European country warns tourists ‘do this’ if attacked by wolves | World | News

Tourists in Denmark have been told they should be prepared to offer “maximum resistance” if attacked by a wolf while on holiday. Authorities in the Scandinavian country are distributing leaflets telling tourists what to do if they encounter wolves.

The advice also includes standing still and making eye contact with the predators, which returned to Denmark in 2012 after a 200-year absence. By 2017 there was one confirmed wolf pack in the country, and this year 49 wolf packs were recorded on Denmark’s Jutland peninsula. The flyers were distributed to holiday homes, camping areas and tourism offices by Varde Municipality and the Visit Vesterhavet tourism institution.

The leaflets, written in English, Danish and German, encourage people to remain calm and still around a wolf, make eye contact and take a photo of the animal.

People are encouraged to shout, clap their hands and wave their arms if the wolf doesn’t go away on its own. Guard.

Government advice also encourages tourists not to follow or turn their backs to the approaching wolf, and instead encourages holidaymakers to “look directly at it” to “demonstrate dominance”.

Although there have been no wolf attacks on humans in Denmark, the leaflet states that people “should show maximum resistance” if attacked.

“Hit, kick and use any blunt weapon,” he adds.

The distribution of the leaflets follows incidents of young wolves approaching humans around Oksbøl, which is popular with tourists.

In May, the Danish Center for Environment and Energy said “several incidents” of approaching wolves in the area around Oksbøl, Vejers and Blåvand suggested that “at least one young wolf showed significantly reduced shyness and approach behavior towards humans”.

It was stated that wolves were seen near people, dogs and summer houses in the Oksbøl region during spring and winter.

Varde’s second deputy mayor, Sandie Eis Ravn, told The Guardian that the flyer campaign was aimed at informing tourists at the request of local businesses.

He said: “If you are visiting somewhere and know there is a wolf in the nearby woods, make sure you have the right rules of conduct when encountering this creature.”

According to WWF, European gray wolves can weigh between 30 and 75 kilograms and stand up to 90 centimeters high at the shoulder.

Twenty-three thousand people are estimated to be in Europe and protected by EU law.

Their status was downgraded from “strongly protected” to “protected” in May last year to help countries manage their populations.

Europe’s gray wolves are listed as ‘least concern’ on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species.

Their population is believed to be increasing across the continent.