

During harsh times, dire wolves supplemented their diet by scavenging on carcasses left behind by smilodons. Their preferred diet was composed of horses, sloths, camels, and megafauna mammoths. Wild and domesticated dire wolves were mainly carnivorous animals that hunted their prey during the day. After the Ice Age, warmer climatic conditions made it difficult for dire wolves to survive in their habitats, gradually eliminating them from the ecosystem through natural selection. Unlike its close relative, the gray wolf, the dire wolf was adapted to low altitude areas where prey were in abundance.

The location of their remains shows that dire wolves predominantly lived in the open lowlands, from sea level to elevations of 7,400 ft. Habitat and Rangeĭire wolves inhabited the plains, grasslands, and rainforests of North America and semi-arid areas of South America. Moreover, like other carnivorous pack animals, the stronger male species were dominant in the group, as seen in some skulls where jaws of another speculated stronger dire wolf were found. Due to their caring nature, dire wolves were hunted and domesticated as a sign of prestige and security by their masters. In this illustration, a pack of dire wolves (bigger and reddish brown) feed on a bison kill, while a pair of gray wolves approach in the hopes of scavenging. Fossils of the animal indicate that wounded and injured members of the pack were fed by healthy members. Despite their aggressive nature, dire wolves were very loyal animals to their masters. Pups were not allowed to join the pack during hunting expeditions, and would stay in rendezvous zones awaiting prey from their mothers until they were at least one year old.ĭire wolves were renowned large pack animals that lived and hunted in packs. Mothers fed pups for at least one month before letting them out of the den. Females would carry pups for two and a half months, after which they would set up isolated dens to give birth. Due to the large size of packs, dire wolves were mainly monogamous and alpha males would mate with beta females upon reaching maturity at two years of age. Reproductionĭire wolves mated once in a year, usually between January and March. After the Ice Age, climatic conditions led to the extinction of the dire wolf through the process of natural selection.

Dire wolf pack series#
Dire wolves lived in both popular lore and pop culture, as evidenced in the HBO series Game of Thrones, and were adopted as pups in the first episode of the series. The majority of dire wolf remains were found in the La Brea Tar Pits, near Los Angeles, California. The species became extinct approximately 10,000 years ago, after the last Ice Age. It inhabited the plains, grasslands, and forests of the United States, from Florida to Alaska, as well as the savannah grasslands of South America.
Dire wolf pack license#
It is our intent to work within this license in good faith.The dire wolf (Canis dirus) is an extinct species of wolf that lived in the Americas. If you see any page that contains SRD material and does not show this license statement, please contact an admin so that this license statement can be added. To distinguish it, these items will have this notice.
Dire wolf pack free#
It is covered by the Open Game License v1.0a, rather than the GNU Free Documentation License 1.3. This is part of the (3.5e) Revised System Reference Document. *It also has a +4 racial bonus on Survival checks when tracking by scent.īack to Main Page → 3.5e Open Game Content → System Reference Document → Creatures Open Game Content ( place problems on the discussion page). Skills: A dire wolf has a +2 racial bonus on Hide, Listen, Move Silently, and Spot checks. If the attempt fails, the opponent cannot react to trip the dire wolf. Trip ( Ex): A dire wolf that hits with a bite attack can attempt to trip its opponent (+11 check modifier) as a free action without making a touch attack or provoking an attack of opportunity. Hide +0, Listen +7, Move Silently +4, Spot +7, Survival +2*Īlertness, Run, Track B, Weapon Focus (bite)ĭire wolves are efficient pack hunters that will kill anything they can catch.ĭire wolves are mottled gray or black, about 9 feet long and weighing some 800 pounds.ĭire wolves prefer to attack in packs, surrounding and flanking a foe when they can. This material is published under the OGL 1.0a.ġ4 (–1 size, +2 Dex, +3 natural), touch 11, flat-footed 12
