Our photo-trap installed in the Iłżecka Forest recorded an interesting interaction between wolves and hares a few days ago. The hare was recorded in a photo trap several times, both during the day and at night. In one case, wolves were recorded at night, two minutes after a hare walking in front of a photo-trap. Firstly, the two that sniffed out the hare took a few steps in the direction where it moved away. It is difficult to say whether they did not want to hunt him or whether they were stopped by a forest fence behind which the hare had gone. Two more wolves that passed in front of the photo-trap also paused for a moment, checking the scent trail of the hare. Do wolves hunt hares in Central Europe? Undoubtedly, it is not an essential component of their diet. They mainly hunt roe deer, deer and wild boars. Hunting for hares happens to wolves sporadically, mainly in summer, and they constitute only 2-4% of their diet. The situation is completely different in the far north. Arctic wolves inhabiting the Canadian island of Ellesmere feed mainly on white-tailed hares in the summer. Hunting hares is not easy – they reach 60 km/h during the escape. Check this out on YouTube.

Roman Gula and Jacek Major