A Howling Good Time

Are there wolves in Muskoka? Yes! But chances are you won’t see them. These beautiful but elusive creatures are hard to spot. If you aren’t lucky enough to see them, you may hear them howling at night. 

There are two types of wolves in Muskoka: the Eastern Wolf and its larger cousin the Grey Wolf, which is more typically found in Northern Ontario (they are sometimes collectively called Timber Wolves). The photo above is Akayla the Grey Wolf, a captive wolf at the Muskoka Wildlife Centre. Here are some interesting facts about wolves that you may not know: 

• A wolf’s sense of smell is 100 times more sensitive than a human’s and they can hear as far as 10 km away. These strong senses help make them effective hunters but also make them extremely hard to spot in the wild; they are very shy around humans.
• They primarily eat white-tailed deer but may also eat moose or beaver. Packs may travel long distances to find food; their range can be as large as 500 sq km but is more typically 150 sq km.
• Wolves have few predators: humans, bears and other wolves.
• Only the leaders of a pack, the alpha male and alpha female, mate to produce pups. Between 3-8 pups are born per year and are nursed by their mother for the first 6-8 weeks. Once they are weaned, other members of the pack help to feed the pups, first with food regurgitated from their stomachs and later with solid food.
• Scientists believe wolves howl for a variety of reasons: a single howl helps members of the pack keep in contact; a group howl may be used to defend territory or for social cohesion. You can listen to a pack howling here (recording courtesy of The Friends of Algonquin Park).

Every Thursday in August, Algonquin Park holds its extremely popular public Wolf Howls. If you’re planning to stay at Colonial Bay Cottages or visit Muskoka during August, you might want to consider adding a Wolf Howl to your agenda.

We still have some waterfront cottages available in August. Why not book a stay at Colonial Bay Cottages before summer's over? We're having one of the hottest, driest summers on record and the gorgeous weather looks like it's going to continue right through August. You can view our availability here.

From our Muskoka chair to yours,

The Howell Family

Wildlife Babies in Muskoka

Wildlife viewing is a highlight for most visitors to Muskoka and when baby animals are spotted, the thrill factor increases significantly. Who doesn’t like to see an adorable bundle of fur hanging out next to its mama? But you may not know much about these cute little creatures so we thought we’d give you some fun facts about the young of some of Muskoka’s most popular animals.

Black Bears - Newborn bear cubs aren’t much bigger than a chipmunk (1/2-1 pound). A litter of 2-3 cubs is born in the mother’s winter den in January or February. They start to get active within a few months and by the time they leave the den are capable of climbing a tree. Bear cubs grow rapidly – their mother’s milk is high in fat and protein – and weigh up to 9 pounds by the time they leave the den and up to 65 pounds by the time they are 9 months old. Cubs stay with their mom until they are about 1.5 years old when she is ready to mate again.

Beavers – A litter of 3-5 baby beavers, called kits, are born in late April to late June. At birth, their eyes are open, they are covered with soft fur and they weigh about 1 pound (.45 kg). They begin to swim not long after birth (the same day!) and within a month they will be able to hold their breath and swim underwater. When the kits get tired, mom will carry them on her back. Kits are weaned at about two weeks and don’t reach adulthood in their second winter.

Loons – The loons return to our lakes in April or May. They begin mating and nesting almost immediately, laying 2-3 eggs per year. The eggs hatch in June and chicks can swim and dive within hours of hatching. When they are tired or cold, they will sometimes ride on a parents’ back. Chicks are fed by their parents until they can dive and catch their own food at about 8 weeks. They learn to fly by about 11 weeks but don’t fly south until late fall, usually long after adult loons have left. The young loons stay in their southern habitats and don’t return to the nesting area where they were born until they are three years old.

Moose – Moose calves are born in mid-to-late-May, weighing 25-35 pounds at birth (less if there are twins). They are very vulnerable at first and the Cow (mom) will keep her calf hidden for a few days after birth. The calves can stand within a day, are capable of outrunning a human within a few days, and learn to swim within a few weeks. Calves grow at an incredible rate in their first summer, gaining more than 1 pound a day in the spring and later more than 4 pounds a day. By fall, the calf will weigh 300-400 pounds. In Ontario, the natural mortality of calves can be high due to extreme spring weather and predators. Up to 75% of calves may die in their first six months of life.

Wolves - A litter of 3-8 pups is born in mid to late April in a den site, usually a hole in the ground. The pups are nursed by their mom for their first 6-8 weeks. After weaning, they rely on other pack members to feed them. By July, the pups are big enough to be left in a sheltered area while the adults go hunting. Adult pack members carry food in their stomachs and regurgitate it for the pups. By late summer and early fall, the pups are able to eat solid food brought back by the adults.

Nearby Algonquin Park is an ideal place to watch wildlife. We hope that the next time you visit Colonial Bay, you’ll be lucky enough to see one of these adorable babies. You can view the availability of our waterfront cottages here. (And don’t forget – the May long weekend isn’t far away. It’s the ‘official’ start of the summer season in Muskoka.)

See you soon!

The Howell Family

Image via Flickr user MaugiArt