The operation to capture the female wolf that had developed problematic habituation to human presence and had been visiting residential areas of northwestern Thessaloniki in recent months in search of food was successfully completed.

 

Based on the available evidence, the information collected over the previous period, including eyewitness accounts, this particular wolf is believed to have been involved in the incident in which a four-year-old child was injured on 30 July 2026 in the Polichni area.

 

In response to this serious incident, a decision for the immediate removal of the animal was issued by the Wildlife and Hunting Management Department of the General Directorate of Forests and Forest Environment of the Ministry of Environment and Energy (YPEN), following a meeting of the authorities and organisations involved at the Thessaloniki Forest Service and taking into account the relevant recommendation of the European LIFE Wild Wolf project.

 

According to the preliminary protocol for addressing incidents involving wolves approaching urban and peri-urban areas, developed within the framework of the European LIFE Wild Wolf project, which in Greece is implemented by the Environmental Organisation Callisto and NECCA, a recorded attack on a human constitutes an incident classified in the highest risk category. This, combined with the animal’s serious health condition and its repeated presence in residential areas, made it imperative to take measures for its immediate capture and removal, with the protection of human safety as the primary consideration.

 

On the evening of Thursday, 13 August 2026, on the first day that the special traps previously installed by the Environmental Organisation Callisto were activated, the wolf was successfully captured. The operation to release the animal from the trap and manage it was carried out by specialised personnel from Callisto’s Wolf Rapid Response Team, with the immediate assistance of staff from the Thessaloniki Forest Service and NECCA’s Central Macedonia Protected Areas Management Unit.

 

During the operation, it was established that the animal was a small-sized wolf weighing 24.5 kg, in severely compromised health and visibly undernourished. It bore scars from previous injuries, while its left hind limb had been amputated, with an open wound and bleeding at the site of the amputation. Its serious health condition provided an additional reason why its capture and removal were necessary.

 

The animal received the necessary veterinary care and was subsequently placed in a special portable transport crate, where it remained overnight under appropriate conditions and recovered smoothly from anaesthesia. Blood samples were collected for genetic analyses and will be delivered to the Laboratory of the Department of Genetics, Development and Molecular Biology of the School of Biology at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, as stipulated in the relevant decision of the Ministry of Environment and Energy.

 

On the morning of Friday, 14 August, the animal was handed over by the Environmental Organisation Callisto and the Thessaloniki Forest Service to the Environmental Organisation ARCTUROS, in order to be transferred to the Wolf & Lynx Conservation Centre in Agrapidies, Florina, and for all additional actions stipulated in the decision of the Ministry of Environment and Energy to be carried out. Further veterinary examinations will be conducted over the following days under the supervision of the School of Veterinary Medicine of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, in order to assess the health condition of this particular wolf.

 

It should be noted that this particular female wolf, which had an evident disability due to the amputation, had been approaching residential areas of the Municipalities of Pavlos Melas and Neapoli-Sykies in recent months via Thessaloniki’s peri-urban forest (Seich Sou), in search of food such as waste, animal carcasses or stray animals. Its repeated presence in residential areas and access to human-related food sources appear to have contributed to the gradual habituation of this particular animal to human activity and presence.

 

The operation to capture and remove this particular wolf was carried out pursuant to Decision No. YPEN/DDD/89961/2860/11-08-2026 (ADA: RP9M4653P8-7M1) of the Secretary General for Forests of the Ministry of Environment and Energy, following the recorded incident involving an attack on a four-year-old child by a canid with similar characteristics in the Polichni area of Thessaloniki.

 

It should, however, be emphasised that the presence of a wolf near a residential or peri-urban area does not in itself mean that the animal is likely to attack a person. Wolves are generally wary of humans, while attacks by healthy wolves on people are rare and the risk to human safety remains low. Their presence near residential areas is often associated with easily accessible food sources, such as waste, animal carcasses, stray animals or other animals that constitute easy prey, such as livestock kept in unprotected facilities. Repeated access to such food sources may gradually lead to habituation to human presence.

 

For this reason, the appearance of a wolf near a settlement should not cause panic. Instead, it should be addressed calmly, by following basic preventive measures and notifying the competent authorities (the Forest Service and the local Police Department), while under all circumstances avoiding approaching the animals or providing them with food, either directly or indirectly.

 

The successful outcome of the operation to capture this particular wolf highlights the importance of systematically recording and scientifically monitoring every incident, ensuring its timely and evidence-based assessment, and fostering cooperation among the competent public authorities, the scientific community and environmental organisations.

 

Signatory Authorities and Organisations:

 

Callisto Environmental Organisation

 

Thessaloniki Forest Service

 

ARCTUROS Environmental Organisation