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unlimitedhearts · 5 months

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I’m dreading the third game of Spiderman might kill off Harry :/ either he’s goblin (solo or probably along with daddy-o) and dies a la Hero Sacrifice. Or kept comatose and in the end with grim results the decision is to pull the plug on him. idk I feel Harry’s fate is doom and gloom. But they could have killed Harry at the end of this sequel giving a strong motivation for Norman to be the Goblin and hatred for Spider-Man…yet they didn’t. idk rambling thoughts. What do you think?

Personally i can see both options. I saw someone in the tags of my last headcanon post say that it wouldnt make sense to save him from death in this game only to kill him in the next. On some level i get that, why wait when you could do it now?

I have two worst case scenarios in my head:

Harry wakes up from his coma w amnesia a la the third Tobey Maguire movie. Hes unaware of Pete being Spider-Man and Peter, thinking hes protecting Harry, wont tell him. This may cause a rift in their friendship when Harry finds out - or if Norman ends up going goblin and dies - Spider-Man is to blame in Harrys eyes and he'll go after him then. To me this is a tired trope of Harry getting an intense hatred for Spidey and wanting to kill him over his father. It always felt out of character for me and i truly TRULY hope they dont go this route.

Harry becomes the Kobold. In the comics, Kobold is essentially Harrys way of making the Green Goblin a good guy. If he still wants to fight by Peters side, he'll find a way to do it. Kobold would make a lot of sense to me personally, as it kind of continues their dynamic from this game. Then at the end theres a heros sacrifice to be made and Harry goes for it despite Peters protests. This would be lazy to me too though because he essential already did the heros sacrifice in this game. Seems like theyd just want us to have more time with him to love him even more, just to make losing him hurt worse. I wouldn't put it past an intrepid writer to think they could make it work, but it just seems lazy to me.

Actual best case scenario for me though? Harry wakes up as the g-serum is being injected. Hes against being his dads experiment all over again so he runs and finds Peter. Hes not aware of his pseudo-retirement, he just goes straight to the place thats always been his safe haven; Peters home. He asks Peter to hide him from his dad. Tries to explain everything but hes exhausted and frantic. Peter agrees and they take him into hiding.

Norman, ever the expert deflector, doesnt see this as a failing on his part. Hes convinced spider-man had something to do with his son escaping so he puts out a hit on him. Hes ready, willing, and able to capture and kill at least one of the two spider-men it doesnt matter. We see him pardon Wilson Fisk for this job, and when Fisk cant do it, he has to. Normans going to go Goblin. I know it, i can feel it in my bones.

Miles asks Peter to get back in action and he does. Fisk, plus potentially Otto again, plus this brand new villain in town is too much for any one person to handle. Heres where i see Harry becoming a "Guy In The Chair" for Peter like Ganke is for Miles. Two Guys in the Chair helping the spider-men is definitely better than one. I could also see Harrys goblin powers start to emerge but he keeps pushing them down. Last time he gave into power it didnt end well for anyone.

In an effort to not write out the entire plot of the game as i see fit (because itd be long and there are so many moving pieces and characters and IDEK WHERE THEYRE GONNA PUT SILK IN-), i think if Harry does take on the cowl he'll be doing so against his father. I think i see Harry becoming Goblin/Kobold to fight against Norman and ultimately try to help Peter/Miles. This is where i see Harry either accidentally killing Norman or Norman killing his son (and of course, blaming Spider-Man)

There is also room, in my mind, to bring back Venom a la Lethal Protector/Agent Venom. But tbh if they do, i would much rather Venom go to Eddie Brock or Flash Thompson. But thats just the separate Venom Fangirl Entity within me.

Ultimately my hope of course is that Harry not die and they dont go down that all too tired and hackneyed trope of Harry growing to hate Peter dor whatever reason. I truly TRULY hope they dont go that route it is just SO tired and lazy. I want them to stay close and loving. Whatever route they go with will be SO MUCH MORE IMPACTFUL if Harry Osborn lives and doesnt make a full 180 on his best friend for no good reason.

#harry osborn #peter parker #parksborn #if you squint #spider-man #marvel's spider man 2 #spider-man 2 #insomniac spider man #insomniac spider-man #insomniac games #spider man imagine #spider-man headcanons #honestly insomniac pls hire me #i would be so good at writing this game i care about these characters SO DEEPLY.#what do i need to do for you to notice me insomniac senpai #venetiangoldroz

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bodyguardbracket · 8 months

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Redemption Round 1: Nicholas D. Wolfwood (Trigun) vs Peri Dubois (Entropic Float)

[Propaganda Under Cut]

Nicholas D. Wolfwood: Vash is always followed by trouble and danger, partly because of the bounty poster at his name, so when his twin brother Millions Knives wanted him to go somewhere, he asked someone to go make sure Vash doesn't make himself killed by a bounty hunter, an assassin, or even a civilian, because Vash has an extraordinarily strong self-sacrificial habit. Wolfwood is/was employed by a church that worships Knives, and is one of their best elements, so he's the one who was sent to travel with Vash. He was supposed to be discreet about the whole protection thing, but Vash is scarily perceptive so he almost immediately understood why Wolfwood was traveling with him. He never hold it against Wolfwood. Wolfwood saved Vash's life countless times, he saved the people / town that Vash considers family, he changed Vash and they had a lot of deep discussions about their respective points of view on the necessity for violence, he was ready to die for Vash to be free. He had already betrayed the church (a bunch of pieces of shit that abused and hurt him and his friend for years) by trying to kill his handler, but for Vash he also betrayed Knives himself (yeah, the guy who had originally employed him. he's not a nice guy). Knives is considered an angel by the church, that's how powerful and scary he is. And Wolfwood went against Knives' plan, against Knives' men, against the church itself again, to free Vash from the clutches of his abusive brother. He almost died there and he was ready to if he meant that Vash had the chance to be free. He was supposed to gain Vash's friendship then betray him, because Knives wanted Vash to see how horrible humanity was, but instead he gained Vash's friendship, Vash's trust, Vash's love, and after he betrayed Vash and hated himself for it he decided to save him because Vash, Vash's existence, Vash's love, had saved him.

Peri Dubois: has literally been raised as a bodyguard. trained with a polearm. killed Abel's brother (called Charles) because he tried to kill Abel. had some sort of breakdown over that because she was supposed to be guarding them both, and couldnt she have resolved this without lethal force? still sees it as her duty to protect Abel, even though his parents vanished and he is now legally in control and literally just thinks of her as his best friend. theyre canonically in a qpr (not named as such in text but word of god says that it is and theyre on their way to figuring it out). theyre stuck together in a timeloop (with also twelve other people) and she gets anxious whenever shes separated from him.

#bodyguard battle #redemption round 1 #Nicholas D. Wolfwood #trigun #Peri Dubois #entropic float

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van-dyne · 7 years

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"im trying to protect her" *calls wanda a weapon of mass destruction* *brings a literal high schooler to fight his battle* steve is such a hypocrite. lol ok "So tell me, Steve Rogers, in what way would letting her go to Walmart be a good idea?" maybe because this is a free country and wanda has the right the to be free.

“Can I point out that Steve picked to take “She’s just a kid” Wanda into combat over combat veteran James Rhodes and indestructible android Vision?” not to be rude, but tony is the one who literally funded the facility where steve trained wanda and the others. FOR COMBAT. in front all the other ADUTL avengersok but wanda is at least trained. she was trained by fucking black widow and steve rogers. the best of the best. where tony just took a high schooler from his home. who has a life, a family, a place to live unlike wanda. and drops him in the middle of the battleground. like that’s so much worse. i love tony too, but goddamn that post is flawed.

First of all, if you have a problem with what is said on the post, why dont you send a message to those people who commented on it?? why are you venting out on me when none of those comments belong to me???? I reblog it because I agree with what the reblogged tags said, the first part of the comment, that is pointing out what Tony was going through up till that point, if you actually read what those tags were saying, here:

#Tony’s SCARED AS SHIT HERE; IS WHAT IM TRYING TO SAY #he’s not all Angsty Accountability Speeches anymore; he’s worried and fumbling #and then it all comes down to ‘GIVE ME A BREAK! I’m doing what has #to be done to stave off something worse’ oh my god fam HE IS SCARED OF WHATS GONNA HAPPEN#at this point he KNOWS HOW WRONG THIS ALL CAN GO FOR STEVE AND THE OTHERS #later on we see ross rubbing people’s deaths on tony’s face after bucky’s escape; telling him that if steve kept antagonizing he was gonna get shot. #ross holds tony accountable for the airport fiasco as well and says he deserved to be in a cell because OTHER PEOPLE escaped #like tony is viscerally aware that everything they’re doing; they’re doing with political AND LITERAL guns pointing to their heads #and that awareness is already present during the early berlin sequence #when tony’s line of argument has gone from Ideal to Pragmatic Shit - sign this so bucky won’t GO TO A WAKANDAN PRISON #I’m doing this because WANDA IS A POLITICALLY UNSTABLE WMD #he isn’t talking like the accords are the Right Thing To Do anymore #he’s talking like the accords can be ‘amended’ and they need to ‘put out the PR fires’ #and he’s behaving as if someone outside these walls had a gun pointed to their heads #(GLASS WALLS by the way THEYRE IN A LITERAL GLASS CAGE)

I did say in my tags that ‘#they both could have handled the whole thing better’, ‘#but tony has a legit point and concern and it’s out of fear and worry’ If only they can only sit down and talk and understand each other’s concern and pov, instead of you know, storming out the room. My whole point being is I don’t understand why people can’t understand Tony’s concern and worry, with Ross breathing down his neck, the accords, the UN, the media, the government, the families of the deaths, are all giving the Avengers, Tony pressure, and they’re never shy to express that they are more than ready to arrest Wanda. Tony is truly trying to protect and prevent Wanda from getting arrested by keeping her in the compound, under supervision of an other Avenger. He’s relying on the accountability that he and Vision (who signed the Accords) have to gain the trust from the government the UN and the rest in order to keep their hands off Wanda. So I guess to answer your ‘it’s a free country, Wanda has right to be free’ comment, sure, she can leave the compound, Tony’s will to keep her in the compound holds no legal authority, but then she will have to face the consequences herself, because you’re forgetting the fact that everyone is out for her blood at that moment, and that she is not a US citizen, the police can arrest her, and people are afraid of her power, so when they’re afraid they’ll try to contain/attack her and she will react and god knows what will happen because even she doesn’t have full control of her own power. Yeah it’s not a nice thing to say calling her ‘weapon of mass destruction’, but it’s sadly what the rest of the world sees her as after Lagos.

Do you understand the importance of having the public trust and good public relation in order for the Avengers to operate smoothly? The whole point of Civil war is telling you that the world, even the world with superheroes, is not black and white, just because you save some people it doesn’t cancel out the deaths you’ve caused, and just because you’re superheroes doesn’t mean you’re above the law and that you can ignore international boarders and get a free pass for the collateral destruction you’ve caused because you’re chasing the bad guys. There will always be consequences and the Avengers have to answer for it, it’s called accountability, and being accountable for your actions is how and why people would trust you. Without trust, the public would breed fear and resentment towards them, that’s why Wanda is better to stay at the compound and not out in the public until they can settle the incident in Lagos, because the public and the government doesn’t trust her. And like I said, Tony could have handled it better by personally speaking to her about this issue, he could have asked if she wants the protection, or if she wants to be held responsible of her own action, instead of making the decision for her. But I can’t fault him on his intention to keep her out of prison.

LOL and the second part of your comment is just the typical ‘how to prove Tony is worse than Steve 101′ argument, Rule No.1: always bring up how he recruits a 15 y-o into battle! even the discussion has nothing to do with that! just throw it in there! because it will make him look BAD! I’ve been through this x , x we’ve all been through it so many times, and it makes me wonder how many of you actually watch the whole movie and actually pay attention. You can fault him for being reckless to bring Peter in, but he also gives him a high tech suit specifically designed for him to protect him, and he sends him straight home when he sees the battle has escalated and is no longer safe for Peter. Also y’all always decide to neglect the fact that he did not go to Germany with the intention to fight,

Nat: Was this part of them plan? Tony: My plan was to go easy on them,

Peter: Mr Stark, what should I do? Tony: What discussed. Keep your distance, web them up.

Ross gives him 36 hours to bring Steve and Bucky in,

Ross: I’m putting Special Ops on this.

Nat: What happens when the shooting starts? What, do you kill Steve Rogers?

Ross: If we’re provoked.

After that, Ross’s team will start shooting, so Tony and Nat’s objective is to bring them in safely, by their hands, not Ross, and they clearly didn’t expect the scene would turn into a fight, a battlefield like you said. Tony brings Peter in, besides studio decision, is that because he has seen how Spider-man fight, he knows he’s strong and can hold his own, and more importantly, his fighting style is not lethal, Spider-man uses his webbing to capture the bad guys, which is exactly what Tony needs right now, that’s why he brings him in to help because for the love of god he’s desperate. He needs to make sure they have the upper hand and bring team cap in otherwise Ross’s team would come in and their style is shoot first ask question later. Y’all like to give him grief for bringing a child in, but ever think of if not for Steve and co, he wouldn’t be in that position being the human shield between Ross and Steve, and like I’m not asking for appreciation, I’m just asking for understanding. Tony makes questionable decisions but please dont pretend Steve is oh so much better and come to my inbox on your self righteous high horse :)

#ask #here we go again #sorry guys #tony stark #civil war discourse #long post ts #anon

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extraplanaire-blog · 7 years

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BODY SLAMS IN HERE so the group chat was lit, we’re ridiculous and that brings us to THE ESSAY I WROTE A LONG TIME AGO NEVER POSTED AND REWROTE NOW for your edification and also because i will never get over how good and great the jolly duo teamwork is

JOLLY DUO IS A GOOD DUO STRATEGICALLY, A CITED ESSAY

Okay, let’s start this with the topic of ‘the jolly duo is an ideal combination, especially considering alternatives, and per canon is probably the strongest duo that the guild has’.

The last point is pretty easy to prove, actually-- The guild seems to work in duos frequently, with Twain and Fitzgerald teaming up (Twain covering the things Fitz can’t or that Fitz deems security risks re. Atsushi escaping), Fitzgerald and Alcott being the usual combination (power and strategy), Hawthorne and Mitchell (two people with similar abilities, kind of, in a master-apprentice relationship), and John and Lovecraft (A constant duo that, unlike the others, has absolutely no rank imbalance, they’re both fellowcraft).

The reason they’re paired together and not in the Hawmitch situation of a fellowcraft taking an apprentice is because clearly they work really well together. They’re the two that Fitzgerald sends on missions directly into Yokohama, to challenge the agency head-on, and Fitzgerald even says that “with abilities like yours, even if [attacking the secretaries] is a trap, you’ll be able to take care of it”. With that, it’s given that Fitzgerald places a high amount of faith in them, they’re very powerful for what the guild has, and they are expressly designed to be a team. They were never split up for the sake of apprenticeships, and they’re sent to do the most overtly offensive missions that the Guild sets out on (Q’s doll, the secretaries).

Fitzgerald and the Guild treat the jolly duo as a juggernaut, and that’s what they are.

They’re a team that’s designed to cover all of the guild’s bases, as much as possible. They’re not necessarily deadly, but they’re more than ready to become such, while at the same time they’re not limited to only being deadly.

There have been reasonable things pointed out, like they never fight in tandem and their abilities hold the same function of mid-distance offense (hentai team i mean what), but the reason this team functions so well is because those things are not hindrances and relate to how they are expected to deal with adversity.

The way the jolly duo is designed to work and the way it does work is: The Guild faces an adversary that could be dealt with in multiple ways, but the end goal isn’t necessarily death. Lovecraft and Steinbeck are sent to deal with isaid problem. Steinbeck is motivation and intelligence. John’s a smart kid, he knows how to deal with problems and with people. He’s cunning and he’s (superficially) friendly, if there’s a way to get around a conflict by disarming someone into being nice to him or by tricking them, he’ll probably find it. He’s better at acting the way people expect him to act, and he can understand situations quickly. Lovecraft is none of these, so Lovecraft has to rely on John for cues on how to act and what to do, because Lovecraft doesn’t understand strategy. Lovecraft also lacks any motivation of his own outside of a crisis, and without John prompting him to go around and do things, he’d likely become too anxious or lazy to function until the last possible minute. When they go to attack the ADA secretaries, Lovecraft clearly has nothing in mind, he doesn’t know if he’s supposed to attack, and he very pointedly asks John what the hell theyre doing.

Lovecraft goes to John for what should we do before a fight has started, and John provides answers that Lovecraft consistently trusts and can rely on. He follows John’s orders very easily, immediately relaxing into “no one needs me and I don’t have to do anything, it’s fine” when John tells him that they’ll deal with the secretaries using the grapes alone.

pictured: lovecraft not giving a single fuck about being in the middle of a kidnapping op because john says he’ll take care of it

Lovecraft has absolutely no problem following John’s orders (which is something that’s also valuable, considering it’s very likely that Lovecraft’s personality would clash with most of the other Guild members’ and he wouldn’t want to obey them as easily. He trusts John greatly and consistently follows his cues with no complaint or argument), and trusts him inherently as a reliable source of what-to-do. Regardless on what anyone thinks Lovecraft’s ability to form relationships with humans, friendly or otherwise, he clearly trusts John to make decisions.

In converse to that, Lovecraft is who the team relies on when strategy has failed and they need only destruction. Like Fitzgerald and Alcott, it’s a heavily time-reliant brains and brawn dichotomy. Lovecraft waits until John is incapacitated to attack every time he does attack because that’s his only role-- when strategy has failed, when there is no option but to clear the field and murder all those around, Lovecraft steps in. His ability is deadly, when he pulls it out it’s assumed that whoever’s attacking is going to die. John acts first in order to ideally minimize the casualties and provide the non-lethal force necessary in, say, kidnappings. Lovecraft is backup for when John fails, because after negotiations and trying to keep people alive fail, really, the only option for something as ruthless as the Guild (and John) is to kill. You can’t lose a negotiation with someone who’s dead. Lovecraft is the equivalent of an atomic bomb, he is only present in order to destroy and John is the one to decide when he will act, because John’s smart enough to do that. In the Grapes arc, when John’s tactics fail, Lovecraft pretty much immediately neutralizes Kunikida and Juni (ance he gets around to standing up) and also immediately assumes he should kill them (but, again, he checks with John first because he respects John as being in charge). Lovecraft’s backup insurance who acts more or less only when he has to, but when he does act it’s to land a decisive blow that John might not be able to.

Because they rely heavily on communication and taking turns, the jolly duo is a team that’s very heavily reliant on mutual trust and cooperation to work, and the fact that their team does work so well evidences that they’re close friends and they do trust each other (despite john not even knowing what lovecraft is lol).

And I mean, they’re friends, that much is directly stated in the anime (and john’s VA is having a very good time in steincraft city so they’re also [wink wink nudge nude] “friends”, if u put any stock in his opinion that john’s got a doki), and they’re very close friends because of how much John and Lovecraft rely on one another in order to function in the Guild.

And function in general life, if Lovecraft’s constant checking up on what John’s doing in order to pass off as normal and their constant companionship is any indicator. They’re the only two that haven’t functioned independently unless forced, and haven’t functioned independently in a battle whatsoever-- without Mitchell, Hawthorne is still comfortable allying with Dost, and brainwashed or otherwise he attacks on his own. When John’s alone, he won’t even directly challenge or alert Fitzgerald, or use his ability any more than passively. Which is likely related to strategy, but it’s still a point that John could have attacked Fitzgerald when he and Alcott were talking and probably done fine enough, since Fitz had little money and they were in a wooded area, but chose to bide his time. It’s either he wanted to try and see if Fitz was redeemable or he wasn’t used to starting a fight when someone didn’t have his back when things went wrong, or a mix.

They’re a very, very good team, they work well together, in and out of a fighting context. They are

and it’s really unlikely that during the main guild arc, any of the other Guild teams would have approached them in power and efficacy

(IMO thats why they fought SKK, because theyre on par with SKK’s teamwork and why Lovecraft hasn’t come back to the plot yet, because with Lovecraft on John’s team, John would stop hesitating to act.)

like imagine SKK if skk didnt argue constantly and actually liked each other that’s the scale of good powerful teamwork we are talking here. their abilities aren’t necessarily complimentary, but they fill deficiencies that the other has and provide support that’s necessary to getting things done.

like u dont have to agree with me that they should hold hands and probably make out, but i do think u can’t really argue that they’re important to each other, they’re most definitely friends.

#ooc #this is really long and it states a lot that i think is obvious but just saying THE JOLLY DUO IS THE BEST TEAM isnt enough without providing #citations. these are the citations #headcanon #more like actual canon #i mean

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viralhottopics · 7 years

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Why wolves mate for life and 22 other interesting things to know about these animals.

In movies, wolves are often depicted as terrifying, snarling creatures that threaten our heroes.

What kid can forget the pack of growling wolves that chase Belle’s father right up to the Beast’s castle?

Authors such as Aesop, the Brothers Grimm, and Charles Perrault all wrote children’s stories where the “big bad wolf” was the ravening villain, willing to do anything to fill his belly even impersonate grandma for a chance to eat Little Red Riding Hood!

Over and over throughout history, literature, and movies, the wolf was used as a metaphor for trickery, evil, and cruelty. As a result, it’s easy to assume that these animals are actually something to fear.

But wolves don’t deserve this bad rap.

They are actually pretty amazing animals, and they play an important role in nature. For example, did you know that wolves can smell their prey from almost two miles away which is about 100 times better than humans?

Here are 23 other interesting and important things you might not know about the gray wolf:

1. Gray wolves are the largest member of the wild dog, or Canid, family.

Also known as the timber wolf, common wolf, or, in scientific circles, Canis lupus, the gray wolf is an ancestor to domesticated dogs. As adults, they can be four to six feet long and weigh up to 175 pounds.

2. Despite their name, they do not always have gray fur.

They can also have white, brownish-gray, or black coats.

3. They were once the worlds most widely distributed large mammal.

Gray wolves were found all across the Northern Hemisphere, including in North America, Europe, Asia, and North Africa.

4. But they lost much of their former range because of conflict with humans.

These animals were perceived as dangerous to humans and a nuisance to farmers, so they were often hunted, trapped, or poisoned. In the United States, a government-sponsored extermination plan at the beginning of the 20th century largely wiped them out from the Lower 48 states only about 10% of their former range remains in the continental U.S. today.

5. They are usually not dangerous to people.

Wolves are actually fairly timid creatures that would prefer to avoid people. Attacks on humans are very rare. In fact, there have been very few recorded wild wolf attacks on humans in North America. In the past 100 years, no lethal attack by a wild, healthy wolf has ever been confirmed in the Lower 48 states.

6. While we often picture gray wolves in colder places, they can actually live in a variety of habitats, from Arctic tundras to forests and mountains to prairies and grasslands.

But whatever habitat they are in, they still need access to a large area of contiguous land to roam with lots of prey. Wolves don’t like to stay in one place for very long.

7. Gray wolves are very social. They live, travel, and hunt in packs of seven to eight.

Each pack is usually led by an alpha female and male and is made up of their extended family, including pups and older offspring.

8. The alphas often lead the hunt for prey, choose den sites, and establish the packs territory.

How big one pack’s territory is, though, depends on how plentiful their prey is. Some packs occupy just 20 square miles, while others are known to roam over hundreds of square miles in search of food.

9. The alphas can mate for life.

Usually, only the alphas breed, in order to keep pack numbers down. They mate once a year, from late January through March, and the mother usually gives birth to four to six pups in a den about 63 days later.

10. When theyre born, wolf pups are blind and deaf.

And they only weigh about a pound. But they grow up quickly after about 10-14 days, they can open their eyes and ears, and by the time they are two weeks old, they are learning to walk (shakily). Then it only takes about another week for them to start venturing outside the den for the first time.

11. The whole pack helps care for the new pups.

The pups start off reliant on their mothers milk, but after about three weeks, they are ready to eat meat. Because they are too young to hunt themselves, all of the older pack members take turns hunting and regurgitating meat to feed the pups.

12. Pups only start learning to hunt with the pack when they are six months old.

They practice their hunting skills first by playing with both their siblings and with “toys” (bones and feathers). Then they start using the skills they learned from playing to hunt small animals before joining the pack on larger hunts.

13. When pups are fully mature, they often disperse from the pack.

Dispersing wolves have been known to travel 50 to 500 miles looking for a mate, open territory, or both. While dispersing, they usually travel quickly, as it is dangerous to be a lone wolf. One radio-collared Wisconsin wolf traveled 23 miles in one day.

14. Gray wolves have a complex communication system.

They communicate with each other through a range of sounds, including barks, whines, growls, and howls, as well as through body language, dancing, and scent marking.

15. Each gray wolf has a unique howl, which allows other pack members (and scientists) to recognize them.

This enables pack members to communicate with each other over long distances. Howls can be heard up to six miles away.

16. But they dont actually howl at the moon.

They are more active at dawn and dusk, though.

17. Wolves usually eat large hoofed mammals such as deer, elk, and moose.

But since taking down big animals can be dangerous, they usually hunt the old, young, sick, or injured ones so they don’t get hurt themselves. In some cases, they have been known to hunt livestock or pets which is part of how they originally got their reputation but only when their natural prey is unavailable, making such attacks relatively rare. One wolf is capable of eating 20 pounds of meat in one meal.

18. But they arent picky eaters.

They’ll also eat smaller prey such as beavers or rabbits, and they are known to scavenge. They even eat some insects, nuts, and berries.

19. They can survive more than a week without eating anything at all.

20. They can reach speeds of up to 40 mph when chasing prey.

But only for a short time. When the pack is on the move (not actively chasing food), they usually travel at 5 mph.

21. They are good swimmers, allowing them to chase prey in water, too.

22. Gray wolves play a key role in helping keep their ecosystems balanced and healthy.

Because wolves are apex predators meaning they are at the top of the food web they help keep elk and deer populations in check. This can help other plant and animal species thrive by preventing overgrazing or defoliation. Their hunts also provide “leftovers” for other scavenging wildlife.

23. Gray wolves need our help.

In 1978, the Fish and Wildlife Service listed the gray wolf as endangered in the contiguous United States, which makes it illegal to hurt or kill them. However, in recent years there have been a number of campaigns to de-list the wolf from these protections.

Gray wolves are still misunderstood and feared by people all over the country and the world. That’s why it’s important to keep dispelling myths about wolves because these animals are pretty amazing.