Wolf in the Netherlands after 150 years


Wolves in Germany, source: www.ark.eu

From Dutchnews.nl:

Animal killed by a car was 98% certain a wolf, say experts

Monday 08 July 2013

The remains of a wolf-like animal hit and killed by a car near the Flevoland village of Luttelgeest last week was 98% certain an actual wolf, according to experts at biodiversity centre Naturalis in Leiden.

Biologist Jaap Mulder and mammal collection chief Steven van der Mije said judging by the teeth, fur and feet, the animal appears to be a female wolf aged two to three years old.

‘Dogs are quite different,’ Van der Mije said during the examination of the find on Monday.

DNA testing will determine finally if the animal is a wolf. If proved conclusively, it is the first time in 150 years that a wolf has surfaced in the Netherlands. DNA testing is being carried out in both Leiden and by a German institute.

Chip

The animal did not have a micro-chip implant, meaning it is unlikely to have escaped from captivity.

‘We know of one breeder in the Netherlands who is producing dogs which look as much like wolves as possible but they are very expensive animals and would be chipped,’ Van der Mije is quoted as saying by news agency ANP. ‘No breeder, zoo or wildlife park in our part of Europe has reported a missing wolf either.’

The Dutch wolf is likely to have come from a German pack and may have been on the hunt for a location to start a new pack, the researchers said.

Night

The distance from the border to the Noordoostpolder – about 80 km – can easily be covered by a wolf at night, the researchers are quoted as saying.

In April, natural heritage organisation Natuurmonument[en] said it would not be long before wolves were again roaming the Dutch countryside.

That month, a lone wolf was photographed near the German town of Meppen, which is just 15 kilometres from the Dutch border and 110 kilometres from Luttelgeest.

In August 2011, a wolf was reported in Gelderland near Duiven and in September another was seen in the Veluwe national park. But in both cases there was no photo as evidence.

The last meal of this she-wolf(?) before a car killed her, was a beaver, researchers say.

Dutch VVD political party thinking about shooting wolves: here.

When worlds collide: Wolves in the Netherlands past-present and future: here.

27 thoughts on “Wolf in the Netherlands after 150 years

  1. AUTHOR: JORGE LUIS BORGES

    “A WOLF”

    Grey and furtive in the final twilight,
    he lopes by, leaving his spoor along the bank
    of this nameless river that has quenched the thirst
    of his throat, these waters that repeat no stars.
    Tonight, the wolf is a shade who runs alone
    and searches for his mate and feels cold.
    He is the last wolf in all of Angle-land.
    Odin and Thor know him. In a commanding
    house of stone a king has made up his mind
    to put an end to wolves. The powerful
    blade of your death has already been forged.
    Saxon wolf, your seed has come to nothing.
    To be cruel isn’t enough. You are the last.
    A thousand years will pass and an old man
    will dream of you in America. What use
    can that future dream possibly be to you?
    Tonight the men who followed through the woods
    the spoor you left are closing in on you,
    grey and furtive in the final twilight.

    Like

      • I think wolves have such a bad press… there has been talk of introducing them back into Scotland but I fear they would be persecuted… I guess I’m thinking of my friends because they live on a farm and have animals which would be easy prey for them, which would lead to persecution of the poor wolves!

        Thanks for the link!

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          • Thousands of acres of our mountain ranges that would ordinarily be home to wolves has been leased out to ranchers who claim the Grey Wolf should not be saved/reintroduced because they will harm their stock. Seriously?! Wolves are the least of the dangers cows face when left to roam huge areas filled with rocky canyons, shale mountainsides, arroyos prone to flash floods, wildfires and that is populated with mountain lions and rattlesnakes. Bottom line is that ranchers (and other ‘special interests’) have better lobbyists than wolf lovers. 😦

            – And when all of the wolves are gone, coyotes will be the next “Villain” on the list of animals to eradicate simply because we find them inconvenient…

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            • Yes, you are right. Wolves usually stay away from the surroundings of farms. Dogs, who don’t have that fear, are probably more dangerous than wolves to livestock.

              Like

  2. What wonderful news of wolves… was it on your blog Petre that I watched an amazing video of wolves, and how every morning they greet and nuzzle each other, and have these tightly knit devoted families?
    The scene I hate in War and peace is the the wolf hunt and them bringing the mother wolf home hanging from a pole….makes me miserable to think of it…

    Like

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  11. And there I go writing a blog about this beautiful animal where I could just have copy pasted your stuff right here 😛 But in all seriousness, thanks for mentioning my blog in your article, I have updated my post with a link to this one (of course) and I thank you for the visit and the follow 🙂 clicked follow and will be busy browsing your articles for a while 😀

    kind regards

    Mavadelo

    Like

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