Pack (canine)
Animals which typically predominate over others are associated with the term "alpha". Among pack-living wolves, alpha wolves are the genetic parents of most cubs in the pack. Such access to mating females creates strong selective pressure for intra-sex competition.
Wolf
Large wolf populations limit the numbers of small to medium-sized felines. Wolves encounter cougars along portions of the Rocky Mountains and adjacent mountain ranges. Wolves and cougars typically avoid encountering each other by hunting on different elevations. In winter, however, when snow accumulation forces their prey into valleys, interactions between the two species become more likely. Wolves in packs usually dominate cougars and can steal kills. They have been reported killing mothers and their kittens. Wolves hunt steppe cats, and may scavenge from snow leopard kills. Wolves may also reduce Eurasian lynx populations. Wolves may kill lynxes by running them down, or killing them before they can escape into trees. Similar reports of encounters between wolves and bobcats have been documented.