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Arctic wolf
Subspecies of carnivore / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Arctic wolf (Canis lupus arctos), also known as the white wolf, polar wolf, and the Arctic grey wolf, is a subspecies of grey wolf native to the High Arctic tundra of Canada's Queen Elizabeth Islands, from Melville Island to Ellesmere Island.[3][4] Unlike some populations that move between tundra and forest regions,[5] Arctic wolves spend their entire lives north of the northern treeline.[6] Their distribution to south is limited to the northern fringes of the Middle Arctic tundra on the southern half of Prince of Wales and Somerset Islands.[4] It is a medium-sized subspecies, distinguished from the northwestern wolf by its smaller size, its whiter colouration, its narrower braincase,[7] and larger carnassials.[8] Since 1930, there has been a progressive reduction in size in Arctic wolf skulls, which is likely the result of wolf-dog hybridization.[8]
Arctic wolf | |
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Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Carnivora |
Family: | Canidae |
Genus: | Canis |
Species: | |
Subspecies: | C. l. arctos |
Trinomial name | |
Canis lupus arctos Pocock, 1935 | |
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Historical and present range of grey wolf subspecies in North America |