This video of a wolf pack is from Canada, not Lower Austria

Since late January 2023, thousands of users have shared a video on Facebook that purportedly shows a pack of wolves in a forest in Lower Austria. Actually, the video is from Canada. According to wolf experts, the wolves shown are timber wolves that live in North America and are not found in Central Europe.

A short clip on social networks is causing a stir in Lower Austria. It shows a wolf pack that is said to have settled in an eastern state. This post has been viewed thousands of times since the end of January 2023 Facebook was separated.

Request: The video shows a wolf pack of 14 animals running in a line through a foggy forest. In the text of the post it says: “Wolves, single track with wildlife camera”, referring to the small town of Allenstein in Lower Austria.

The video of the wolf pack made headlines beyond Austria. In the past few weeks, Austrian media have also reported “oe24” And this “Lower Austrian News”About “star” About the clip and exposed it as fake. The fact-checking blog “Mimigama” came into its own Reality check The recording in the video is not from Lower Austria, but from Canada.

One Reverse image search AFP led to a post on Instagram with private footage of the clip. He shows Same video of the wolf pack in the currently shared post.

It was posted on December 5, 2022 by Andrew Hendry’s account. According to Hendry’s profile Professor of Evolutionary Ecology in Montreal, Canada. on him site The evolutionary biologist and animal filmmaker offers insights into his work and links to his various social media profiles.

A look at Hendry’s channels: A video of the wolf pack can also be found in his video Tick ​​Tock-, Twitter– and Network light-Accounts. The video description on YouTube features the hashtag “#britishcolumbia”, a possible reference to the recording’s location in the western Canadian province of British Columbia.

On 16 February 2023, Hendry confirmed to AFP via email that the clip now being shared was one of his recordings. He was recorded by a camera trap in British Columbia. According to the YouTube video timestamp, the wildlife camera captured the video on November 30, 2021 at 5pm local time.

There’s another reason the video isn’t being recorded in Austria: the wolves in the clip, according to the Austrian Wolf Commissioner. Aldin Selimovic to be called Timber wolvesA subspecies of wolves native to North America and Canada: “The video shows mostly timber wolves, not European wolves, which we have,” Selimovic told AFP via email on February 17, 2023.

A Canadian timber wolf at a French wildlife park (AFP / Jean-Christophe Verhagen)

A European wolf at the wildlife park in Verdun (AFP / PATRIK STOLLARZ)

A similar statement was made by the district hunting master of Schwettel, the Lower Austrian hunting district in which Allendeig is located. Manfred Jaeger, February 17, 2023. Video shows timber wolves not seen in Austria. In addition, heavy snowfall and vegetation do not match the area around Allensteig.

According to wolf commissioner Selimović, DNA samples were taken throughout Austria in 2022. 54 wolves have been countedHe lived in seven packs. However, the actual number of wolves is probably much higher. In Lower Austria, where the shared video is said to have been recorded, there are currently four packs at home.

One of them lives around Allensteig is currently the subject of a research project, as explained by Aldin Selimović. “The video is definitely not from Allentsteig. The pack at Allentsteig is monitored as part of a scientific project, and definitely not wolves as in the video.” There is no evidence of such wolves from other regions in Lower Austria.

Conclusion: The currently shared video was recorded in 2021 in the province of British Columbia, Canada, and is currently not in Austria. It shows a collection of timber wolves native to Central Europe.