Return of the wolf

First young born in the wild in Denmark :

Denmark gets its first wild wolf pack in 200 years

 

Really good news.

 

And an article about the return ( re-introduction ) of the wolf to Yellowstone and its impact :

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/01/science/wolves-hunting-yellowstone-national-park.html

 

What European countries are left to be recolonized by wolves?

Netherlands, Belgium, Luxemburg, UK, Ireland. Any other?

 

In the Netherlands and in Belgium single wolves already have been sighted so it will only be a matter of time before these countries will be recolonized.
For the UK and Ireland re-introductions will be needed !

 

I would honestly shock me if the UK or Ireland ever tries a reintroduction of wolves.

Both are small countries on their own and the UK is very heavily urbanised now; with countryside areas very heavily farmed and managed. There's just not that much room for wolf-packs to establish a viable population that wouldn't need constant introduction and swapping out of males to maintain a healthy gene-pool.

That's without even touching on the bad reputation that wolves have (big bad wolf!) and the fact that the UK population has had many generations now where there is NOTHING in the wilderness to even cause the least bit of threat to human life; let alone livestock such as sheep/cattle/horses. We've had enough trouble with raptors and reintroducing them that a wolf would be out of the question.
There's one guy in Scotland trying and that would be the only place a reintroduction could even be trialled.



Mainland European countries have a bonus in that, so long as the boarders are not too heavily fenced/mined/walled the wolves can move between countries and thus not only have larger territories; migrate and also inter-breed. So even a very small country like Denmark can support wolves because those wolves have potential to move outside and interact with packs outside of Denmark itself.


It will be interesting to see though how the wolfpacks in Denmark behave and survive.


The only bigger predator that might get back into the UK is the lynx; wolves and bears and anything like that is likely out of the question. Wild boar are only present because they escaped captivity and maintain their own population; though I'm not sure if they are legally protected or if they are living on borrowed time in a kind of loop-hole situation (ergo present until they cause actual harm/damage).

 

First wolves also born now in Switzerland ( first in 150 years ! ) :

White Wolf : Switzerland has confirmed it's first wolf puppies born there in over 150 years! (Video)

 

Belgium now has a pair of wolves in the Flemish region, namely in the Limburg province. They are called August and Naya and they both descend from two different German wolf populations. They moved into Belgium in 2018 and found a suitable home apparently. Originally they lived in and around the military domain in Leopoldsburg/Beverlo, now they seem to be at home in the Bosland region (heavily forested region in Lommel, Hechtel-Eksel and Pelt). Earlier this month camera footage was released showing that a first litter of wolf pups was presumably to be born quite soon. So it looks like Belgium/Flanders has at the very least an attempted re-establishment of a wolf population.

As far as Wallonia goes, there have been sightings of individual wolves several times over the last decade and recently another one was seen in the region of Neufchâteau in the Luxemburg province, according to DNA research on scat an animal from the Italian-Appenine population. However there doesn't yet seem to be an established pair or a resident wolf in Wallonia.

To me it is a little strange that wolves have chosen to apparently establish themselves in the heavily urbanized Flemish region that is also surrounded by urbanized and industrialized areas across the Dutch and German borders - though admittedly in the least urbanized and most forested part of Flanders - rather than in the much more forested Wallonia. But I cannot say it makes me unhappy.

Unfortunately Germany has recently relaxed its laws protecting the wolf, making it much more easy to hunt/kill wolves in cases of agricultural damage (that means wolves killing livestock). I'm not sure what that will mean for the German wolf population, but it doesn't sound good - and to mean it doesn't seem to fit with strict European protections (i.e. under the Habitat Directive) and the strict exceptions therein to the protection of species like the wolf. It seems to be that the approach the Flemish government is so far taking - subsidizing farmers and keepers of livestock to improve their fences to keep their animals safe from wolves - is a better one.

I can come up with some sources later on if someone wishes, but I'm afraid most would be in Dutch.

 

Very interesting. I lived for a few years in Meeuwen. I remember the area had good populations of Rabbit, Hare, and Roe Deer. A lot of Fallow Deer too, although they seemed to be primarily secure behind high fences. During the time I was there I remember a farm which raised Bison between Bocholt and Peer. In Wallonia I’ve seen Red Deer and Wild Boar as well.

I used to ride the train north from Weert, NL quite often. In addition to the Roe Deer I’d see in small numbers along the ride and the clearly captive Fallow Deer, I’d watch the polders pass by filled with Cattle, Sheep, Goats, and poultry. Pigs and Horses seen less frequently. I really enjoyed those rides and watching the animals as we travelled across the countryside. Somehow or another this pleasure became a topic of conversation between myself and Dutch person I’d meet. I explained how I found the rides kind of thrilling as “nature” unfolded outside the windows...describing it as traversing something akin to a “Dutch Serengeti.” She raises an eyebrow at me and asked “you don’t have cows where you’re from.” . I’m from Texas!
;-).

I do remember thinking though that something like an Eastern Coyote (or even an American Red Wolf) would do very well in the Netherlands or Belgium. Even as populated and developed as the area was. I suspected that within a generation or two, the Golden Jackel would colonize the area. Pleasantly surprised to see Europe’s wolves might pull it off. Are the Netherlands and Belgium implementing any programs to compensate for the loss of livestock? Or is that not a concern. I guess Belgium’s Fallow Deer behind their high fences will be ok, but what of the “game” filled polders of the Netherlands? It seemed to me that many of them were protected only by ditches and hedges augmented by shorter fencing.

It will be interesting to see what happens. Hopefully there is room for wolves in pairs or small packs in the region.

 

I think the forests, heathlands and meadows in the Limburg region probably still have good wildlife populations. Those who manage the nature areas in the region certainly have done their best to ensure that in the last few years. In recent years the Limburg region has also seen a rapidly growing population of wild boar (who probably migrated there from Wallonia). The population has grown so rapidly in fact that wild boar are now making a nuissance of themselves (agricultural damage, damaging gardens, traffic accidents, damage to vegetation and other animals in natural areas). Lately the wild boar have become a big concern as African Swine Fever has shown up in Wallonia and is feared to spread, despite large-scale control measures. My guess would be that wild boar wouldn't be a preferred or common prey species for the wolf, given how defensive wild boar can be, how strong they are and what kind of weaponry they have. If other prey is common I doubt wolves would prey on wild boar.

The golden jackal seems to be naturally and by its own force expanding its range in recent years, into central and even northwestern Europe. Golden jackals have already been spotted in Germany, near the Dutch-German border and even in the Veluwe region of the Netherlands.

As far as compensation programs go... I do not know what the Netherlands are doing at the moment (and they have wolf sightings too), but in Belgium there is a procedure for compensation of wildlife damage, including the wolf. Also, there is a program that farmers and livestock keepers can get partial subsidies to construct fences that are designed to protect their animals from wolves. Both programs are run by the Nature and Forest Agency of the Flemish government.

It will definitely be interesting to see what happens in the coming years with these interesting wildlife species. Personally I do think that Flanders/Limburg probably has room for a pair or small pack of wolves, at least for a while.

 

Now its sure : first wolves born in the wild in the Netherlands after more then 200 years ! ( article in Dutch with video of the youngs ) :

Nature Today | Filmbeelden bevestigen: jonge wolven op de Veluwe

 

Unfortunately things haven't gone very well here in Flanders.

After being seen likely heavily pregnant in April, female wolf Naya was not spotted again, nor were her pups ever seen, and at some point her partner August was no longer seen carrying food towards the probable nesting area.

Research has not resulted in any trace of Naya and the current theory is that Naya and the litter have likely been deliberately killed by poachers.

The return of the wolf to Flanders has been controversial from the start and there are definitely people who never liked the wolves being here, including farmers, hunters and a substantial amount of people who believe Flanders is too small and densely populated for such a large predator. Some people really don't like large predators (and people who do like them).

There is some evidence pointing towards poachers, like baited hooks and snares having been found and poachers having been caught in an area they were not allowed to access, however there is currently no definite proof of what happened to Naya and who exactly did it, although the scenario seems sadly likely.

If these people are ever caught, they risk very serious fines, jailtime and a life ban on hunting. I hope they do get these pieces of excrement one day.

I also hope lessons can be learned from this to prevent such a scenario from repeating and to find ways for wolf and man to co-exist, even in Western Europe. It will not be easy.

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Wolvin Naya is dood. En wat nu?

 

That is depressing. I hope the culprits do get severe penalties, but this seems unlikely unless Netherlands is much stricter than the rest of the world. A huge problem worldwide in fighting poaching is that penalties for wildlife crimes are usually either unenforced or so minimal that organized criminals just pay the penalties as a cost of doing business. We (meaning the governments of the world) need to make wildlife crime a much more serious offense. We also need to somehow (I don't know how) lessen the demand for wildlife products (I am looking at you China).

 

Little correction @Arizona Docent : Flanders is part of Belgium, not the Netherlands but I also hope they will get those poacher(s) !

 

Agreed both in Europe and N. America too.

BTW: Flanders are our Belgian neighbours and it required more than a slight altercation in the 1820's for both NL and BE to be happily 2 separate nations.

 

In Spain the wolf is now a protected species and numbers are around 1500 - 2000 but farmers are not happy about it :

Spain protects Iberian wolves, but farmers howl

 

More on the controversial return of the wolf and human-wildlife conflict :

Beware the return of the Iberian wolf, say Spain's farmers

 

Estimate of wolf population in Germany was around 1800 wolves last summer. Still, the middle mountains and Alpine slopes are almost devoid of wolves, a lot of room to expand. Spain will lose the title of the largest wolf population in Western Europe soon.

 

It will do if it keeps culling them.