We all know the factual story of wolves in relation to Yellowstone National Park. The park was deteriorating because this cornerstone predator was missing due to over hunting. Today, a balance exists and the USA wolves are well documented.
By David Nield
It's not hard (click here) to find worrying stories about the state of our planet's wildlife, so it's refreshing to hear news with a more positive spin: a wild wolf has been spotted in Belgium for the first time in over a century.
Having been driven from much of western Europe through a combination of hunting, increased industrialisation, and wider urban sprawl, these animals are now making a comeback across the continent. Belgium is the last mainland country to have reported such a sighting in recent years.
Thanks to an electronic tag previously fitted to the wolf, we know it's travelled hundreds of kilometres, through Germany and the Netherlands, before arriving in Belgium, and more wolves may now follow.
"In recent days the wolf has stayed near the Flemish town of Beringen and the military base at Leopoldsburg," says Belgian environmental group Landschap. "The animal has covered 500 kilometres (300 miles) in ten days."
However, not everyone is celebrating – farmers in France, Spain, and Italy are worried about the threat these predators pose to their livestock.
For environmental and biodiversity campaigners, though, the news is definitely good. In 1979 the Bern Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats listed the wolf as a "a fundamental element of our natural European heritage"....
