More than fifteen cases. Three episodes in the last few weeks. Since January, wolves have begun to attack in the Pordenone area, particularly hitting the areas of Caneva and Polcenigo. The complaint came directly from the community concerned about a situation that is creating inconvenience for the local population.
Cases in the Pedemontana
The last reported episode dates back to May 1st. In Coltura, a neighborhood of Polcenigo, a small dog was found lifeless after being mauled and killed by a wolf. The same fate befell another specimen, preyed on a few days ago in the Friulian foothills between Caneva, Fiaschetti and Polcenigo.
According to reconstructions, it would be a single wolf wandering around the Destra Tagliamento area, although the presence of other species cannot be ruled out as it is an animal that lives and moves in a pack. The situation has been going on since the first months of the year, with more than fifteen cases reported to the forest ranger and the Region’s staff who are currently asking for greater attention from dog owners.
Just recently a meeting was held in the Aviano area where not only the inhabitants of the area but also the forestry managers took part. The authorities have informed the population on the procedures to follow after the latest cases that occurred in Pordenone. Experts advise keeping animals indoors and not leaving them in the garden, especially during the night, in order to prevent wolves from approaching densely populated areas.
Sightings in the Region
The first signs of the species’ reappearance in Friuli Venezia Giulia date back to February 2010. In 2016, the presence of a pair was documented in the Pordenone area, precisely in the Sequals area. For this reason, as emerges from the latest technical report of the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region, it was chosen to carry out coordinated monitoring of the wolf in the Alpine regions in collaboration with Ispra – Higher Institute for environmental protection and research, and the other nations within the LIFE WOLFALPS EU Project.
This is a job that takes time and is carried out every two to three years. The objective of this report is an estimate of the distribution of the species in the Region thanks to the support of the operators and associations that make up the “Alpine Wolf Network”.
To arrive at a general mapping of the presence of the wolf in Friuli Venezia Giulia in each cell, several paths were chosen: that of opportunistic sampling without planned planning; and the systematic one from 1 October to 30 April of the following year.
According to the first data, the presence of the wolf was seen especially in the former provinces of Udine and Pordenone. However, thanks to the collection of information as part of the winter monitoring program, it emerged that in the three-year sampling period there was an expansion of the species westwards towards the Venetian border of the province of Pordenone (Cansiglio), in the north-west portion of the provinces of Pordenone and Udine, and to the north-east on the border between Italy and Slovenia (Tarvisiano-UD).
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Authors of the technical report:
Menzano Arianna, Avanzinelli Elisa, Fattori Umberto, Tomasella Michela and Marucco Francesca
(1) Management Body of the Protected Areas of the Maritime Alps, Large Carnivore Reference Centre
(2) Friuli Venezia Giulia Autonomous Region – Biodiversity Service
(3) University of Turin, Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology
