About the Book
Following eight major wolf personalities, Thinking Like a Wolf draws on decades of field notes to uncover the challenges and triumphs of Yellowstone's wolf packs, from the 'chief historian of the most famous wolf population in the world' (Washington Post).
In his latest book, award-winning author and renowned wolf researcher, Rick McIntyre, explores the intricate world of wolf behavior in Yellowstone National Park and highlights the individual character traits that allow wolf packs to thrive.
Unveiling power struggles, pack politics, the roles of family protection, inter-pack conflicts, and more, Rick skillfully follows the intricacy of packs and the unique attributes each wolf has. In these true stories, he celebrates the many lessons we can learn from wolf packs and the dynamic personalities that enable them to expand across new territories amidst adversity.
Weaving an impressive web of politics and power, family cooperation and commitment, rivalry and resilience, Thinking Like a Wolf provides readers with a unique window into the fascinating inner workings of wolf packs.
'Rick's writing is so vivid, so powerful, that I feel I have been right there with him among the wolves of Yellowstone.' Jane Goodall
Table of Contents:
Map of Northeast Yellowstone National Park
Map of Select Yellowstone Wolf Pack Territories
Map of the Journeys of Dispersers 755 and 890 In and Around Yellowstone National Park
Principal Wolves
Foreword by Frans de Waal
Introduction: Thinking Like a Wolf
1. Dreaming of Wolves
2. True Grit: 755’s Story
3. Living in the Moment: 926’s Story
4. Rivals: 970’s Story
5. Into Enemy Territory: 890’s Story
6. Won’t Back Down: 911’s Story
7. The Rivalry Continues: 907 and 969’s Story
8. The Nanny: 1109’s Story
9. Coup d’État: Black Female’s Story
10. Team Player: 1048’s Story
11. Building an Alliance: 907’s Big Gamble
12. Leader of the Pack: 907 Prevails
13. Humans and Wolves
14. Homecoming
Acknowledgments
References
Index
About the Author :
Rick McIntyre is a wolf behaviorist who has spent more than forty years watching wild wolves in America's national parks, twenty-eight of those years in Yellowstone, where he has accumulated over 100,000 wolf sightings and educated the public about the park's wolves. He is retired from the National Park Service and is currently a faculty affiliate at the University of Montana.
Frans de Waal was a primatologist and ethologist. He was the Charles Howard Candler Professor of Primate Behavior at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, director of the Living Links Center at the Yerkes National Primate Research Center at Emory, and author of numerous books including Mama's Last Hug and Different: Gender Through the Eyes of a Primatologist.
Review :
"Longtime wolf biologist and former Yellowstone ranger sums up decades of observing Canis lupus...McIntyre writes with clear admiration of the great qualities and accomplishments of the Yellowstone packs...Fans of wolves in the wild will learn much from McIntyre’s career-spanning account."
—Kirkus Reviews
"[E]ndlessly compelling...The author provides a treasure trove of information at the start, including maps of the parks, illustrated renderings of the wolves and timelines that record each pack’s principal members...Thinking Like a Wolf, and the entire Alpha Wolves of Yellowstone series, is a remarkable account of animal behavior, and a singular contribution to our understanding of wildlife."
—BookPage, STARRED review
"A gift to wildlife lovers everywhere... Rick tells the stories of the lives of these wolves, and it’s impossible not to learn lessons about how to live your own life... There is literally no one else who could tell these stories."
—John Wood, Golf Analyst, NBC Sports
"McIntyre has loyally apprenticed himself to the wolves of Yellowstone and they in turn have taught him how to live more courageously in the present. An inspiring and interwoven story of how the wildness we love can teach us to be more resilient, more resourceful, more of the human animal that we are."
—Dr. Ruth Allen, author of Weathering and Grounded
"Highly entertaining, gripping and fascinating – enter the wild world of wolves with today’s best animal story teller. A man who has spent more time than anyone watching and learning about America’s wolves. An incredible read for anyone who loves wild places and the beings that live there."
—Brian Hare, PhD, professor of evolutionary anthropology, Duke University; co-author with Vanessa Woods, of the New York Times bestseller The Genius of Dogs
“Rick’s writing transports me to Yellowstone, watching over his shoulder as these history-making wolf packs experience the natural highs and tragic lows that come with their territory. I challenge anyone to read this and not feel a primordial connection to these remarkable, complex animals.”
—Tiffany Francis-Baker, author of The Bridleway and Dark Skies
"This book is as riveting as any novel, and I was so entranced by the lives of these wolves that after just one chapter I canceled all my appointments so I could continue reading uninterrupted. Mcintyre’s deep observation, unfolding over decades, allows a rare look into the intertwined stories that bring the Yellowstone wolves to life—vivid tales of family, loyalty, friendship, joy, loss, and—above all—resilience. By the end of this book I was not just “thinking like a wolf,” as the title promises, but also felt that I was walking with wolves all around me. My love for them and commitment to their protection deepened with every page."
—Lyanda Lynn Haupt, author of Rooted: Life at the Crossroads of Science, Nature, and Spirit
Praise for "The Alpha Wolves of Yellowstone" series:
"Like Thomas McNamee, David Mech, Barry Lopez, and other literary naturalists with an interest in wolf behavior, McIntyre writes with both elegance and flair, making complex biology and ethology a pleasure to read. Fans of wild wolves will eat this one up."
—Kirkus starred review
"Like Darwin, McIntyre is an inclusionist and is thus able to enter the hearts and minds of wolves, providing us with a consummately rounded picture of their lives. Along the way, he creates a fully realized world that stands whole and sublime alongside our far more troubled human one."
—Mountain Journal
"McIntyre's stories of mutual aid among the wolves will remind us that all life is poised in an ever-shifting dance of competition and co-operation. We can all learn some lessons from McIntyre's beloved beasts."
—The Vancouver Sun
"A goldmine for information on all aspects of wolf behavior ... clearly shows they are clever, smart, and emotional beings."
—Marc Bekoff, Psychology Today
"Yellowstone's resident wolf guru Rick McIntyre has been many things to many people: an expert tracker for the park's biologists, an indefatigable roadside interpreter for visitors, and an invaluable consultant to countless chronicles of the park's wolves-including my own. But he is first and foremost a storyteller whose encyclopedic knowledge of Yellowstone's wolf reintroduction project-now in its 25th year-is unparalleled."
—Nate Blakeslee, New York Times bestselling author of American Wolf
"The main attraction of this book, though, is the storytelling about individual wolves, including the powerful origin story of one of Yellowstone's greatest and most famous wolves."
—Washington Post (on The Rise of Wolf 8)
