There is no longer any doubt about this. According to the French Biodiversity Office (OFB), it was indeed a wolf which was found dead in February in a wood in Langonnet (Morbihan). After the discovery of the corpse, the Lorient public prosecutor’s office opened an investigation to identify the animal and investigate the causes of its death.
After analyses, the canine was therefore “a male with the genetic profile of a central and eastern European wolf”, known scientifically as Canis lupus lupus W1. “The most likely is that this individual comes from Germany or Belgium,” the OFB said in a press release.
The accidental nature of the confirmed death
While the rumour initially circulated that the animal had been riddled with lead shot, the French Office for Biodiversity has also confirmed “the accidental nature of the death following a road collision”.
After these conclusions, the Lorient public prosecutor’s office decided to close its investigations. The OFB also takes the opportunity to point out that the gray wolf is an endangered species in France and that “any unauthorized attack on a specimen of this species is punishable by three years of imprisonment and a fine of 150,000 euros”.