Wolves to be reintroduced to Britain?

The last Grey Wolf (Canis lupus, normally known as just a 'Wolf') in Britain was killed about 300 years ago when they were very frequently hunted by humans. They still live in areas on North America, Eurasia and the Middle East, but are considered to be an endangered species even now with a relatively small population of 150,000 or so in the entire world.

The Wolf Trust aim to reintroduce them into the Scottish Highlands where they were once, many years ago, quite common.

I've been increasingly a fan of wolves recently - there are probably a few reasons.

One major reason is likely to be that I've always got on well with dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) and wolves are very similar - in fact they are a direct descendant. And hey, they're Man's best friend. But I have a greater 'respect' for wolves as they're wild and look after themselves (which even cats do) whilst dogs are completely dependent on humans to guide them.

Another possible reason is playing one - I've played a druid in Everquest since 1999 and another druid in Everquest II since 2004, both of which could transform into wolves. I think that somewhat added to the "coolness" factor.

They're also just interesting, when you consider aspects like the very defined and sometimes even human-like social structure they have. For example, the 'alpha pair' (the top ranking male and female) are generally monogamous - that is, they normally only mate with each other, somewhat like most human cultures in the Western world. Obviously whatever 'reasoning' they have will be entirely different, but it's interesting all the same.

And generally you have the "coolness" factor. They have the ability to stand up for themselves pretty well, they look cool and 'badass' with a dash of cuteness (sorry but some dogs are just plain ugly!), the whole howling business etc ;)

Did I mention they also make really good wallpapers? Heh heh...

I'd really like to see them reintroduced into Britain. Best of luck to the Wolf Trust.

If you'd also like to see the wolves reintroduced, read up at http://www.wolftrust.org.uk/index.html and support them - bring it up in discussions, post on your own blogs etc. The main hurdle they're trying to overcome is ignorance, so remember to read up on the facts and help raise the correct type of awareness.

If you wouldn't like to see them reintroduced, still go to the above site and read the FAQ. They're not dangerous to humans (except in some extreme circumstances, but that applies to any animal... sheep, whatever) and any other concerns and false assumptions are cleared up there.

Another good resource is http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grey_Wolf - I found that site particularly fascinating. It's interesting how it was only recently decided that the domestic Dog is a direct descendent of the Wolf, which is its ancestor, and so they gave it the scientific name Canis lupus familiaris. Scientific naming is done with the 'genus' (basically the category of animal) first, followed by the species, and optionally followed by a kind of classification. In this case, Canis means a 'dog type' genus, 'lupus' means the 'Wolf' species and familiaris meaning human-friendly / domesticated. But previously it had been thought to be a separate species to the Wolf, hence up until recently they had been known as the slighter shorter Canis familiaris.

Cool eh. Wolves rock - I really hope we get to see them over on our little British isles.