What are the Ranks in a Wolf Pack?

Wolf packs have a clear social structure. Each wolf pack has more dominant individuals as well as those who rank lower in the hierarchy.

The main ranks in a wolf pack are:

1. Alpha wolf (female and male alpha)
2. Beta wolf 
3. Middle of the pack
4. Omega wolf (lowest-ranking wolf)

The alpha pair of wolves (male and female) are the most dominant part of the wolf pack. They lead the wolf pack and the rest follow. The concept of the alpha male in the pack is skewed because many people believe that they have earned this spot by fighting. In reality, a wolf pack is just a family of wolves where the alpha pair are the mother and father.

Ranks in a Wolf Pack

Ranks in a wolf pack are a construct by humans to better understand wolf pack behavior. While most of these concepts are true, they are often overestimated.

For example, the concept of the alpha male in a wolf pack is largely misunderstood. Today, many people connect the notion of the alpha male with human behavior. They think that the alpha male has somehow earned his spot by fighting or dominating other wolves in the pack, but it doesn’t work like that in nature.

However, these loose ranks are still present in every wolf pack. Here is how a wolf pack is generally constructed.

1. Alpha Pair (Male and Female)

The alpha pair – alpha female and alpha male – are thought to be the leaders of a wolf pack. These wolves are essentially the oldest wolves in a pack. As such, they are also the parents of the rest of the pack, which naturally makes them leaders of the pack. It is because of this that they are perceived as the alpha pair.

Alpha wolves are the most important part of the wolf pack. They lead the rest of the pack and command it. They decide where the pack will go and what they will do. However, they also have great responsibility – to protect the pack and provide for it.

In some packs, the alpha pair lead from the front as they find themselves at the front of the pack when they move around. However, often, the alpha pair will also be at the rear of the pack. The purpose of this is to protect the pack when it is on the move and enable it to survive in the wild.

The alpha male is normally the strongest male of the pack, but this isn’t always the case. The alpha female is the companion of the alpha male and the mother of the wolf puppies and the rest of the pack.

Related Article: Wolf vs Mastiff

2. Beta Pair (Beta Male and Female)

The beta pair of wolves are the second-oldest members of a wolf pack. They are subordinate to alpha wolves in the pack, but they are next in line to become the alpha wolves of the pack.

In larger packs, there is a second-in-command which is usually the beta male of the pack. In other cases, beta males are also determined who is the second-oldest member of the pack. In smaller wolf packs, there is no clear beta male since there might not be many competitors for this spot.

Like with the alpha male of the pack, the concept of the beta male is largely overplayed. For example, many people view the beta male as the subordinate to the alpha male and thus the less dominant wolf of the pack.

This means that the beta male is seen as “something less” than the alpha male. This translates to human social structure where some individuals are seen as the beta males because of this. This is a largely simplified concept, but the crux of it is partly true – the betas are usually subordinate to the alphas.

3. Middle of the Pack

Larger wolf packs have many wolves that are stuck in the middle of the pack. They belong to neither the beta wolves or the omega wolves, but they remain in the middle. Most of these wolves are subordinate to alpha and the beta wolves of the pack as they follow them around and look to thrive.

These wolves are usually the younger wolves that still haven’t found a mate. They will wait for the alpha and beta wolves to finish their turns when eating before they start to eat. They will usually also follow the rest of the pack when moving around.

Younger wolves aren’t placed in this category until they are sexually mature. That is when they become capable of competing with other wolves for dominance and they can also start to find a mate for themselves. This makes them eligible to form their own pack and become the alpha male of that pack.

4. Omega Wolves

Omega wolves are the lowest part of the wolf pack. They are usually lowest on the pecking order when it comes to eating – sometimes, these wolves won’t even get enough food to survive from animals the pack has caught.

The omega wolves will also provide relief for the alpha and the beta members of the pack. The rest of the pack might pick on omega wolves and might even fight them. They act as a sort of stress relief for other members of the pack, and an ego boost for those that are higher on the hierarchy.

The notion of omega wolves is usually seen with wolves in captivity or those who have enough food to survive. In packs that don’t get enough food, however, there are no omega wolves. In some packs, omega wolves might be kicked out of the pack if they challenge the senior wolves too often.

Conclusion

Every wolf pack has a structure that the wolf pack members have to follow. The most senior wolves are called the alpha wolves, followed by the beta wolves and the rest of the pack. The lowest members of the pack are called omega wolves which are usually used for ego boost or stress relief by the rest of the pack.