Germany's wild wolf population has grown, with 209 confirmed packs

The number of wild wolf packs confirmed in Germany has risen to 209, according to new figures from the country's Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN) published on Tuesday.

In total, 1,601 individual wolves were detected across Germany during the monitoring year, which lasted from May 1, 2023 to April 30, 2024.

In the previous monitoring period from 2022 to 2023, the nationwide number of wolf packs was 184. For the current monitoring year, more than 40,000 reports and pieces of evidence from the states were evaluated.

The current report counted 535 adult wolves, 162 yearlings (wolves in their second year of life) and 781 pups.

In the previous period, a total of 1,339 wolves were counted.

According to the report, the eastern German state of Brandenburg had the most wolf packs with 58, followed by the western state of Lower Saxony (48) and the eastern state of Saxony (37).

The Federal Documentation and Advisory Centre on Wolves (DBBW) was involved in the publication. In addition to the 209 wolf packs, the report found 46 wolf pairs and 19 sedentary individual wolves living in Germany.

Wolf territory in Germany runs in a rough arc across the country from Saxony in the south-east through the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern to Lower Saxony in the north-west.

However, some wolves have also been confirmed in most other German states as well.

The report said the bodies of 193 wolves were found dead during the monitoring period, and most of them - 150 - were killed in traffic accidents.

Thirteen wolves were intentionally killed illegally during the period.

The BfN also said that five wolves "were removed as part of management measures," but did not provide further details about the removals.