What is the niche of the arctic wolf in Alaska?
The arctic wolf keeps caribou herds healthy. How does this happen? Wolves cull out the weak, slow, and lame caribou so only the strongest, fastest, and healthiest animals generally survive to pass on these strong healthy genes to offspring when they mate. This is called natural selection I believe, but I will need to check on that. Without the wolf caribou would quickly exceed the carrying capacity of the environment, that is the maximum number of animals of one species the ecosystem can support before a dramatic population crash inevitably ensues. The herds would eat everything in sight and then there would be no more food for the unnaturally large populations. They would all quickly perish in a phenomena that is not completely understood by scientists today. Blind, lame, and deaf caribou would be able to survive before the population crash and pass on their inferior genes to offspring. FYI: The range of the arctic wolf is nowhere near Alaska. Their range is northern and eastern Canad
