wolf – Page 2 – Zoology by Vadim Sidorovich

Wolf breeding clan under conditions of surplus prey abundance in Naliboki Forest: a new phenomenon

Co-author: Irina Rotenko

Over the last decades in Naliboki Forest (central-western Belarus), we have repeatedly documented multi-breeding wolf packs — most often double broods, occasionally triple broods. We now estimate that roughly two-thirds of wolf packs in this region reproduce in this intensive, multi-breeding strategy. This is likely driven by a combination of abundant prey and continued human persecution of wolves.

Another brown bear attack on wolf pups discovered

Co-author Irina Rotenko

In late April of this year, we discovered a wolf den where the pups had been extirpated by a brown bear. Just yesterday, a new incident was recorded – another brown bear attacked wolf pups.

Study on the wolf breeding in Naliboki Forest (April-May 2025): a short report

Co-authors: Louise Giovannelli and Irina Rotenko

Throughout April and May 2025, we conducted a study on wolf breeding within the Naliboki Forest (the central-western region of Belarus), covering an area of approximately 1,800 square kilometers.

Abundance of signs of denning in wolves in relation to weather

Co-authors: Irina Rotenko and Louise Giovannelli

In this short post, we examine the clear relationship between the abundance of wolf denning signs and weather conditions during the denning period in wolves in Naliboki Forest, the central-western region of Belarus.

The Reproductive Struggle of Brown Bears in Naliboki Forest: An Investigative Hypothesis

Co-author Irina Rotenko

Historical Context and Current State of Brown Bears

During the Great Lithuanian period, from the 16th to the 18th centuries, brown bears were abundant in the Naliboki Forest and surrounding forest massifs. Reports of hunting these animals frequently appear in the game husbandry documents of the Radziwills and other magnates. Up until the First World War, the brown bear remained a standard game species and a relatively common trophy in the hunting collections of the local elite, indicating a high-density population in the Naliboki Forest.

Results of wolf denning study in Naliboki Forest (April-May 2024)

Co-authors Irina Rotenko and Viktar Kasilovich

During the 2024 wolf denning season in Naliboki Forest, we initiated our study in early April and, as of early June, continue to employ camera traps to monitor three wolf families with pups. Our previous research (Sidorovich and Rotenko, 2019, along with several blog posts) indicated that lynxes, brown bears, and bison exhibit aggressive behavior towards wolf breeding. Additionally, red deer and elks have been known to attack wolf dens housing pups and those with roaming young pups. Regarding the aforementioned wild mammals previously identified as antagonistic to wolf breeding in Naliboki Forest, we have observed changes in their numbers and distribution compared to previous years.

Heavy aggressive interference between wolves and brown bears in Naliboki Forest, Belarus

Coauthor Irina Rotenko

The Naliboki Forest, located in the central-western part of Belarus, is home to a dense population of wolves. Recently, brown bears have begun to populate this forested region, prompting an important question: how do these two large predators interact? Specifically, the aggressive interactions between wolves and brown bears, and the influence of their individual traits on these encounters, warrant further investigation.

Observational insights: lynxes and wolves utilizing road pipes in Naliboki Forest

Co-authors: Alieksandr Mysiev, Irina Rotenko and Dmitry Mysiev

In the winter of 2023-2024, we’ve captured two enlightening series of footage featuring large road pipes, remnants of Soviet-era construction, now seamlessly integrated into the forest’s landscape. These structures, though abandoned by humans, have found new purpose as integral parts of the local ecosystem, frequently visited by various animal species.

How Glade and Forest Affect Carrion Scavengers: A Camera-Trap Study

Co-author Irina Rotenko

We wanted to know which animals scavenge on elk carcasses and how often they do it. So we set up camera-traps near two dead elks in Naliboki Forest (a large forest-swamp terrain in northwestern Belarus).

Study on wolf reproduction in Naliboki Forest in 2023: a short report

Co-author Irina Rotenko

During 2023, we continued our long-term studies on the wolf reproduction in Naliboki Forest (see Sidorovich and Rotenko, 2019 and other posts in this blog for details and more information). An outstanding feature of this year for the reproduction of wolves in Naliboki Forest was the relatively low number of lynxes (15-20 individuals). This is 4-5 times lower than that in 2016-2018. Lynx is one of the hostile species for wolf pups (Sidorovich and Rotenko, 2019; Sidorovich, 2022), and presumably killing of wolf pups by lynxes can nullify the breeding efforts of wolves. However, there are other hostile animals to wolf reproduction such as brown bear, bison, elk and red deer, sometimes wild boar and even red fox (Sidorovich and Rotenko, 2019; Sidorovich, 2022). Therefore, we still could not test the hypothesis of which of these antagonistic species plays the main role in killing of wolf pups. This year gave us a unique opportunity to examine the role of lynxes.

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Historical Context and Current State of Brown Bears

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