New wolf map shows documented sightings in Jutland
From Haderslev to Thisted, the ‘Cry Wolf’ map reveals DNA finds (red boxes) and wildlife camera trap photos (blue boxes) (Photo: Naturhistorisk Museum)
The arrival of wolves in Denmark has been a talking point among nature enthusiasts nationwide since the first wolf was seen back in 2012. Now, the Museum of Natural History in Aarhus – in collaboration with Aarhus University – has published a map showing the documented evidence of wolves in Denmark during 2014.
The map has been generated mainly based on DNA analyses of saliva samples taken from wildlife and livestock carcasses and photo evidence from wildlife camera traps.
”The DNA analyses differentiate between dog and wolf and have been utilised using saliva and excrement samples,” Liselotte Wesley Andersen, a senior researcher at Aarhus University, said in a press release.
“That proves that the wolves haven’t disappeared in 2014.”
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No proof of females
The wolf map shows that wolf DNA samples have been found over most of Jutland, from the south to the northwest, just north of Aarhus. Photo traps have documented wolves near Horsens, Herning and Thyboron on the western coast.
But so far, the DNA samples found have only stemmed from male wolves and the researchers had no documentation to support the ongoing public rumours that there are female wolves or pups in Jutland.
Earlier this year, DNA results showed there were at least 11 different wolves in Jutland – eight which hadn’t been identified before.
Of the eight documented, one wolf was found to have moved around to seven different areas in mid-Jutland and had done so since February 2013, making him the first official wolf resident in Denmark, according to a German wolf expert.