One of the seven wolves who wander since the destruction of their enclosure in the floods of October 2 was captured Monday in the Mercantour park, above Nice, AFP learned from the French Biodiversity Office (OFB ).
Read also: Alps: breeders facing the great return of the wolf
The animal, a black wolf from Canada, was found only a few kilometers from Alpha Park, told AFP Eric Hansen, regional director of the OFB.
"
It is an 'Omega' wolf - who has a very ungrateful position in the pack but helps ease tensions between the wolves - who has moved away from the rest of the pack since Sunday,
" said Eric Hansen.
OFB agents, who located Canada's wolf pack, are now seeking to capture the six remaining stray mammals.
The Mercantour park has wolves in the wild, and the OFB wishes to avoid any encounter with this different breed.
In addition, the canines of the Alpha park are used to “
waiting for us to feed them,
” notes Eric Hansen.
Read also: Seven wolves wanted after the floods in the Nice hinterland
On Monday, a caretaker from Alpha Park managed to get the wolf out of the woods by tranquilizing it "
because it recognizes its voice
", then the animal received a hypodermic arrow.
As he fled, officers had him tracked by a dog.
“
The product takes 5-10 minutes to work so during this time the wolf can travel a great distance,
” explained Eric Hansen.
In "
good general condition
", the wolf was transported by helicopter and will be kept "
in an approved center
", like three other wolves in the park, gray wolves of Central Europe, which had to be captured Thursday because their enclosure - the alone not to be destroyed - was no longer electrified.
The enclosure that was closest to the water, that of the arctic white wolves, was completely washed away by the flood.
Two wolf corpses were found, "
but we don't know what happened to the third,
" said Eric Hansen.
