LARGE NORWEGIAN WOLVES - BITE, FIGHT & FLIGHT
Summary
TLDRThis episode of Animal Watch explores the wolves of Norway, focusing on their survival, conservation efforts, and the natural beauty of their habitat. The Norwegian wolf, once hunted to near extinction, now struggles to survive with only a small population remaining. The host visits Polar Park, where wolves live peacefully, showcasing their timid and misunderstood nature. Viewers experience interactions with the wolves, learn about their behavior, and the challenges they face. The episode concludes with a glimpse into Polar Park's luxurious Wolf Lodge and efforts to protect these majestic animals.
Takeaways
- 🌍 Norway offers a vast and rugged wilderness, perfect for predators like wolves, with extreme seasonal contrasts between dark winters and endless summer days.
- 🐺 Norwegian wolves were poached to extinction in the 1960s but have slowly returned through migration from Sweden, Finland, and Russia, repopulating the southeastern corner.
- 🔢 Currently, around 100 wolves remain in Norway, with only 4-6 breeding pairs allowed to survive annually, as they are still culled through government-issued permits.
- 🚶♀️ The presenter visits Polar Park, located in the Arctic Circle, where a pack of Norwegian wolves live peacefully and serve as ambassadors for the species.
- 🐾 Wolves are portrayed as timid and gentle creatures, contrary to the historical label of 'man-eaters.' Proper behavior, like staying calm and letting wolves lick inside the mouth, helps build trust with them.
- 👑 The pack hierarchy is strict, with the alpha male, Braga, and alpha female, Merit, requiring respect, while lower-ranking wolves must be greeted afterward to avoid conflict.
- 🌲 Norwegian wolves are physically distinct, with reddish coats, and their diet primarily consists of moose, deer, and other small mammals.
- ⏳ Wolves in the wild typically live up to 6-10 years due to various dangers like poaching and starvation, though they can reach 20 years in captivity.
- 🏞 Polar Park offers visitors a unique experience, including the luxurious Wolf Lodge, where guests can stay near the wolves and under the northern lights.
- 🌐 Polar Park is actively working on a new predator program aimed at reducing wolf-human conflicts by collaborating with local farmers.
Q & A
What is the main focus of this episode of Animal Watch?
-The episode focuses on the wolves of Norway, their history, their struggles for survival, and their behavior in the wild.
Why did wolves go extinct in Norway in the 1960s?
-Wolves were poached and hunted to extinction in Norway in the 1960s.
How did wolves begin to repopulate Norway after their extinction?
-Wolves began to repopulate Norway through gradual migration from Finland and Russia, settling in the southeastern corner of the country.
How many wolves are currently living in Norway?
-There are approximately 100 wolves living in a shared pocket between Norway and Sweden, with only 4 to 6 breeding pairs allowed to survive.
What is the significance of Polar Park for Norwegian wolves?
-Polar Park is a sanctuary in the Arctic Circle where wolves live in peace, acting as ambassadors for the true nature of wolves, showcasing that they are timid and gentle creatures.
How do wolves greet one another, and why is it important for humans to respect this behavior?
-Wolves greet by licking inside each other’s mouths to gather information about their health and well-being. Humans should allow this to build trust with wolves.
Why are women often more readily accepted by wolves compared to men?
-Women are often more accepted by wolves because they tend to have calmer, gentler body movements, while men have heavier movements and deeper voices, which can appear more threatening to wolves.
What are the differences between Scandinavian wolves and North American timber wolves?
-Scandinavian wolves tend to have a reddish tinge to their coat, while North American timber wolves do not typically have this coloration.
What is the average lifespan of a wolf in the wild versus in captivity?
-In the wild, wolves live for around 6 years due to threats like poaching, disease, and starvation, but they can live up to 20 years in captivity.
What is Polar Park doing to support wolf conservation in Norway?
-Polar Park is working on a predator program aimed at reducing wolf-human conflict by collaborating with farmers, with the hope of improving wolf conservation in Norway.
Outlines
🐺 The Wolves of Norway: A Struggle for Survival
This paragraph introduces the Norwegian wilderness as a perfect habitat for wolves, though the species has faced challenges. Wolves in Norway were once hunted to extinction by the 1960s but have slowly been repopulating through migration from Finland and Russia. However, their numbers remain critically low, with only 100 individuals surviving in a shared area between Norway and Sweden. The government permits annual culls, leaving only a few breeding pairs. The narrative shifts to a visit to Polar Park, where wolves live in peace and are ambassadors for their species. The speaker emphasizes the wolves' gentle nature, challenging common misconceptions of them being dangerous.
🌲 Meeting the Wolves: Alpha Leaders and Pack Dynamics
The speaker introduces the wolves in Polar Park: Braga (alpha male), Marit (alpha female), and Frigg (a lower-ranking sibling). They were born in 2014, making them five years old at the time of the visit. Polar Park is one of the few places in Europe where you can observe wolves this far north. The speaker discusses Norway's limited wolf population of around 68 due to public opposition to their presence. The wolves are in full winter coat, and the speaker expresses their amazement at their beauty. After a brief howl, which rallies the wolves, the pack settles down again. The narrator shares insights about Scandinavian wolves, their size, diet, and lifespan.
🏞️ Wolf Lodge Experience: A Unique Close Encounter
The speaker describes the unique experience of staying at the exclusive Wolf Lodge in Polar Park, where visitors can live among the wolves under the northern lights. They recount the wolves' behaviors, mentioning their beautiful reddish-tinged coats. The speaker notes that wolves in the wild have shorter lifespans due to various dangers but can live up to 20 years in captivity. The segment ends with an invitation to visit the lodge, though it comes at a premium price, with luxurious amenities like a personal butler, cook, and massage therapist. The speaker expresses hope for better wolf conservation efforts in Norway, highlighting Polar Park's efforts to reduce human-wolf conflict.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Norwegian Wolf
💡Polar Park
💡Wolf Culling
💡Pack Order
💡Alpha Male and Female
💡Wolf Communication
💡Human-Wolf Interaction
💡Conservation
💡Wolf Lodge
💡Endangered Species
Highlights
Norway's wilderness provides a remote, rugged, and breathtaking habitat for wolves, contrasting dark winters and endless summer days.
Wolves were once extinct in Norway due to poaching, but migration from Finland and Russia helped repopulate the southeastern region.
Despite repopulation, only 100 Norwegian wolves remain, with just 4-6 breeding pairs allowed to survive due to annual government culls.
Norwegian wolves are critically endangered and heavily misunderstood, often labeled as dangerous predators, despite their timid nature.
Polar Park, located in the Arctic Circle, serves as a sanctuary for Norwegian wolves, offering a space where they can live peacefully.
When meeting wolves, calm and gentle behavior is crucial to gain their trust, with the wolves often greeting by licking the inside of the mouth.
Female wolves are more likely to accept human interactions, as male humans can appear more threatening due to their size and deeper voices.
The pack structure is strictly enforced, with wolves like Marit, the alpha female, and Braga, the alpha male, maintaining dominance.
Wolf altercations over attention can be intense but brief, highlighting the intricate social dynamics within a wolf pack.
Scandinavian wolves are slightly smaller than their North American counterparts, with males averaging 50 kg and females 30 kg.
Wolves in Europe often display a reddish tint to their fur, distinguishing them from other global wolf populations.
Their diet mainly consists of moose, deer, and smaller mammals like badgers and beavers.
Wolves in the wild usually live up to six years, but they can live up to 20 years in captivity due to safer conditions.
Polar Park offers an exclusive Wolf Lodge where visitors can stay near the wolves under the northern lights, complete with luxury accommodations.
Polar Park is working on a predator program to mitigate wolf-human conflicts and aims to improve Norwegian wolf conservation in the coming years.
Transcripts
hello and welcome to animal watch and
this week we're meeting the wolves
of norway
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norway a vast wilderness remote rugged
and breathtaking
the arctic north plunged into darkness
for half the year
contrastingly the summer's ablaze with a
sun that never sets
polar forests spreading mile upon mile
up into the arctic circle
and frozen fjords reflecting icy blue
skies
this looks like the perfect predator
habitat with its mountainous terrain
where animals could easily become lost
far far away from human civilization
however this hasn't always been the case
for the norwegian wolf
who has been fighting hard to exist here
for the last few
at one point norway's walls were poached
and hunted to extinction in the 1960s
but due to norway's border with sweden a
gradual migration from finland and
russia has taken place with walls slowly
repopulating the southeastern corner
over the last 20 years
safe they are not however with
approximately 100 individuals fighting
for survival in a shared pocket between
norway and sweden with only four to six
breeding pairs ever being allowed to
survive
annually culled through government
issued permits these misunderstood
timid and redlisted endangered creatures
are well overdue a serious reprieve
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so today i'm visiting polar park in the
arctic circle where a pack of norwegian
wolves live in peace in a perfect
untouched wilderness ambassadors for the
true nature of the wolf
timid
gentle and certainly not the man-eaters
humans have labeled them as over the
centuries as i enter the wolves
territory i am so excited i crouched
down and made sure to keep my energy
calm
it's important to greet a wolf openly so
they can learn everything about you and
trust you
this means keeping low so you are less
frightening while placing a strong foot
on the ground to prevent yourself from
being knocked down as they are very
powerful and will insist on being
acknowledged
when wolves greet they will want a lick
inside your mouth this is perfectly
normal for them and this is what they do
to one another on a daily basis
if you can tolerate it you should allow
this as they will trust you more and can
learn everything about you as a person
which includes your body chemistry if
you are sick or well what you have eaten
and also if you are kind and
non-threatening to them
body movements should be calm and fluid
sharp movements will frighten and shock
them making you look threatening so
gently gently is the answer
this is why women are often more readily
accepted by wolves than men as men
naturally exhibit heavier movements have
a taller stature and a deeper voice
the leading female merit was very
insistent on licking the inside of my
mouth for affirmation so i allowed her
too
all the while acknowledging the strict
pack order
there were lower ranking wolves and it
was important to make sure i greeted the
wolves in order of ranking and make sure
to ignore the lower walls when the
leaders approached which is a little sad
but safer for them as it means they will
be told off far less
despite marit being the leading female
braga the large male was indeed top of
the pack and he had decided that my ear
and tummy tickles should be just for him
and was not slow in coming forward with
his snarls and piercing stares at merit
to let her know that he wasn't happy
that she was commanding my attention
it's quite hard to keep still during a
wolf altercation especially when it's
happening right in front of your face
all teeth and snaps but it's very
important not to move in case of
redirected aggression onto you the
altercations only lasted a little while
and it soon all died down
so this is braga and he is the alpha
male
and this is marat and she is the alpha
female
and this is little frigg at the back and
she's she's one of the lower ranking
ones
and they're all siblings and they were
born in 2014 which makes them about five
years old now so this is the most
northerly
wildlife park that you can come and
visit wolves in
in europe
and polar park
and in norway they have so few wolves
left
only around 68 walls
and the government
keep it quite
closely
down because
there's a lot of
public opinion about why these wolves
should not be
roaming all over
norway
so
in a way if you want to get up close and
see these walls
and coming here and actually visiting
them at polar park is a
way you can get up close with these
majestic wonderful
and misunderstood animals
and they're in full winter coat right
now so
beautiful beautiful long guard hairs
here
now the walls were very relaxed around
me had accepted me into their group i
felt it would be wonderful to now try a
pack how
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ah
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the howl was fairly high so created a
rallying response with the wolves which
is why they ran off at the end
wolves gather and rally together before
and after a hunt and when they want to
gather members of a pact together in
unison eventually the wolves came back
and settled down again
it was amazing to see how beautiful they
were
an adult female wolf in scandinavia can
weigh on average slightly over 30
kilograms and the male 50.
the coat has a reddish tinge to it which
is very different to north american
timberwolf
many european wolves have this reddish
tinge which is really quite beautiful
their body lengths without tail can be
up to 150 centimeters with the added
tail length approximately 50 centimeters
on top of that
their favorite food is moose but also
deer and other mammals such as badgers
beavers hares rodents and birds
wolves can live up to 10 years of age in
the wild but the average is around 6 due
to death from fighting disease poaching
road accidents and starvation
in captivity their age can reach 20
years
before it was time to leave we were
invited to have a peek inside the
exclusive wolf lodge at polar park where
you can stay if you want to be under the
northern lights surrounded by walls
literally right at your door it was
incredible to experience living inside
this wonderful environment especially
when the walls run right past my window
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finally the wolves fell asleep around me
but it was time to leave sadly
well i hope you enjoyed this episode of
animal watch where i met the beautiful
majestic wonderful walls of norway and
if you enjoyed this episode then please
give us a big thumbs up and subscribe to
the channel by clicking the box in the
bottom of the corner and if you'd like
to find out more about polar park i'll
put their website at the end of the
video so you can find out more about how
you too can come and visit these
beautiful walls and be sure to join me
every week when i will be bringing you
wonderful episodes on wolves wolf dogs
animal rescue and conservation
and i think it would be appropriate to
finish this incredible wonderful episode
with these wolves
with nothing better than a wolf howl
let's see if it will work
oh
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hmm
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beautiful if you would like to find out
how you two can meet the walls of
northern norway then please visit their
website here
polar park is working hard on their new
predator program which involves
conversing with farmers to minimise wolf
human conflict we hope to see great
changes in norwegian wolf conservation
in years to come
if you would like to find out how you
two can stay in the luxurious wolf lodge
then visit this page but please be aware
that it is top dollar prices to stay
here as you get your own butler cook
massage therapist and one-on-one
attention from polar park's top wolf
expert
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you
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