Popular destination in North Jutland: The wolf has come to Lille Vildmose

Recently, the Nature Foundation (Naturfonden) spotted a new visitor in Lille Vildmose.

Footage from a mobile camera shows the new animal clearly. There’s no doubt about it. There is a wolf who visiting the nature area.

Deputy director of Naturfonden, forest ranger Jacob Palsgaard Andersen, explains his observation and thoughts about the guest.

Jacob Palsgaard Andersen, how certain are you that it’s a wolf you saw in Lille Vildmose?

“I think everyone who’s seen the video on the website knows that it’s a wolf. It’s clear enough.

It’s a wolf. In the last few weeks, we have talked to experts in the field, and now that we have seen a wolf in Himmerland, it fits very well with the observations made elsewhere in Jutland.”

What do we know about the wolf so far?

“We don’t know much yet. We were talking with the research community and decided to set up extra cameras in the area.

We’re hoping to get some new footage and photos that’ll give us an indication of whether the wolf is staying in the area or just passing through.

In recent times, the wolf has been in Denmark, in Jutland, since 2012, when it was first observed in Thy, north of the Limfjord.

Therefore it is only a matter of time before the wolf would pass by Lille Vildmose. However, we can’t rule out that there have been wolves in the area before, and we are only now discovering them.”

What does it mean for nature and the other animals in Lille Vildmose that there is a predator within the area? Some believe it is unfair that wolves can hunt freely in an enclosed area while the other animals can’t run out. Can you understand the concerns?

“Yes, I can follow the concerns on some parts. But the wolf naturally resides in Denmark and is part of nature’s cycle. This is nature’s way –  there are predators and prey.

Lille Vildmose is a large area, stretching to roughly 6 x 12 km so there’s nothing unethical about a wolf hunting and surviving in such a large area.

The wolf is back in Denmark, and it’ll take time to get used to the idea.

We hope our monitoring efforts in Lille Vildmose will contribute more knowledge about any wolves and their impact on their natural habitat.

We will follow with great interest to see if the wolf has settled permanently in Lille Vildmose.”