A wolf (illustration) -
Christophe Gateau / AP / SIPA
Nature protection associations suspect poachers of having killed the "wolf of Valberg", the name given to the animal in reference to the village of the Alpes-Maritimes where it was seen for the first time in the fall of 2019 .
At the time, the wolf cub had been isolated and placed under observation by agents from the French Biodiversity Office (OFB).
A year later, he was released into the wild equipped with a GPS tag so he could locate him.
The associations
demand more
light on this story
On January 22, the radio collar was found in Plan-de-Baix, in the south of Vercors, deposited anonymously by a former shepherd, sympathizer of several associations, communicated this Monday France nature environnement (FNE).
The organization had already reported on December 7 to the OFB that the animal was probably dead, according to anonymous sources.
The Departmental Federation of Hunters (FDC 26) relayed the presence of the wolf with photos at the beginning of November.
"The fact that the collar has been neutralized so as not to emit any more, that it has been detached from the animal's neck and that it has been placed in a specific location, reflecting a clear desire to inform the protection associations of nature, eliminates the scenario of the fortuitous discovery of the wolf accidentally killed by a vehicle, ”considers FNE.
The federation calls for more light on this story.
The Ministry of Ecological Transition indicated that an expertise was underway on the collar "to see what can be learned from it".
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