The Wolfpack’s Strategy

A wandering jay perched on a stone near where a straggling wolf was gnawing the last scraps off of the bones of a young buffalo calf.

After polite inquiries as to the health of the pack–all fine, the wolf said, they having trotted off earlier after having eaten–the jay observed that surely this calf was from the herd he had seen on his flight in and he was glad that the rumors the jay had heard that this pack disliked buffalo meat were unfounded.

“No such thing,” the wolf asserted. “We vastly prefer elk. Its just that this small herd of buffalo wandered into this area a few years ago and displaced many of the elk. We tried to drive them off directly but in a herd they are too strong. Instead,” the wolf said, “we are whittling them down bit by bit, picking off strays and calves and relentlessly diminishing their numbers.” “It’s a fabian strategy!” the wolf concluded proudly.

“Indeed,” the jay said, “from what I could observe for every animal you have whittled down, they seem to have given birth to two more. You have diminished their numbers so greatly that what was once a small herd is now a very big one.” Then he flew off with a chattering laugh.

Moral: When picking a strategy, first do the math.