Martinf: We now have a few more wolves. How to prevent inbreeding?
“There are now about twenty wolves living in the Netherlands. It doesn’t sound like much for a healthy population. But wolves in the Netherlands are usually part of the population of the Central European Lowlands. This also includes wolves that live in Poland, Germany for example. Live Belgium.”
“When the wolf is about a year or two old, it leaves the pack and the animal searches for its own territory. Then it waits for the partner to form its pack again.”
“By the way, wolves from the Alps have been getting closer and closer in recent years. Ecologists see that as a positive. Because if an Alpine wolf has cubs with a Central European wolf, it’s good for genetic diversity.”
Radebruin: If an animal species has no natural enemies, you run the risk of rampant growth. In my opinion, the wolf in our country has no natural enemy. So how do we keep the increase within limits? Could humans be potential prey?
“The wolf already has no natural enemy in Holland. Or you should call the other wolves the natural enemy of the wolf. If there is too little wolf habitat, a battle for territory will start. Then the other stronger wolf will chase or kill the wolves.”
“In addition, a wolf will not have young if there is little food supply. This, by the way, is common in nature.”
“Wolves are naturally afraid of people. And so they avoid people as much as possible. That doesn’t mean they aren’t seen in areas where people live. Wolves like to use our infrastructure, like roads. And they don’t see that as a human thing.”
“In Europe, it is very rare for wolves to bite humans. This happened seven times between 2002 and 2020. Research shows that these were wolves that were hardly afraid of people and were used to finding food near people.”
“This is why it is also important that the tamed young wolf in De Hoge Veluwe National Park learn to fear people again.”
2:41Insinger: What is the size of the wolf breed?
“In a wolf pack, an average of four or five cubs are born each year. Not every cub survives. The number of wolves in Central Europe, of which most of the wolves in Holland are a part, is increasing by about 30 percent annually.”
Deunhouwer: Is it expected that wolves will be present in the dunes in the north and south of the Netherlands in the near future?
“Nice question! It’s not clear. In 2012, research was done on suitable habitats for a wolf. This showed that the dunes of northern and southern Holland are not suitable areas for a wolf.”
“In principle, wolves can live in any type of landscape, but they prefer wooded areas. The Veloy and much of the northeastern Netherlands are particularly suitable for a wolf. And a Horsterwold could be, too.”
2021: The Netherlands have four packages. How many packs of wolves are there? place in the Netherlands In terms of food presentation? What if there is not enough food in the Netherlands? Will they then move to Germany, Eastern Europe and Scandinavia or Belgium, France and the Alpine region?
“There are already four packs in the Netherlands. Three in Veluwe and one in Drents-Friese Wold. It is not known exactly how many packs are available in the Netherlands.”
“Research ten years ago showed that there is room for at least sixteen packages. But it could also be more.”
“The wolf determines, among other things, on the basis of food supplies whether an area is suitable to live in. It is therefore important to properly protect sheep and other livestock with wolf-proof nets. In this way, wolves do not learn to see livestock as a source of food.”
“If there is little food, the wolves exterminate each other in search of an area. At present, it is still the case, for example, that many red deer and wild boar are shot every year in Veloy, because there too many “.
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