Ten wolves were found dead in the Abruzzo National Park within a few days. The authorities assume poisoning.
April 19, 2026, 11:50 a.mApril 19, 2026, 11:50 a.m
One of the five dead wolves near Alfedena; published by the National Park Management. Image: Facebook
On Wednesday, ten poisoned wolves were discovered in the Italian national park of Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise. Five animals each died near the towns of Pescasseroli and Alfedena. “Initial investigations indicate that the wolves were poisoned. “We are working to determine exactly what type of poison was used,” said Luciano D’Angelo, the region’s chief prosecutor.
«Wolves and bears are symbols of this territory and we take killings like these very seriously. “We have started an investigation into the illegal killing of wild animals,” said the public prosecutor, according to the British “Telegraph”.
According to park director Luciano Sammarone, the incident in Alfedena is particularly dramatic. “It’s not just about the loss of individual animals. In Alfedena it looks as if we have lost the whole pack,” he told the Italian newspaper “Corriere della Sera”.
Image: Italian police
Sammarone warned of the consequences for nature in the protected area. “This will have far-reaching consequences for the ecosystem. Poisoning is a horrible way to kill because it is so indiscriminate. It can kill wolves, but also foxes, other wild animals and domestic dogs.”
The national park around Pescasseroli is a popular destination for hikers, mountain bikers and nature lovers.
3,500 wolves in Italy
Wolves were almost extinct in Italy by the 1970s. They were then placed under protection. According to estimates, there are now around 3,500 wolves living in the wild in the Apennines and the Alps.
The wolf disappeared in Switzerland in the last century, but since the 1990s the predators have increasingly been migrating back from Italy. According to animal foundations, up to 46 packs currently live in Switzerland, which means a population of around 350 animals (before the start of the regulation season).
The population across the EU is estimated at around 20,000 animals. A particularly large number of wolves live in Italy, Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, Poland and Spain. However, as the population has grown, conflicts with sheep, goat and dairy farmers have also increased.
Europe is relaxing protection
The debate about how to deal with wolves has recently become more heated at the European level. The European Parliament downgraded the animals’ protection status from “strictly protected” to “protected” last year. In Strasbourg, 371 MPs voted in favor, 162 voted against and 37 abstained.
Environmental groups criticized the decision. Léa Badoz from Eurogroup for Animals called it “a sad day for biodiversity and wildlife”. Green MEP Jutta Paulus said the campaign against strict protection ignores scientific evidence and attacks proven legislation with no clear benefit.
The easing was also supported by EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, whose pony Dolly was killed by a wolf in 2022. In Germany, the federal government also introduced a law in December that is intended to enable regular hunting of wolves to control the population. According to the Ministry of the Environment, there are 209 known wolf packs there.
In Switzerland, the wolf is generally protected as a species, but the cantons have since revised their hunting laws (JSG) the possibility of preventively regulating the wolf population with the approval of the Federal Council.
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