The Alpha Female Wolf

July 25, 2022
McIntyre (The Redemption of Wolf 302), a former National Park ranger, continues his Alpha Wolves of Yellowstone series with this vivid look at the life of the national park’s 06 female. Born in 2006, 06 “grew up to be a beautiful, free-spirited, independent wolf” who “demonstrates the critical leadership roles females play in wolf society and their undaunted courage.” McIntyre colorfully recounts 06’s many shows of assertiveness, as when she chased off a grizzly bear, or when she outsmarted two young males and carried away an elk leg they had hidden. McIntyre also describes 06’s offspring, including female 926, who took over leadership of the pack after her mother’s death in 2012 at the hands of hunters, which is recounted in a devastating scene. McIntyre has a knack for creative comparisons—when 06 kills a grizzly cub to feed her pups, he writes that if she “were a character in Game of Thrones, she would be known as Grizzly Slayer,” and when a pack kills two former members, McIntyre likens it to “a Mafia family killing... their sons who had become members of a rival gang.” Fans of the series will relish this dramatic installment.