.govL. David MechUSGS Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, david_mech@usgs.govFollow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/usgsnpwrcPart of the Animal Sciences Commons, Behavior and Ethology Commons, BiodiversityCommons, Environmental Policy Commons, Recreation, Parks and Tourism AdministrationCommons, and the Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology CommonsThis Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Wildlife Damage Management, Internet Center for at DigitalCommons@University ofNebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in USGS Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center by an authorized administrator ofDigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln.Nelson, Michael E. and Mech, L. David, "Wolves, Canis lupus, Carry and Cache the Collars of Radio-collared White-tailed Deer,Odocoileus virginianus, they Killed" (2011). USGS Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center. 357.https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/usgsnpwrc/3572011 NOTES 67Wolves (Canis lupus) cache food in summer whenthey travel alone or in small groups (Murie 1944,Cowan 1947, Magoun 1976; Mech and Adams1999). Caching stores excess food, protects it fromscavengers and maggots, and provides a buffer dur-ing periods of prey scarcity (Mech 1970). However,caching by free-ranging Wolves has not been report-ed during winter (Peterson and Cuicci 2003). This isnot surprising because much of the Wolf literature isbased on forest-dwelling Wolves that have primarilybeen observed from small aircraft during winter, con-ditions that have precluded detailed observations ofcaching. Wolves do return to old kills in winter andconceivably may uncover caches made earlier (Mech1966).In a long-term radio-telemetry study of White-tailedDeer (Odocoileus virginianus) preyed upon by Wolvesin northeastern Minnesota (48oN, 91oW; Nelson andMech 1986), retrieving the collars of radio-collareddeer killed by Wolves revealed that Wolves cachedradio-collars. Aerially locating deer 1-3 days/week andretrieving radio-collars of killed deer within 24 hoursof discovery presented an unbiased method to docu-ment caching in winter, as well as during other seasons.Of 202 radio-collared deer killed and/or consumedby Wolves during 1975-2010, Wolves cached the col-lars of six (3%) deer, one each in January, April, Au-gust and November, and two in March. Wolves buriedfour collars in 25-76 cm of snow and two in soil cov-ered by duff and leaf litter. The collar was still attachedto the neck and head of research animals for two col-lars buried in snow, and one of those was beneath aWolf bed. We found one collar 200 m from the kill siteand another in a Wolf summer homesite 500 m fromthe deer’s location just before being killed, althoughthe kill site was not found. Of the remaining 196 radio-collared deer,Wolves in April and May (0-15 cm snow)carried and dropped two collars 300 and 400 m fromkill sites. We found a third collar dropped at aWolf denthe first week inApril, 2.5 km from the deer’s previous26 January–March locations, and like the previoushomesite observation, the kill site was unknown.Our observations document thatWolves make cachesduring winter and confirm that Wolves will bed on topof their caches, behavior reported for the Red Fox(Vulpes vulpes, Mech 1967) but only suspected forWolves (Mech 1970).Presumably caching a radio-collar must be far lessfrequent than caching food because a collar has nonutritional value. As a nonfood item, it is unclear whyWolves would cache a radio-collar, although, deer hair,blood, scent, and bone-like rigidity of the collar couldconceivably play a role in eliciting caching behavior.However, well-fed captive Wolves carry away andcache nonfood objects belonging to their caretakers(Schmidt, International Wolf Center, personal com-munication). Carrying a radio-collar for considerabledistances appears similar to this behavior, which sug-gests that aspects of caching behavior may be morecomplex than simply a response to nutritional pres-sures. Awareness of and attraction to physical objectsmay be a deep-seated trait in the genome. Hiestand(1989) found that Wolves spontaneously oriented tophysical objects in fewer experimental trials than dogs(Canis familiaris), a finding corroborated by obser-vations of captive Wolves (Fentress 1967, 1992; Mac-Donald 1980, Zimen 1981). The selective breeding ofdogs for retrieving objects for humans is evidence thatpossession of objects plays a role in canid social behav-ior. Because Wolves are the progenitors of dogs, thepropensity for this trait must have its origins in theWolf genome.AcknowledgementsThis research was supported by the U.S. Geologi-cal Survey, United States Department of AgricultureNorth Central Research Station, and the Special Proj-ects Foundation. We also acknowledge volunteer wild-life technicians who assisted in live capture of deer andwho helped retrieve collars. We also thank the pilotsWolves, Canis lupus, Carry and Cache the Collars of Radio-collaredWhite-tailed Deer, Odocoileus virginianus, they KilledMICHAEL E. NELSON1,2 and L. DAVID MECH1,31 U.S. Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, 8711-37th Street, SE, Jamestown, North Dakota 58401USA2 Mailing address: 7332 Tracy Road, Duluth, Minnesota N 55803 USA; e-mail: Michael_nelson@usgs.gov3 Mailing address: The Raptor Center, 1920 Fitch Avenue, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota 55108 USANelson, Michael E., and L. David Mech. 2011. Wolves, Canis lupus, carry and cache the collars of radio-collared White-tailed Deer, Odocoileus virginianus, they killed. Canadian Field-Naturalist 125(1): 67–68.Wolves (Canis lupus) in northeastern Minnesota cached six radio-collars (four in winter, two in spring-summer) of 202 radio-collared White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) they killed or consumed from 1975 to 2010. A Wolf bedded on top of onecollar cached in snow. We found one collar each at a Wolf den and Wolf rendezvous site, 2.5 km and 0.5 km respectively,from each deer’s previous locations.Key Words: Wolf, Canis lupus, White-tailed Deer, Odocoileus virginianus, caching, radio-collars, den, homesite, Minnesota.68 THE CANADIAN FIELD-NATURALIST Vol. 125of the U.S. Forest Service for skillful and safe flying.We followed the American Society of MammalogistsGuidelines (Animal Care and Use Committee 1998)for animal handling and care in conducting research.Literature CitedAnimal Care and Use Committee. 1998. Guidelines for thecapture, handling, and care of mammals as approved by theAmerican Society of Mammalogists. Journal of Mammal-ogy 79: 1416-1431.Cowan, I. M. 1947. The timber wolf in the Rocky Mountainnational parks of Canada. Canadian Journal of ResearchD 25: 139-74.Fentress, J. C. 1967. Observations on the behavioral develop-ment of a hand-reared male timber wolf. American Zool-ogist 7: 339-51.Fentress, J. C. 1992. The covalent animal: On bonds andtheir boundaries in behavioral research. Pages 44-71 in Theinevitable bond: Examining scientist-animal interactions.Edited by H. Davis and D. Balfour. Cambridge UniversityPress, Cambridge.Hiestand, N. L. 1989. A comparison of problem-solving andspatial orientation in the wolf (Canis lupus) and dog (Canisfamiliaris). Ph.D. dissertation, University of Connecticut,Storrs.Magoun, A. 1976. Summer scavenging activity in northeast-ern Alaska. Master’s thesis, University of Alaska, Fair-banks. 168 pages.MacDonald, K. B. 1980. Activity patterns in a captive wolfpack. Carnivore 3:62-64.Mech, L. D. 1966. The Wolves of Isle Royale. National ParksFauna Series Number 7. U.S. Government Printing Office.210 pages. [Reprinted 2002. University of the Pacific, Hon-olulu Hawaii].Mech, L. D. 1967. Telemetry as a technique in the study ofpredation. Journal of Wildlife Management 31: 492-496.Mech, L. D. 1970. The wolf: The ecology and behavior of anendangered species. Natural History Press, Garden City,NewYork.Mech, L. D., and L. G. Adams. 1999. Killing of a muskox,Ovibos mochatus, by two wolves, Canis lupus, and sub-sequent caching. Canadian Field-Naturalist 113: 673-75.Murie, A. 1944. The wolves of Mount McKinley. U.S.National Park Service Fauna Series, no. 5. U.S. Govern-ment Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 238 pages.Nelson, M. E., and L. D. Mech. 1986. Mortality of white-tailed deer in northeastern Minnesota. Journal of WildlifeManagement 50: 691-98.Peterson, R. O., and P. Ciucci. 2003. The wolf as a carnivore.Pages 104-130 in Wolves, behavior, ecology, and conserva-tion. Edited by Mech, L. D. and L. Boitani. University ofChicago Press, Chicago, Illinois. 448 pages.Zimen, E. 1981. The wolf: A species in danger. DelacortePress, NewYork.Received 27 October 2010Accepted 16 November 2010

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Wolves, \u3ci\u3eCanis lupus\u3c/i\u3e, Carry and Cache the Collars of Radio-collared White-tailed Deer, \u3ci\u3eOdocoileus virginianus\u3c/i\u3e, they Killed

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