Two Danish wolf experts say a wolf that bared its teeth at a runner in North Jutland was defending its cub and never intended to attack. Authorities have asked the public to stay out of the area while the incident is assessed.
The encounter took place on Friday during a run near Bunken Klitplantage in North Jutland, DR reports. The man suddenly stood face to face with a snarling wolf showing its teeth.
Video from the episode shows the runner shouting and gesturing to scare the animal away. According to DR, the wolf continued to follow him at a distance for a while. The animal had a cub with it.
Peter Sunde, professor and wolf researcher at the Department of Ecoscience at Aarhus University, has seen the video. He assesses that the wolf did not notice the runner before he came too close. Per Sunde, it is a classic case of defensive behavior, driven above all by the presence of the cub.
Sunde said there was no danger in the situation and that the wolf had no intention of attacking. Kent Olsen, scientific director and senior researcher at Naturhistorisk Museum Aarhus, reached the same conclusion. Olsen, who leads and coordinates the national monitoring of wolves in Denmark, said the animal was trying to look bigger and more dangerous than it is.
Area to be avoided as a precaution
Following the episode, Styrelsen for Grøn Arealomlægning og Vandmiljø recommends that people do not move around in the marked area until the situation has been assessed further. Anyone who has to visit the area is urged to show particular caution.
Minister for Nature and Animal Welfare Christian Rabjerg Madsen (S) said the decision was taken on a precautionary basis. He described the images from the encounter as highly unpleasant. According to the minister, foreign experts will also review the case before authorities decide what happens next.
Rabjerg Madsen said this is a new situation in Denmark and the first time such an encounter has been recorded in Danish nature. Sunde backed the involvement of international expertise, noting it was the researchers’ own suggestion, since Denmark has little experience with cases like this.
On regulation, the minister said the wolf is a protected species and that Denmark cannot regulate the population as long as the country is an EU member. He added that authorities assess individual incidents on an ongoing basis to make coexistence between wolves and people as safe as possible.
Guidance from Styrelsen for Grøn Arealomlægning og Vandmiljø states that wolves are shy and normally flee from people. If a wolf does not flee, the advice is to keep a distance and observe it, and to leave the area and contact the wolf consultants’ hotline if the animal seems to have lost its fear of humans. A 2025 note from DCE at Aarhus University states that wolves not habituated to people normally withdraw, and that tolerating humans at around 30 meters can still be normal behavior.
