As the weather has become more challenging fewer people are camping up in Killarney (northern Ontario) which is fine with me. I enjoy the solitude.  Temperatures drop to around freezing overnight – greatly enhancing the campfire experience.  I have visited this place three times in the past month and thoroughly enjoyed myself.   

Driving along  highway 637, which bisects this rich wildlife habitat, I like to take my time as you never know what may come into view.

A week ago while camping at Killarney Provincial Park I took a long slow afternoon drive keeping my eyes attentive to any wildlife in the area. As I passed the rocks, where I had seen a wolf a week earlier, I slowed even more than usual paying special attention. I imagined seeing this same animal again.

And, there she was coming around the bend in the road.

I quickly stopped my car,  reached for my camera (which I keep on my passenger seat ready to go) and jumped out. The wolf instinctively trotted away looking over her shoulder all the while in case she deemed it necessary to sprint for cover.

A beautiful creature, healthy looking, with thick fur covering powerful shoulders and abdomen and those very long legs.

Upon inspection I wonder if, indeed, this is the same animal I had seen about a kilometre away. Wolves have their territories. Local people have told me they have occasionally seen small packs – which are after all extended families – along the road side. When they hear a car they quickly dart into the woods.

I returned to Killarney this past Thursday. After pitching my tent – and laying out my sleeping pad and sleeping bag – I reckoned there were a couple of hours of good light remaining and headed out along the highway.

I saw the remains of what looked like a rabbit on the side of the road. A pair of crows were picking at it but they flew away as I approached. I wondered what might show up if I stationed myself nearby but for some reason I continued my drive. Eventually the sun had dropped low and I turned back towards my camp site. That’s when I saw a white wolf running along the side of the road.

She headed into the bush when she saw my car parked and me standing at the side of the road. I could see her trotting through the trees parallel to the road, her footsteps audible on the leaves that covered the forest floor. I took a few pictures in very low light conditions and got back in my car.

I returned to that region yesterday in the hope of seeing her again in better light. It was raining on and off  but the light was passable. I couldn’t believe my luck. The wolf was running along the road a few hundred metres in front of me. As I approached she vanished into the woods. So, I drove ahead a couple of hundred metres and waited. Out she came again and I was able to get some more images.

When I focused tightly on her I noticed she had bare patches on her sides and on her tail. That’s a sign of mange – a disease caused by mites buried into the animal’s skin. The irritation causes the wolf to scratch incessantly and even rub against tree bark to relieve the itching. It also results in a loss of fur.  Although mange might be cured this wolf will have to survive the winter and with it the dangers of both the loss of body heat and frostbite on those exposed areas.

I shared the images with Brent Patterson, who is both a wolf researcher at the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry and a Trent University professor. He confirmed it was mange. My excitement at seeing such a beautiful white wolf was at once tempered by the sadness of her plight.

Although medications exist to treat mange there is nothing that can be done for this wolf since she would have to be trapped and treated. Presently there doesn’t seem to be any initiative to handle this expensive management. Nevertheless, I am encouraged, after reading some Danish research that some wolves have survived mange. They appear to have tougher immune systems than other canids like coyotes and foxes.

I will hold out hope but nature can be cruel. 

 

25 Comments

    1. Paul E Gains

      Thanks, Mary. There are medications for mange but it’s a matter of trapping the wolf and being able to treat it. I met two people in Killarney who tried to trap a wolf with a baited trap/cage. That was about five years ago. They were unsuccessful. I asked a Killarney Park warden if wolves with mange could be tranquilised with a dart. He said it was dangerous to the animal to attempt this. Bears are another matter.

    1. Paul E Gains

      Thanks for you comment and for your interest, Jeff. It is heartbreaking to think that the odds of this wolf surviving the winter are not good. I have read reports that suggest wolves in large packs have a better chance of surviving mange. Fingers crossed for this beautiful animal!!!!!!

    1. Paul E Gains

      Hey Jerry. Yes, both of these wolves are stunning. It was a shock to see that this white wolf had mange. Some of the images I took really showed the advanced stage of fur loss but I thought they might be a bit too ‘graphic’ for a blog. Some wolves manage to survive. Hopefully she will.

  1. Bruce MacNeil

    Why do you say this is a White Wolf? Is it gradually changing from a summer coat to an all White coat. I would have called this a Gray Wolf given the colour of its coat but I know very little about wolves.

    1. Paul E Gains

      You raise a good point, Bruce. Technically, this is an Algonquin wolf – a hybrid of the Eastern wolf, the Grey wolf and coyotes. I suppose a white wolf would be more appropriately considered an Arctic wolf. I only described this one as a ‘white wolf’ since it has so much white fur on it when compared to other Algonquin wolves, which are predominantly grey. I have never seen a wolf with so much white on it! I hope that helps. Thanks for your comment!

    1. Paul E Gains

      All is well, Dave. Thanks for your positive comments. Covid 19 travel restrictions have meant staying close to home, which, can be a good thing. Lots to see in Ontario. Stay well!

    1. Paul E Gains

      Thanks Doug. Yes, this has been an eight year process of switching more to travel and wildlife journalism. Sometimes you get tired of watching someone run around a track, right? Many of my trips have been tag ons to sports assignments while others have been stand alone wildlife assignments. All the best!

  2. Teddy

    Hello Sir. I have a big interest in the preservation of many species of wildlife. Mainly Wolves and other large predators, raptors as well. I have just come across the carcass of a big canine. It laid on the trail head that leads to the animal overpass ( Killarney road and hwy 69( (400). Burwash farm road. Most of the carcass has been devoured by birds. No blood trails , but there was another set of canine prints leading away. I have a picture and can send via email. Shared interests??.

    1. Paul E Gains

      Hello Teddy, thanks for your note. Very, very interesting. I know the area you are speaking about as I have driven up and down Burwash Road looking for wildlife of all kinds. The military folks told me they used to see a herd of elk there….. up until a year ago. Last time I was there November 2022 I saw only bald eagles. My knowledge on wolves feeding on wolves is limited but I understand that under extreme distress they might just do so. Much to ponder!

Leave a Reply to Barclay Frost Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *