If you go down to the woods today: Children warned to stay away from forest following wolf sightings

A central Dutch province is urgently warning parents not to take young children to a popular forest area following two recent close encounters with a wolf displaying “atypical and worrying” behaviour.

The warning is the latest in an ongoing struggle between wolves and humans across Europe. Multiple countries have proposed killing wolves that are perceived as dangerous, much to the upset of animal rights activists who say they have a right to roam.

At the end of last year, the European Commission proposed lighter protection for the wolf’s growing population, suggesting downgrading its protection status from “strictly” to “merely” protected. Hunting and farming lobbies celebrated the news.

Experts and environmental groups estimate that up to 19,000 wolves may be present in the 27 EU member countries, with populations of more than 1,000 thought to exist in Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Poland, Romania and Spain.

Why does Utrecht want to kill the wolf?

Utrecht province on Thursday was preparing to seek a permit to kill the wolf, which is a protected species throughout the European Union. It was seeking support and approval from the agriculture ministry for the permit.

On Wednesday, a child was pushed over by a wolf in the village of Austerlitz, the province said in a statement. The incident came two weeks after another confrontation led to the closure of a popular walking area.

“Assuming it was a wolf involved, wolf experts say that the behaviour displayed is atypical and worrying,” the statement said. "The province takes seriously into account that it is the same wolf that was previously involved in incidents in Leusden with another girl and a dog.”

• An Estonian wolf hunt took me deep into Europe’s culture war over culling the wild species

• Do wolves attack livestock? US cattle ranchers sue over planned release of apex predators

Wolves have been spreading from east to west across rural areas of the Netherlands for years ever since arriving from Germany. The animals were officially confirmed as having returned, in 2019, two centuries after being hunted to extinction, when a pair produced a litter of cubs.

While conservationists have welcomed the reappearance of a predator, wolves have been blamed for a string of attacks on livestock and have increasingly come close to members of the public.

• Rural vs urban divide: Why has the protection of wolves become so politicised in Europe?

• Team wolf and sheep: Meet the Swiss volunteers camping out on hilltops to keep both animals alive

Earlier this year, authorities in a Dutch national park were given permission to use a paintball gun to scare off an animal that had been approaching humans.

Despite wolves encroaching on populated areas, there have been no serious injuries reported as a result of attacks.

Fauna Protection, a group that lobbies against hunting, said on X that “urgent advice is good, shooting is not.”