Grey Wolf

At one time the Grey Wolf was the farthest-flung of all land mammals, loping across much of the Northern Hemisphere. Its prey includes livestock, which is why during the 19th century it was persecuted across central and northern European countries. Recovery started naturally in several remote parts across the continent and now the biggest populations are found in eastern countries, particularly Romania, the Balkans and Poland.

An adult male can weigh 40kg and is an average 150cm in length. The wolf is the second largest predator in Europe after the brown bear. Its main prey is moose and deer but it feeds opportunistically. It can adapt very successfully to the environment - anything from the hot central plains of Spain to the bleak tundra of Finland. It lives in sophisticated communities of family packs within clearly defined territory, with only the leading animals - the alpha male and female - breeding. The cubs are then cared for by the remainder of the pack. Wolves are intelligent and shy and prefer to avoid confrontation with people.

The wolf has been transformed in man's perception from hero to villain - and has suffered accordingly. When man was a hunter-gatherer the wolf was revered as a resourceful, powerful fellow-hunter. When man began tending sheep and cattle, the wolf remained a hunter - but became a competitor. It had to be eliminated and the extermination of the wolf began. This, together with man's encroachment upon the wolf's habitat, meant serious inroads were made on the animal's numbers. Today, however, the wolf is recovering naturally and there are between 15,500 and 18,000 in Europe.

Current threats & problems. The wolf suffers a negative image problem and despite its ability to adapt and therefore live close to man, it continues to take the blame - sometimes unfairly - for attacks on livestock.Actual figures for wolves taking domestic livestock are very low, but predatory activities, real or imagined, remain the main reason for attempting to exterminate the wolf.

The animal is hunted in some countries without restriction and in others licences to hunt it are issued without biological or ecological understanding of the situation. Poaching is widespread and is the cause of the biggest losses. Although it can coexist with humans, it needs safe areas in which to retreat. If this problem is not addressed, wolf communities will fragment as a result of moving into unsuitable habitat.

What WWF is doing. Conserving the wolf is an aim that now crosses all borders. WWF, partner organisations and individual experts are pooling knowledge and experience to give the animal a better future. A research programme over nine years has started in the Carpathians to establish better understanding of wolf ecology, relationships between wolves and humans and the threats facing the animals. Damaged habitat must be restored and corridors established between pockets of wolf habitation so that they can move freely and avoid the threat of local extinction.

The perception of the wolf - always a core problem - must be improved by educating local people, involving them in land management plans to aid the wolf and where depredation of livestock takes place, protection schemes with dogs should be instituted together with compensation payments. Wolves are adaptable and can live alongside humans given the chance.

WWF and its partners in 17 European countries have launched a campaign to focus attention on conserving carnivores, including the Grey Wolf. Its purpose is to maintain and restore, in coexistence with people, viable populations of large carnivores as an integral part of ecosystems and landscapes across Europe.

The WWF Campaign for Europe's Carnivores aims to raise awareness of the problems facing carnivores and to challenge people's negative perceptions of wild predators. It builds on other WWF initiatives such as lobbying for better protection for wildlife, reforms of the Common Agricultural Policy in favour of agri-environment schemes and ensuring that the European Habitats and Species Directive is translated into practice. The challenge of conserving carnivores involves ecological, economic, institutional, political and cultural factors.