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Quick Take

• The Black Forest wolf evaded hunters for nearly a month.

• The inability to track and cull the wolf living in the Black Forest led officials to decide against renewing the permit for its culling.

• The majority of the 180 reported encounters were non-threatening.

• There are only four wolves that call the Black Forest home.

It is not uncommon to see wolves in various parts of Germany. Typically, these wolves are more afraid of people than people are of them. But one wolf, known as GW2672m, showed atypical behavior. He was not afraid of people or dogs. Consequently, after multiple reports of close encounters, a permit was issued to cull the wolf.

For nearly a month, the hunt was on for GW2672m. To the surprise of many, the wolf proved to be more resourceful than expected. Consequently, the Black Forest wolf evaded the cull, and his current whereabouts remain unknown.

Wolf Evades Being Culled After Eluding Hunters in the Black Forest

Over the last decade, a few wolves have started calling the Black Forest their home. One particular wolf living in the Black Forest emerged early in 2026, in and around Baden-Württemberg, Germany. At first, the sighting was a novelty. But after weeks of reports of the wolf getting uncomfortably close to residents and their dogs in and around Baden-Württemberg, totaling more than 180 in all, officials took action to calm fears. Officials announced that the wolf, known as GW2672m, would be culled.

In January 2026, officials announced that a permit would be issued to kill GW2672m. While the majority of the wolf’s encounters with people were categorized as non-threatening, many believed that as GW2672m was getting more comfortable in the presence of people, those encounters would change.

Beginning on February 18, 2026, the permit became active. Professional hunters were hired to track and kill GW2672m. However, this meant the hunters had a lot of territory to cover to find one wolf. The Black Forest region is over 2,320 square miles. With just a small number of wolves known to pass through the Black Forest and an even smaller number that call it home, finding any wolf, let alone GW2672m, would be like finding a needle in a haystack.

As March approached, the reports of GW2672m sightings decreased dramatically. As the permit deadline approached, no one could locate GW2672m. Because of this, the wolf avoided being killed, and conservationists rejoiced at the news.

Why Officials Did Not Renew the Hunting Permit

GW2672m frequently approached people walking their dogs in and near Baden-Württemberg, near the Black Forest. This left many feeling uneasy about how comfortable the wolf had gotten around people. But as March approached, GW2672m disappeared. This left many wondering if the permit that had been executed by officials earlier in 2026 would be renewed.

The permit, originally issued on February 18, 2026, was only active until March 10, 2026. Because GW2672m was not seen in the early part of March, officials did not see the need to extend the permit. They believed that GW2672m was seeking a mate during mating season. With no known female wolves in the Black Forest, officials concluded that GW2672m may have been tracking dogs in heat. This led him to approach dogs and their owners uncomfortably closely.

Despite GW2672m making his presence known in Baden-Württemberg, he did not attack anyone. This likely also had some influence over the permit not being renewed beyond its original March 10 expiration.

What Caused Wolves to Become Extinct in Germany?

Wolves have been a part of the Earth’s landscape for thousands of years. For some of that time, the canines coexisted with humans. Depending on the culture, some feared wolves, while others revered them.

Over time, cultures that found wolves troublesome managed to reduce wolf populations to a fraction of their former numbers. In some regions, the wolves went extinct. One of those places was Germany, where wolves were declared extinct by the early 1900s.

Germany viewed wolves as a threat to livestock. Consequently, through legal programs, the wolves were systematically killed throughout the 19th century. The last wolf known to be killed on German soil was in 1904. At that time, wolves were considered extinct in the country.

Wolves Have Returned to the Black Forest in Small Numbers

After wolves went extinct in Germany, it took over a century for the first pair to return to the country at the end of the 1990s. These wolves would eventually lead others in the country’s northwestern region to enter and form packs.

The Black Forest region in the southwest portion of the country did not see a return of wolves until much later. The first known wolf to return to the Black Forest did not do so until 2015.

Over the years, there has been excitement over wolf sightings in the region. In 2023, many wondered if a pack was forming, given the appearance of a female wolf in trap camera footage that clearly showed she was actively nursing. This did not come to pass, as no pack was found the following year.

Today, there are only four individual wolves known to be living in the Black Forest. While GW2672m made his presence known over the last several months, he has now retreated to the depths of the forest, or perhaps even crossed country lines, and has not been seen for over a month.

Are Wolves Legal to Hunt in Germany?

Until December 2024, wolves were considered “strictly protected” due to their status as an endangered species in Europe. That month, the Council of Europe decided to ease the protections on wolves, classifying them as “protected.” This opened the door for countries across Europe to take action and allow wolf hunting, should they please.

Beginning in late 2025, Germany passed an amendment to the ban on hunting wolves, allowing them to be hunted with a proper permit. These permits allow wolves to be hunted between July 1 and October 31.

Conservationists have sounded the alarm on allowing wolves to be hunted throughout Germany because wolf populations have not rebounded at the same rate across the country. In the Black Forest region of southwest Germany, only four known individual wolves call the territory home. Conversely, in northwestern Germany, there were 54 known wolf packs at the start of 2025. There is a staggering difference in population between the two regions.

This discrepancy in wolf populations in Germany is being recognized throughout Europe. Because of this, wolf populations have not been deemed “recovered.” Yet, as conservationists point out, politicians are deeming whole countries as recovered due to the political pressure they face from farmers and ranchers who continue to lose livestock as wolf populations grow. Conservationists argue that if Germany implemented wolf deterrents that have proven successful in countries like Austria and Switzerland, livestock losses would be significantly reduced.

The Role of Wolves in Livestock Loss

There is no denying that in regions where wolf populations are returning, there is a greater risk to ranchers’ and farmers’ livestock. Due to livestock losses in recent years, some politicians and those who rely on livestock for their livelihoods welcome the change in law allowing the hunting of wolves.

In Germany, grazing livestock face far more losses than larger livestock. In particular, sheep and goats are most often targeted by wolves, accounting for 91.1% of livestock losses in 2024. While these numbers have steadily increased since wolves began coming back into Germany at the beginning of the 2000s, it was not until more recent years that several thousand livestock were killed or injured throughout the country each year. Those figures include:

• 2022: Approximately 4,400 livestock killed or injured

• 2023: Approximately 5,700 livestock killed or injured

• 2024: Approximately 4,300 livestock killed or injured

Farmers, ranchers, and herders are reimbursed for losses proven to be caused by wolves. This accounted for $27.2 million in reimbursements in 2024. With the option to hunt wolves from July to October, many believe the number of wolf attacks will decrease, and therefore, less money will need to be paid.

In countries around the world, wolf populations are increasing thanks to conservation efforts that have allowed them to return to their ancestral lands. The return of wolves has sparked debates about the need for their conservation and whether population control measures are necessary. These very arguments led to a single wolf being hunted in the Black Forest, despite there being no evidence of attacks. Fortunately, for the wolf, he escaped. However, if located during Germany’s hunting season, he or one of the three other wolves that call the Black Forest home may not be as lucky.

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