Wolf Reintroduction to the UK is Required by Law
Wildlife Reserves and Parks Provide Habitats Until Wolves Return
Sep 16, 2009
Wolves in the United Kingdom! Bit late you might be thinking, weren't they wiped out over 300 years ago? Well, they were, but there are now some good locations to see wolves in an almost natural habitat in Britain. Moreover, the Wolf Trust is campaigning for wolves to be reintroduced into the Scottish Highlands, where the last community on the island lived before extinction.
The Wolf Trust Campaign to Reintroduce Wolves to the United Kingdom
The Wolf Trust states on its website home page that it 'stands for the understanding of wolves. We advocate a revival of the natural heritage of the Highlands of Scotland through a reintroduction and recovery of wolves.'
The Wolf Trust's case focuses on the Council of Europe's Bern convention, which stated that all efforts should be made to preserve native animals, and that if there are no longer any such animals in their natural habitat, they should be reintroduced.
The Wolf Trust website provides the following quote: 'under section A13 of Recommendation 17 of the Bern Convention: "Consider the possibility of carrying out captive breeding and reintroduction programmes in areas where the species has been extinct or is endangered."'
Wolf Parks in the United Kingdom: UK Wolf Conservation Trust
Although there are no wild wolves in the United Kingdom at the present time, there are several trusts and parks that provide the next best thing.
Probably the best example of this is the UK Wolf Conservation Trust's giant enclosures near Reading in the south of England that house eight wolves within three packs.
Sisters, Duma and Dakota, comprise the North American pack; Alba and his sisters, Latea and Lunca, are the first European wolves to be raised in the UK for over 500 years and they are the European pack; while siblings Mai and Mosi together with later arrival Torak make up the MacKenzie pack.
Other Parks Where You Can Visit Wolves in the United Kingdom
Longleat Safari Park in the south-west of England between Bath and Salisbury houses a pack of Canadian Timber wolves, and ten pups have been born to the alpha female over the last couple of years.
Howletts and Port Lympne parks in Kent specialise in protecting and reintroducing animals from endangered species, and they currently have over thirty wolves from the Canadian Timber and Iberian species.
Wolf Watch UK (WWUK) has rescued over a dozen wolves in its lush valley location on the English/Welsh border, and there are currently three resident wolves that members can visit at arranged times.
The West Midlands Safari Park contains a Wolf Wood and wolves, and the Highland Wildlife Park in the Scottish Cairngorms also features wolves.
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