More and more wolves have been spotted in Belgium in recent months, both in the northern and southern parts of the country, according to environmental organisations.
In fact, a pack may even be in the making in Wallonia if 'Akela' and a new female wolf spotted in his territory manage to have cubs, the Flemish association Landschap, the group behind the Welkom Wolf initiative, said on Sunday.
The pack could be formed this year in Hautes-Fagnes, according to Wallonia’s Environmental Department.
In its latest update on recent wolf sightings in Wallonia, the department reported on Friday that the female wolf, the first female sighted in the region since the species was declared extinct, is from the German-Polish line, like Akela.
She is known to have passed through Waimes, where DNA was taken from her excrement.
While she is the only female registered thus far in Hautes-Fagnes, three males are there, according to observations.
They are Akela and two males detected in January in Bütgenbach and Xhoffraix.
Another wolf was also observed in February in Assesse, but there is no DNA sample from it. It is possible that this is not a newcomer but, for example, the wolf caught on camera in Havelange last summer.
Then there is another wolf, detected earlier, that lives around Ebly (Léglise).
It can therefore be concluded that Wallonia is home to at least six wolves, two of them possibly a couple.
In Flanders, people still remember Naya, killed while she was probably pregnant.
However, there is a new couple there, in the Limburg region, according to Welkom Wolf. They are 'August' and 'Noella', who could be joined by cubs this year too.
A still unnamed lone wolf has also been detected in Herentals and Wiekevorst, in the Antwerp Province.
The Brussels Times
