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Germany’s Wolf Numbers Level Off for First Time, 2024/25 Count Finds

Federal monitoring highlights a northeast–east stronghold, with active probes in Bavaria keeping suspected illegal killings under scrutiny.

Overview

  • DBBW reports 276 confirmed territories and a minimum of 1,636 wolves for the May 2024 to April 2025 monitoring year, marking the first clear national plateau since recolonisation.
  • Territories remain concentrated in the northeast and east, led by Lower Saxony (63) and Brandenburg (60), followed by Saxony (46), Saxony-Anhalt (38) and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (34).
  • Brandenburg logged a decline to 54 packs and 6 pairs (60 territories), and Bavaria counted six packs with 19 pups, four pairs and two territorial lone wolves across 12 territories.
  • Across Germany, 163 carcasses were recorded, with road traffic the leading cause (124 deaths); at least 16 illegal killings were confirmed, and three animals were removed for management reasons.
  • In Bavaria, police are investigating a man who delivered a wolf carcass after forensics indicated death from conspecific bites, while a separate case confirmed a gunshot fatality and conservation groups cite vanished packs and suspect poaching.