Researching Wolves

11/06/2024

I’m very grateful of these metrics/interest in my research, to be 32nd out of 2580 tracked articles in Nature’s Scientific Reports is quite something - amazing, thanks to everyone who’s been reading my publication ❤️ 🐺 🐶 ❤️

07/06/2024

“A new study from researchers at Durham University has found that the process of domestication and selective breeding has limited the ability of domestic dogs to use facial expressions to convey affective states (emotions) as effectively as their wolf ancestor”

Durham University
Bio Sciences

A new study from researchers at Durham University has found that the process of domestication and selective breeding has limited the ability of domestic dogs...

07/06/2024

If you are attending the Welcoming Wolves Back Home (by the Sacred Wolf Foundation, see below) conference in Colarado (US) tonight, keep an eye out for my poster “the nine emotional faces of the wolf”! Be sure to scan the QR code to access the interactive segment of my poster!

06/06/2024

Live now on BBC World Service

“Research from Elana Hobkirk at Durham University has found that the process of domestication and selective breeding has limited the ability of domestic dogs to use facial expressions to convey emotions as effectively as their wolf ancestors. Whilst we may be easily manipulated by the 'puppy eyes' of our pet dogs, they are no longer able to display the same range of emotions that wolves can, who need strong visual communication to maintain their packs.” Quote from BBC World Service

Listen live to BBC World Service on BBC Sounds

06/06/2024

Tonight at 20:30 BST I will be on the radio for BBC’s Science in Action talking about my research!

Upcoming episodes of Science In Action

09/05/2024

Please enjoy my new publication in Nature Scientific Reports!! This is the first time quantitative evidence has shown that domestic dogs (depending upon facial feature and head morphologies) are facially less expressive than wolves for a range of nine emotions!! The sister publication to this study will be coming soon.

Big thank you to Dr Sean Twiss of Durham University Bio Sciences for facilitating my research!! 🐺

Dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) are the domestically bred descendant of wolves (Canis lupus). However, selective breeding has profoundly altered facial morphologies of dogs compared to their wolf ancestors. We demonstrate that these morphological differences limit the abilities of dogs to successfully...

28/04/2022

I will be giving a talk next month (10th May) at the Pint of Science festival in Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK!

Title: FACE YOUR FEARS! Unravelling the complexities of facial signalling in social canids.
https://pintofscience.co.uk/event/canny-canids-and-camera-traps

This is my first talk since my career break, so it is very exciting! Hope to see you there!

02/04/2022

Some canny canid maintenance is taking place...

Helloooo everyone! You’re probably wondering where the wolf research has gone? Fear not, it is going to make a come-back! I have taken a career break to start my family (yes that’s right, I have a …

26/03/2020

It is with a heavy heart that I announce the death of Takaya, shot dead. I will never understand the malice humans have towards wolves. Humans are driven by greed and self-gratification, while wolves are driven by a need to belong and to cooperate - humans could learn a thing or two if they just listened to the wolf.

A lone wolf that recently ventured into Victoria and had to be relocated by conservation officers has been shot dead.

13/01/2020

Celebrating the 25th anniversary of the of to National Park. These wolves reshaped the the landscape for the better and I feel privileged to have observed their descendants in the wild. One of my favourite sites I visited in Yellowstone was the last remaining holding pen where the original wolves were housed for acclimation to Yellowstone, and seeing one of the first sites ever created by the newly reintroduced wolves. Long may the wolves reign 🐺💕

On. Jan. 12, 1995, 14 wolves arrived in Yellowstone National Park from Alberta, Canada. It was the beginning of the National Park Service wolf reintroduction program. The program’s goal was to restore wolves to Montana, Idaho and Wyoming. Now-retired wildlife biologist Ed Bangs was the project...

12/01/2020

969F......I met this beautiful female wolf in 2017 out in the wilderness of Yellowstone National Park. An amazing wolf to observe, looking through my field notes I can see that I have wrote of her often......at just 7 years old she has came to the end of life - truly breaks my heart to be told of the deaths of the wolves I have observed during my research 💔 she will be missed 💔 Below is a passage written detailing the final moments of her life.....

Yesterday afternoon I watched for several hours as Junction Butte Wolf 969F struggled through the last few hours of her life. She would walk a short distance and then bed for about 20 minutes and then get up and walk again as if she was in great discomfort and panting all the time. It was clear from my observations that she was in great distress and I was quite worried about her. Eventually about 3 in the afternoon she took her last few steps fell to the ground and that was the last movement anyone saw from her. This morning some of us arrived very early Slough Creek and searching from the k**b eventually with the help of a stray coyote we were able to site her body in the distance near where I had watched her the day before. I've known this gray wolf since she was a puppy and now at almost 7 years of age she has finally passed after a complicated and very difficult life including a short period of time as the alpha female. Eventually the wolf project went out in the snow and retrieved her body so they could examine it and early evaluation seems to indicate that she was probably malnourished since she has been gone from the pack for about 3 weeks due to conflicts with other pack members and she suffered from a gash on the left hand side of her body which appears to have become very swollen and infected and possibly affected the lungs as well. The gash on her left side does seem to be consistent with a canine bite. As I said her life was never really easy and now she is at last at peace. She will be missed.
🐺 OldWolfPhoto.com. 🐺