Dossier
Wolves
After an absence of approximately 150 years, the wolf has re-established itself in the Netherlands. This dossier provides you with the latest news, background information and results of Wageningen University & Research on wolves in the Netherlands.
Wageningen University & Research monitors the return of the wolf through DNA research. Faeces that are found are tested for DNA in our labs, to determine if they are wolf-faeces, and if so, from which specific animal. To this end, we collaborate with the German research institute Senckenberg though the CEwolf-consortium. This information allows provincial governments to take substantiated decisions on their policies regarding the wolf. Most wolves in the Netherlands lead a roaming existence, but the first female wolf has now settled on the Veluwe.
Fauna consultants also extract DNA from sheep suspected to have been slain by a wolf. Our research reveals whether a wolf is indeed the predator responsible for the sheep’s death within a month: the BIJ12 website documents these instances and the DNA results (only in Dutch). Each quarter a genetic profile is generates for these cases, to enable individual identification.
This is how our research works
News about wolves
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We must learn to live alongside wolves
- Wolves have returned to the Netherlands. Over the past few years, the animals have started passing through the Netherlands, with a number of them... -
Pregnant wolf Veluwe had pneumonia, but was otherwise in good condition
- In early March, a female wolf was roadkilled on the Zuidwest Veluwe. The animal appeared to be pregnant with eight embryos. She also had a serious...