French first as black wolf pack confirmed as living in Var
Female with black coat gave birth to four pups who inherited rare fur
It is the first confirmed sighting of a black wolf in modern France
AB Photographie/Shutterstock
A pack of black wolves has been confirmed to be roaming in France after researchers studied the animals for several years in the Var department.
The distinctly-coloured group is the first of its kind in modern France.
A female ‘alpha’ wolf with a black coat was first spotted in the Sainte-Baume massif in 2021 and subsequently mated with a more common-looking grey wolf. Out of six pups born to the couple, four also developed a black coat.
After four years of research, the Var hunting federation co-authored a study on the pack that has been released in Zoodiversity, an international scientific journal.
Black wolves are extremely rare in Europe (slightly more common in North America) and out of 700 wolves studied across eastern Europe, only one other animal was found to have black fur.
The animals are the same species as grey wolves, just with a different shade of fur.
Previously, scientists believed the animals were different species, and folk traditions claim black wolves are larger and stronger, but less aggressive than grey counterparts, and more readily hybridise with dogs.
The highest concentration of black wolves in Europe is found in Italy’s Apennine and Friulian mountains where up to a quarter of wolves have black coats, so it is possible the French animal is related to a pack from across the border.
Dog-wolf hybrid theory ruled out
As part of the study, hunters kept close watch over the pack and took DNA samples from the animals.
“We had to move very quickly," said hunter Jean-Noël Philibert, co-author of the study, to media outlet Ici Provence.
"We collected fresh droppings very quickly, because wolves are a species that disperses over a vast territory.”
Tests on the samples ruled out a hypothesis that the original black wolf was a hybrid animal with part-dog DNA – responsible for the rare coat – and that the animal was a full wolf.
The original mutation in European wolf DNA for black coats is theorised to come from hybridisation with dogs.
Incredibly difficult to spot
Hikers setting off to the Var for a sighting of the pack should not hold their breath, however, as the chance of spotting them is extremely low.
Indeed, the knowledge of the black wolf pack remained unknown to the wider public despite them living in the Saint-Baume area for many years, until the study was published.
“"I'm not saying it's impossible. But don't go hiking in the Sainte-Baume mountains with that aim,” said Mr Philibert.
“The chance of encountering them is 0.0001%. Even encountering a wolf is difficult. So encountering a black wolf is even more so.”
The pack is no longer being tracked so closely, and may have left the Var department altogether to reside in another area.
Wolves have been spotted as far north as Normandy – if you spot one, our article explains what you should do.
