A wolf stands in a clearing in Bayerischer Wald National Park in Germany. SueTot/Shutterstock Two female wolves have settled into the Veluwe area of the Netherlands, marking the first time the country has had an established wolf population in nearly 150 years. The animals are being tracked by ecologists from several conservation groups including Wolven in Nederland . For centuries wolves were found throughout Europe, including the Netherlands, but people saw them as a threat and began hunting them. The last wolf was seen in the country in 1869, the group reports. Recently wolves began returning and occasionally were spotted in the Netherlands beginning in 2015. Those early sightings were thought to be animals that lived in Germany that would cross the border once in awhile, reports the BBC . But sightings continued to increase. At least eight different wolves were present in the Netherlands in the first half of 2018. Four were spotted between November 2018 and January 2019, according to Dutch News . Ecologists tracking the wolves via droppings and footprints told the BBC that their data confirms one of the females had remained in the Netherlands for six months continuously and can be considered "established." They […]
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