On four paws through the wide world: Researchers have used genetic analyzes to demonstrate what they claim is the longest documented migration of a wolf in the world.
The “Canis Iupus”, which was born in Germany, is said to have traveled 1,190 kilometers and migrated to Spain, according to the Center for Wildlife Genetics at the Senckenberg Research Institute and Nature Museum in Frankfurt.
According to the scientists, the male animal crossed three countries. He is said to have come from his birthplace in Lower Saxony across France to the Catalan Pyrenees.
According to information, the wolf was last seen in a village there in February 2023. According to Carsten Nowak, head of the Center for Wildlife Genetics, only the collaboration of three laboratories in Germany, France and Spain made it possible to document this movement of spread.
The scientists determined that the distance as the crow flies between the sample locations in Germany and Spain is 1,190 kilometers. Wolves are known to migrate long distances, said Nowak. “The longest distance recorded by a wolf to date was 1,092 kilometers between Norway and Finland – our individual hiked a good 100 kilometers on top of that.” As wolves spread over long distances, distant wolf populations become connected, which helps prevent genetic isolation and inbreeding, the expert explained.
