In northwestern Alaska where Caribou (Rangifer tarandus) migrate out o
f the area for the summer we determined the 1988-1990 summer diets of
Gray Wolves by analyzing 1182 seats collected from nine packs. The num
ber of prey items per seat ranged from 1.1 to 1.9 (- +/- = 1.4). Carib
ou, Moose (Alces alces), microtines, and birds, primarily Ptarmigan (L
agopus spp.), composed 47 22, 11, and 14% of prey items, respectively.
Ungulates composed 90%, birds 7%, and microtines 0.5% of biomass cons
umed. Ungulates composed 3%, birds 50%, and microtines 39% of numbers
of individuals consumed. The number of individual Caribou consumed was
greater than the number of Moose consumed for all summers. The percen
t biomass consumed of Caribou was significantly greater (P < 0.05) tha
n that of Moose only for the summer 1988.