# Grey wolf (*Canis lupus*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/grey-wolf  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The grey wolf (Canis lupus) is a species in the family Canidae, order Carnivora. It has been recorded in 168 countries, most often in Australia, France and Switzerland. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | Not recorded |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | Not recorded |
| Main food | Poponejo, Lepus europaeus, moose, Bison, carrion, Rangifer tarandus and 30 more |
| Habitat | Not recorded |
| Gestation | 62 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 6 |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Recorded in | 168 countries |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Mammalia
- order: Carnivora
- family: Canidae
- genus: Canis
- species: *Canis lupus* Linnaeus, 1758

Synonyms: *Canis furlongi*, *Canis nubilus*, *Canis pambasileus*, *Canis petrolei*, *Canis tundrarum*, *Lupus gigas*, *Lupus lupus*

## Where it has been recorded

Countries with openly licensed sighting records on GBIF (records in brackets). Recorded sightings, not a definitive range.

Australia (48879), France (46019), Switzerland (15115), Norway (12833), United States (9608), Germany (3813), Canada (3752), Belgium (2985), Mexico (2614), United Kingdom (2074), Spain (1615), Denmark (1584), Sweden (1497), Portugal (1494), Italy (1292), Ukraine (1119), Brazil (1064), Netherlands (1060), Colombia (966), Russia (912), Finland (851), Estonia (667), Luxembourg (588), Japan (576), Chile (528), India (510), Israel (382), Türkiye (367), Greenland (361), Thailand (276), Austria (263), Poland (245), China (208), Egypt (179), Taiwan (154), Iran (139), Vietnam (116), Ecuador (109), Argentina (103), Indonesia (100), Kenya (93), Nepal (90), Réunion (83), Peru (79), Romania (77), Algeria (70), South Africa (67), Georgia (59), Armenia (57), Croatia (57), Grenada (53), Kosovo (53), Suriname (51), Nicaragua (47), Belarus (44), Belize (44), Greece (40), Iraq (33), Puerto Rico (32), Gambia (31), and 108 more

## Common questions

### Where does the grey wolf live?

The grey wolf has openly licensed sighting records from 168 countries on GBIF. The most records come from Australia, France, Switzerland, Norway and United States. These are recorded sightings, not a definitive range.

### Is the grey wolf endangered?

The grey wolf is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

### What does the grey wolf eat?

Its recorded foods include Poponejo, Lepus europaeus, moose, Bison, carrion and Rangifer tarandus, among 36 on record.

### How long is the grey wolf pregnant?

The recorded gestation period is 62 days.

### What kind of animal is the grey wolf?

The grey wolf (Canis lupus) belongs to the family Canidae in the order Carnivora.

## Sources

- [GBIF Backbone Taxonomy](https://www.gbif.org/dataset/d7dddbf4-2cf0-4f39-9b2a-bb099caae36c), CC BY 4.0, live API 2026-11-11. GBIF Secretariat. GBIF Backbone Taxonomy. Checklist dataset https://doi.org/10.15468/39omei accessed via GBIF.org.
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/), CC0 1.0, live API 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata, the free knowledge base.
- [GBIF occurrence aggregates (CC0 and CC BY records only)](https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/search), CC BY 4.0, live API 2026-11-11. GBIF.org occurrence search, country facet counts restricted to CC0 1.0 and CC BY 4.0 records.
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/), Per file, live API 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Licence and creator recorded per file.
- [English Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/), CC BY-SA 4.0, live API 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.

Cite as: Grey wolf (Canis lupus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/grey-wolf