Wolf at the door: How Europeans must relearn to live alongside large carnivores

Centuries after they were hunted to near-extinction, the return of wolves in the modern era requires careful planning, writes Harry Cockburn

Foxtrot or flamenco? A pair of Iberian wolves flirt on a hot day in Spain (Getty )

The wolf is the pinnacle of dread across European folklore. From Little Red Riding Hood, to the Three Little Pigs, and from the Boy who Cried Wolf to the hair-raising prospect of werewolves walking among us waiting for the full moon to shine.

In these stories, the wolves have various things in common – they’re big, they’re bad, they’re cunning, and they’re a deadly menace to peace and prosperity.

But following centuries of persecution by humans – both figurative and very literally – wolf populations are now on the rise in many parts of Europe.