If you have read the series of books or watched the show “Game of Thrones”, you have heard of a Dire Wolf.
Several of us in the animal department are heavily into the books or show and wind up discussing it a lot of the time. So, the Dire Wolf is one of the major components of the story and I knew there once were REAL Dire Wolves, but didnt know much about them.
Canis dirus translated to “fearsome dog” existed in North and South America between 300,000 and 12 ,000 years ago. I was amazed to read that about 4,000 have been found in the LaBrea tarpits alone!
If you think that this wolf was humongous because it existed long ago,sad to say it wasnt 🙁
They were almost 5 feet in length and only weighed at the most 170lbs. They had shorter and stubbier legs then the modern gray wolf and weighed 25% more. Their teeth were slightly larger too.
Even though they hunted in packs like other wolves, it is believed they went extinct because larger pray started to become scarce and they were not able to out compete the other species of wolves they coincided with.
Hi, I am a photo editor for Scholastic Inc. We are working on a book called “Prehistoric Predators”. I would like to know where you found your image of the Dire Wolf and Gray wolf skull comparison. My editor is interested in using it. Is the photo yours? Please email me if you have any information. Thanks! Emily
I will email you the details