Researchers suspect wolves avoid inbreeding by some ability to detect family relations – probably smell. That theory got some confirmation last week when they saw the alpha male of the Junction Pack, Wolf 911, get frisky around his daughter, Wolf 907.

“She rejected the alpha male – her father – and wouldn’t have anything to do with him,” McIntyre said. “But she did want to breed with the No. 2 guy, who was not related. She’d go to him repeatedly, and they did breed. It was a clear example where females normally control everything, and that was the case here.”

Some days, it’s the lupine version of “Entourage.” The Lamar Canyon Pack has three males and two females. The alpha male and female bred together twice this year, and a subordinate male known as “Mottled Black” bred with a yearling female. But one day, things got complicated.

“Mottled Black did manage to breed once with the alpha female,” McIntyre said. “The alpha male was tied with the yearling female at the time when he saw them. He did his best to prevent the breeding with the No. 2 male, but he wasn’t successful.

“Meanwhile, the third male, No. 993, was totally rejected by the alpha female. She was more than happy to breed with the alpha male and No. 2, but not No. 3. She’d snap at him, and at times bite him.”