The wolf rescued from death in snares is the father of four puppies
Photo from video trap. Source: association Wolf.
The wolf found in poacher’s snares in the Lubuskie province and saved from death became the father of four puppies. Dr. Robert Mysłajek from the University of Warsaw told PAP about the findings of naturalists who conducted observations.
At the end of February near Dobiegniew, Lubuskie local hunters found a wolf trapped in snares. The predator was immobilized with a steel cord, which firmly tightened on its belly. They immediately notified the foresters from Głusko and naturalists from the West Pomeranian Natural Society (ZTP) and the Association for Nature "Wolf" - said Dr. Mysłajek from the Institute of Genetics and Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Warsaw, representing the association Wolf.
Before members of the ZTP freed the wolf from a trap, in consultation with the Regional Conservator of Nature in Gorzów it was decided to fit the animal with a telemetry collar, which allows to track the animal. Since it was unclear whether the animal’s his condition allowed for immediate release, the association Wolf contacted a veterinarian to examine the wolf and take samples for laboratory analysis. Material for genetic analysis was also collected.
Naturalists from both organizations monitored the wolf.
"The information obtained from the collar, tracking and video trap recordings provided extremely interesting, and at times sensational information" - said Dr. Mysłajek from the Institute of Genetics and Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Warsaw.
It turned out that the rescued wolf and his family group penetrate a huge area of almost 400 km2. This covers mainly forests administered by the Forest Districts Smolarz and the Krzyż, but also the southern part of the Drawa National Park, and the outskirts of forest districts Głusko and Człopa. It was also determined that the wolf is the leader of the group, and when it was stuck in snares, his partner was already pregnant. The collected data showed that their puppies were born in the second half of April.
The ultimate proof of this were recordings from video traps set by the members of the Association for Nature "Wolf". Biologists also managed to record four healthy puppies. You can watch the video here: https://youtu.be/QkuAZzY46q0
"Thanks to the collar we know that the wolf rescued from a cruel death takes care of his offspring and regularly provides them with food. If he died in poacher’s snares, his partner would have to assume all parental responsibilities. Without quick response and cooperation of foresters, hunters and naturalists, puppies would not have such a good care, and their survival would be uncertain" - said Dr. Mysłajek.
The expert said that the future to DNA analysis will allow to detect the presence of adult descendants of the rescued wolf in the other forest complexes in Poland and abroad.
PAP - Science and Scholarship in Poland
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