A wolf was killed on Friday afternoon in Zoerzel in the province of Antwerp, according to non-profit organisation Welcome Wolf.
The wild animal had been spotted dozens of times in recent days, wandering peacefully around residential areas, supermarket car parks and the A12/E19 motorway junction in the Antwerp region. Several local residents were quick to share photos of the creature on social networks. The last images of the wolf were taken at 06:15 on Friday morning.
Soon afterwards, the animal was killed when it was knocked over by a car in Zoerzel. Its remains were taken to the Opglabbeek nature centre, where it will be examined to determine where the wolf might have come from.
"Among the options are the Netherlands, France, Germany and the Ardennes. But it could just as easily be a young wolf from Limburg," Welcome Wolf stated. The organisation said the dense infrastructure in Flanders had ended up being "fatal" for the animal.
Welcome Wolf advocates for the protection of wolves in Flanders and asks any sightings of wolves to be reported to their website. It also encourages the implementation of "risk zones" which aim to protect livestock and therefore minimise farmers' grievances with wolves.
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The number of livestock (mostly sheep) who fell victim to the wolf fell quite drastically last year, down to 78 compared to 149 in 2022. The Wolf Fencing Team (WFT) attributes this drop to reinforced security measures. "With the necessary adjustments, it is possible to cohabit with wolves without suffering any harm, while benefiting from this enrichment of biodiversity," it stated.
Like the rest of Western Europe, Belgium's wolf population has grown significantly in the last five years, with three known wolf packs now well established in Wallonia.
