When groups of Canids howl, often it is not on the same pitch. There may be an evolutionary reason for this. The reason why canids do howl generally falls under maintaining territory + identification/locating.
My guess is that some benefits include:
- When a group howls at different tones, it allows the listener to ‘hear the size’ of the group. You likely want as many different voices as possible for that and howling in unison would likely not show the size as well. This can avoid rival pack conflict which is what howling often does.
- Multi-frequency is best to use at long distances. In a deep forest if certain frequencies are blocked, broadcasting on multiple frequencies allows some to pierce through. Thus a howl on different tones has a better chance of being heard.
Just some loose thoughts about #canids