Cyclist in the Hoge Veluwe films how he is chased by wolf | Abroad

The video shows the cyclist riding on a bicycle path through the forest. A wolf suddenly appears on the left. The animal appears between the trees and trots behind the cyclist for a while. He tries to shake off the wolf with voices and also cycles faster. Coordinator Glenn Lelieveld of the Wolvenmeldpunt confirms that the animal in the video is indeed a wolf.

It is unclear who the maker of the video is and when the images were made. The location is well known: it is a cycle path that is very popular with visitors to the national park. An earlier video also showed how a wolf in the Hoge Veluwe came within a few meters of a family with children. It seems likely that it is the same copy.

The wolf is internationally protected and may not be disturbed, chased or shot. However, the Nature Conservation Act provides the opportunity to do something against a so-called problem wolf.

For example, provincial supervisors are now allowed to deter too intrusive specimens with a paintball gun. “If the predators are hit, hopefully they will learn to stay away from people,” a spokeswoman said. The paint balls are biodegradable, but the dye will remain on the fur for a while. This helps to assess whether the measure is useful.

The management of De Hoge Veluwe previously asked the province for advice because the wolves eat the mouflons and disrupt biodiversity. Last week, the park reported that one or more wolves exhibit “unnatural behavior” and seek out humans on their own. The park management stated this in a report to the police a day later: animal rights organization De Faunabescherming suspects park employees of having deliberately tamed one or more wolves by luring and feeding them. That is punishable.

Paintball guns are also available in Flanders to warn wolves that come too close to people. For the sake of clarity, there is currently no reason to use them. “By hitting him with paintball bullets, the wolf will again associate people with danger,” says Dries Gorissen as coordinator of wolf policy. “A paint ball that hits the wolf will not injure the animal, but it will give a painful stimulus. In our opinion, this is a very good measure to teach young animals to be frightened by people. The unnatural behavior can possibly be solved in this way.”