The packs will protect their area from other packs or lone wolves. The size of each territory depends on the amount of prey available. In areas where there are large supplies of prey species the area is small but when food is scarce the pack needs a large territory to roam. Their thick underfur keeps them warm. The underfur is also waterproof because it is oily.
Wolves also have another layer of fur called guard hairs.
These guard hairs are smooth and hard and they allow wolves to shed dirt and moisture so that ice does not collect on their fur. Wolves can hear a sound in the forest as far as 6 miles away. This is important for them to communicate with other pack members and neighboring packs. Wolves also have an excellent sense of smell. They can identify animals from 1.5 miles away.