The Wolf by Tyra van Mossevelde

The wolf – 2 sides of the discussion

The wolf is back in the Netherlands and causing a big stir. While reading and listening about the wolf, I learned a lot, for example:
- the wolf needs 4 kg of meat per day
- wolves often kill sheep, but do not eat them
- it is very intense to find your sheep dead in the meadow
- sheep suffer a lot from a wolf attack for a long time
- in 2022, 664,400 sheep in the Netherlands will have been slaughtered by humans
- forest rangers are threatened (by humans, not wolves)
- there are panic videos circulating of wolves that turn out to be dogs
- dogs also often bite sheep to death
- the wolf has become a political toy
- the benefits of wolves are often underexposed (see drawing)
- in the province Gelderland alone 18,000 red deer, fallow deer, wild boar and roe deer are shot because of nuisance
- the wolf is very shy
- It has been calculated that there is room for 400 wolves in NL
- farmers receive compensation if a sheep is killed by a wolf
- the wolf cannot eat properly…

The essence in my info drawing is that the wolf in not only about dead sheep and fear. It also tributes to nature management by:
- keeping our wildlife healthier and more balanced
- providing for carcass for scavengers
- creating more opportunities for vulnerable flora due to the movement deer, thereby preventing bare grazing

In our society both sides exist, and both should be addressed in the public discussion.

(pencil on paper, 70 x 100 cm)