On the rehabilitation of wolves, from California to Germany

Wolves have been the subject of about half a dozen blog posts over the years, most recently here and here.  Many of those posts have focused on environmentalists' efforts to save them ranchers' war on them (both the wolves and the environmentalists, that is)  The links between rural folks and these natural predators is thus well-worn territory, so it would seem an oversight not to acknowledge here some recent reporting about the resurgence of wolf populations--in both Europe and the United States.  

The first is this Washington Post story about wolves in Germany.  The dateline is Luneburg Heath, and the headline for the story by Loveday Morris and Kate Brady is, "Wolves, once confined to fairy tales, are back in Germany, stirring debate."   An excerpt follows: 

Virtually extinct in Germany for more than a century, wolves are flourishing here once again — a rare success story in a world of diminishing biodiversity. One factor: German reunification, which extended protections in the former West Germany to the former East. Their numbers have increased more than sixfold in the past decade, with Germany now home to as many as 161 packs, or about 1,300 wolves.

But accompanying their rebound are attacks on livestock — and an emotional debate.

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The spread of wolves — through Germany and into Belgium, the Netherlands and beyond — has become an issue at the highest levels of the European Union.

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At a local level, the conflict pits farmers against conservationists. People on both sides have been accused of taking matters into their own hands: Hunting shelters have been burned down and wolves have been illegally shot and dismembered.

The second story, from NPR, does not mention conflict with ranchers but does report on the spread of wolves in California, in the Sequoia National Forest, 200 miles south of where the nearest pack were previously known to be.  

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife said Friday the pack was found in Tulare County — the farthest south a pack of wolves has been detected in the state in more than a century.

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CDFW visited the area and found tracks, scat and hair, and their DNA analysis found that all 12 collected samples came from gray wolves. The analysis found the new pack has at least five female wolves not previously detected in California.

Wolves are protected under the Endangered Species Act.  

Postscript:  Here's a story dated Sept. 12, 2023, from WyoFile about how Colorado wolves are getting killed when they wander into Wyoming. 

And here's one from this summer in the Daily Yonder, also out of California. It's about how the State of California is compensating ranchers for living near wolves.