Crossword Genius

Gloomy and down about female being beastly! (4,4)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

grey wolf

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'gloomy and down about female' is the definition.
I can't tell whether this definition defines the answer.

'being beastly' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'being' could be 'wolf' (wolf is a kind of being) and 'wolf' is found within the answer.
The remaining letters 'grey' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

I've seen this clue in The Independent.
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