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Gray Wolf (Canis lupus)
Eurasion Wolf (Canis lupus lupus)
graue Wölfe
Population Statistics
Bevölkerungsstatistik (2019, 105 packs 3 – 11 wolves, + 25 pairs, 13 lone)
Legal Status; Protected
Rechtsstellung
Resources
Ressourcen
German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv)
Halle-Jena-Leipzig
The Parliament of the Federal Republic of Germany
Deutscher Bundestag (Berlin, Deutschland)
Senkenberg Biodiversity (Frankfort, Germany, Deutschland)
Polish – German Wolf Working Group
Organizations
Organisationen
NABU (Berlin, Germany, Deutschland)
Verein Deutsche Wolfsgemeinschaft
Wolfsregion Lausitz (Rietschen, Germany, Deutschland)
DBBW, die Dokumentations- und Beratungsstelle des Bundes zum Thema Wolf
German Wolf Association (Alemania)
International Wolf Center – Germany
News Resources & Publications
Nachrichten Ressourcen und Publikationen
Die Welt (Germany, Deutschland)
Die Freie Welt (Germany, Deutschland)
rbb/24 (Berlin, Germany, Deutschland)
Further Reading and Media
Germany’s Wild Wolves – As They Really Are (Documentary 2019) ZDF Enterprises
LATEST GERMAN NEWS
jüngsten deutschen Nachrichten LATEST EUROPEAN NEWS
Wolf and Wildlife News from Germany – Deutschland
- Unusual case of automutilation in a free-ranging grey wolf (Canis lupus) | Forensic Science International: Animals and Environments
13th Jul 2021
- Wolves back from the brink of extinction in Germany after 100 years | EuroNews
01st Apr 2021
- A Single Cave in Germany Is One Possible Origin of Early Wolf Domestication | Science alert
09th Mar 2021
- Spreading across Europe: Luxembourg a habitable region for wolves | RTL Today
15th Aug 2020
- Wölfe verursachen in Deutschland mehr Schäden als je zuvor | t-online.de
14th Aug 2020
- Germany relaxes law on shooting wolves | News | DW
03rd Feb 2020
- Germany relaxes laws on wolf culling amid attacks on livestock | The Telegraph
23rd May 2019
- Wolves return to Germany – along with anti-immigrant hostilities | The Independent
15th May 2019
- German environment minister Schulze takes aim at wolves | News | DW
04th Mar 2019
- Germany wants looser rules on shooting wolves | The Japan Times
07th Jan 2019
- Ancient Japanese wolf may be rare remnant of ice age wolves | Science | AAAS
25th Sep 2018
- A growing wolf population presents German politicians with a conundrum | The Economist
11th May 2018
Journal Articles
Re-Emergence and Spread of Haemorrhagic Septicaemia in Germany: The Wolf as a Vector?. Kutzer P, Szentiks CA, Bock S, Fritsch G, Magyar T, Schulze C, Semmler T, Ewers C. Microorganisms. 2021 Sep
ABSTRACT
Since 2010, outbreaks of haemorrhagic septicaemia (HS) caused by Pasteurella (P.) multocida capsular type B (PmB) emerged in Germany. In 2017, we noticed a close spatiotemporal relationship between HS outbreak sites and wolf (Canis lupus) territories. Thus, the main objectives of our study were to investigate the molecular epidemiology of German PmB-HS-isolates and to assess the role of wolves as putative vectors of this pathogen. We collected 83 PmB isolates from HS outbreaks that occurred between 2010 and 2019 and sampled 150 wolves, which were found dead in the years 2017 to 2019, revealing another three PmB isolates. A maximum-likelihood-based phylogeny of the core genomes of 65 PmB-HS-isolates and the three PmB-wolf-isolates showed high relatedness. Furthermore, all belonged to capsular:LPS:MLST genotype B:L2:ST122RIRDC and showed highly similar virulence gene profiles, but clustered separately from 35 global ST122RIRDC strains. Our data revealed that German HS outbreaks were caused by a distinct genomic lineage of PmB-ST122 strains, hinting towards an independent, ongoing epidemiologic event. We demonstrated for the first time, that carnivores, i.e., wolves, might harbour PmB as a part of their oropharyngeal microbiota. Furthermore, the results of our study imply that wolves can carry the pathogen over long distances, indicating a major role of that animal species in the ongoing epidemiological event of HS in Germany.
Green bridges in a re‐colonizing landscape: Wolves (Canis lupus) in Brandenburg, Germany. Plaschke M, Bhardwaj M, König HJ, Wenz E, Dobiáš K, Ford AT. Conservation Science and Practice. 2021 Mar
How the west was won: genetic reconstruction of rapid wolf recolonization into Germany’s anthropogenic landscapes. Jarausch A, Harms V, Kluth G, Reinhardt I, Nowak C. Heredity. 2021 Apr
ABSTRACT
Following massive persecution and eradication, strict legal protection facilitated a successful reestablishment of wolf packs in Germany, which has been ongoing since 2000. Here, we describe this recolonization process by mitochondrial DNA control-region sequencing, microsatellite genotyping and sex identification based on 1341 mostly non-invasively collected samples. We reconstructed the genealogy of German wolf packs between 2005 and 2015 to provide information on trends in genetic diversity, dispersal patterns and pack dynamics during the early expansion process. Our results indicate signs of a founder effect at the start of the recolonization. Genetic diversity in German wolves is moderate compared to other European wolf populations. Although dispersal among packs is male-biased in the sense that females are more philopatric, dispersal distances are similar between males and females once only dispersers are accounted for. Breeding with close relatives is regular and none of the six male wolves originating from the Italian/Alpine population reproduced. However, moderate genetic diversity and inbreeding levels of the recolonizing population are preserved by high sociality, dispersal among packs and several immigration events. Our results demonstrate an ongoing, rapid and natural wolf population expansion in an intensively used cultural landscape in Central Europe.
First wolves in Luxembourg since 1893, originating from the Alpine and Central European populations. Schley L, Jacobs M, Collet S, Kristiansen A, Herr J. Mammalia. 2021 Jan
The positive experience of encountering wolves in the wild. Arbieu U, Albrecht J, Mehring M, Bunnefeld N, Reinhardt I, Mueller T. Conservation Science and Practice. 2020 Jan
Molecular survey of tick-borne pathogens reveals a high prevalence and low genetic variability of Hepatozoon canis in free-ranging grey wolves (Canis lupus) in Germany. Hodžić A, Georges I, Postl M, Duscher GG, Jeschke D, Szentiks CA, Ansorge H, Heddergott M. Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases. 2020 Jan
Understanding the acceptability of wolf management actions: roles of cognition and emotion. Straka TM, Miller KK, Jacobs MH. Human Dimensions of Wildlife. 2020 Jan
An adapted concept mapping technique to help conservation implementation–Exemplified for wolves returning to Lower Saxony in Germany. Büssing AG, Jannink N, Scholz G, Halbe J. Global Ecology and Conservation. 2019 Oct
Wolf Conservation and Removal of Wolves in Germany–Status quo and Prospects. Köck W. Journal for European Environmental & Planning Law. 2019 Sep
Military training areas facilitate the recolonization of wolves in Germany. Reinhardt, Ilka, Gesa Kluth, Carsten Nowak, Claudia A. Szentiks, Oliver Krone, Hermann Ansorge, and Thomas Mueller. Conservation Letters (2019)
Attitudes towards returning wolves (Canis lupus) in Germany: Exposure, information sources and trust matter. Arbieu U, Mehring M, Bunnefeld N, Kaczensky P, Reinhardt I, Ansorge H, Böhning-Gaese K, Glikman JA, Kluth G, Nowak C, Müller T. Biological Conservation. 2019 Jun
Helminth infections of wild European gray wolves (Canis lupus Linnaeus, 1758) in Lower Saxony, Germany, and comparison to captive wolves. Bindke JD, Springer A, Janecek-Erfurth E, Böer M, Strube C. Parasitology research. 2019
Helminth infections of wild European gray wolves (Canis lupus Linnaeus, 1758) in Lower Saxony, Germany, and comparison to captive wolves. Bindke JD, Springer A, Janecek-Erfurth E, Böer M, Strube C. Parasitology research. 2019 Feb
Wild boars, wolves, and red kites; Schleyer C, Hagemann N, Rauchenecker K. . Routledge Handbook of the Study of the Commons. 2019 Jan
Emotions and pre-service teachers’ motivation to teach the context of returning wolves.Büssing AG, Schleper M, Menzel S. Environmental Education Research. 2018 Jun
Recolonizing gray wolves increase parasite infection risk in their prey. Lesniak I, Heckmann I, Franz M, Greenwood AD, Heitlinger E, Hofer H, Krone O. Ecology and Evolution. 2018 Feb
Coexistence of wolves and humans in a densely populated region (Lower Saxony, Germany). Ronnenberg K, Habbe B, Gräber R, Strauß E, Siebert U. Basic and applied ecology. 2017 Dec
Helminth fauna in captive European grey wolves (Canis lupus lupus) in Germany
JD Bindke, A Springer, M Böer, C Strube – Frontiers in Veterinary Science, 2017
Standards for the monitoring of the Central European wolf population in Germany and Poland. Reinhardt I, Kluth G, Pierużek-Nowak S, Mysłajek RW. BfN Federal Agency for Nature Conservation; 2015.
Wildlife value orientations as predicting factors in support of reintroducing bison and of wolves migrating to Germany. Hermann N, Voß C, Menzel S. Journal for Nature Conservation. 2013 Jun
Wolf (Canis lupus) feeding habits during the first eight years of its occurrence in Germany. Wagner C, Holzapfel M, Kluth G, Reinhardt I, Ansorge H. Mammalian Biology-Zeitschrift für Säugetierkunde. 2012 May