Wolven pair in the Veluwe with cubs turns out to be brother and sister

Wolven pair in the Veluwe with cubs turns out to be brother and sister

A wolf pair on the Veluwe turns out to be brother and sister. The two have also had offspring. It is not common for wolves from the same litter to form a pair, but in exceptional cases, it can happen.

The wolf pair that are brother and sister live in the northeastern part of the Veluwe. It has been known since 2023 that a wolf pack lived there. It was just not clear who the parents were.

DNA research of the pups has now revealed that the parents come from the same litter and are therefore brother and sister. This was reported by BIJ12 on Monday. That organization handles wolf affairs for all provinces, among other things.

The brother and sister were also born on the Veluwe themselves. Their mother is the first wolf to resettle in the Netherlands, causing the wolf to return to our country for good in 2019.

The brother and sister may have been born in the same year, but that is not entirely clear. The male was born in 2019 and was one of the first wolves to be born in the Netherlands again. The female was born in 2019, 2020, or 2021. What is clear is that they have the same parents. Their territory is next to that of their parents, who are both still alive.

Wolves normally try to prevent inbreeding

Normally, wolves try to prevent mating with their brother or sister. After one or two years, they leave the pack in which they were born and go in search of their own territory.

The chance of forming a pair with a family member is then small, but it happens occasionally. It mainly happens when partner choice is limited. In Germany, it has also been established before that wolves from the same litter formed a pair.

In the long term, inbreeding has “adverse consequences” for wolves, says wolf expert Dick Klees to NU.nl. “All genetic defects are passed on. In the long run, that manifests itself in certain defects.” As an example, he mentions deformities and reduced fertility.

Usually, inbreeding leads to a reduced chance of survival, according to Klees. “That’s how it’s arranged in nature,” he explains.

Eleven wolf territories in the Netherlands, most on Veluwe

The Netherlands now has eleven wolf territories, seven of which are on the Veluwe. In addition, a female wolf with a territory in Flanders regularly crosses the border with Noord-Brabant.

There are also wandering wolves in the Netherlands looking for their own habitat. It is not known exactly how many there are, because DNA is not found from all wolves by far. The data from BIJ12 has been updated until the end of February, because it takes a lot of time to do DNA research.

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