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Living World

Factual: Science & Nature: Nature & Environment

The Living World

Getting up close and personal with wild nature in Britain and beyond.

Intimate encounters and extraordinary observations of wild nature in Britain and beyond.

Living World: The Wolf Tracker

24/02/2013

The Wolf Tracker

BBC Radio 4 - Living World, The Wolf Tracker

Chris Sperring is in mid-Sweden in search of wolves, following their tracks in the snow.

Natural history programme. Chris Sperring is in mid-Sweden in search of wolves, following their tracks in the snow with animal tracker Pierre Ahlgren and Tom Arnbom.

For this week's Living World, presenter Chris Sperring goes in search of a large carnivore he's never seen before in the wild, the grey wolf. To do this he travels to Sweden where he meets up with Pierre Ahlgren a wildlife ranger in the Vastmanland area of Mid Sweden, where they are also joined by Tom Arnbom from WWF Sweden.

With thick snow on the ground Chris, Pierre and Tom travel to a snowy woodland 50 km northeast of the town of Vasteras. Heading deep into the woodland almost immediately they stumble across wolf tracks. Closer inspection reveals these tracks are nearly a week old but as this is Chris's first sign of this illusive animal his excitement grows and the pair head off into the woods in the hope of seeing more recent tracks and maybe a wolf. One surprising fact is that wolf plays a vital role in the whole forest ecosystem. Along the way Pierre and Tom discuss with Chris the conservation of these wolves and how Sweden although it did not have any wolves until 1983, it is now one of the best places in Europe to see them with nearly 300 individuals roaming this vast empty country.

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