#biggest wolf

Wolves increase exponentially in size the further they are from the equator. Wolves of the tropics are often no larger than medium sized dogs, but those of the far north (Alaska, Canada, and Russia) can be in excess of 120 pounds.

The Dire wolf (Canis dirus) was the biggest wolf species, but is now extinct. The biggest wolf species alive is the Gray wolf (Canis lupus). 

I’ve never read about one certain subspecies being the absolute number one, but the Gray wolf’s biggest subspecies is considered to be the Mackenzie Valley wolf (Canis lupus occidentalis), also called Northwestern wolf. The adult males average 48 kilograms (106 lb) in Alberta and 40 kilograms (88 lb) in Yukon. 

Wolves increase exponentially in size the further they are from the equator. Wolves of the tropics are often no larger than medium sized dogs, but those of the far north (Alaska, Canada, and Russia) can be in excess of 120 pounds.

Some of the largest wolves ever reported:

- A male Yukon wolf (Canis lupus pambasileus) in Alaska in July 12, 1939 weighed 175 pounds [X]

- Here’s a picture of a male Canadian gray wolf that was shot in central Idaho in 2009 – he tipped the scales at 180 pounds: [X] 

- In the former Ukraine SSR, in the Kobelyakski Area of the Poltavskij Region during World War II, a massive wolf was killed that weighed 190 pounds (Source: Graves, Will (2007). Wolves in Russia: Anxiety throughout the ages, page 222)

- Larger weights of 202.8-211.6 pounds have been recorded in Ukraine, though the circumstances under which these animals were weighed are not known  (Source: Heptner, V.G & Naumov, N.P, Mammals of the Soviet Union Vol. II Part 1a, SIRENIA AND CARNIVORA (Sea cows; Wolves and Bears), Science Publishers, Inc. USA. 1998)