Two unusual black wolves that are believed to be siblings, were caught on camera crossing a stream in a forest in Poland, according to a conservation organization.
The rare sighting, which was captured on video last year, has prompted the SAVE Wildlife Conservation Fund Poland to retrieve scat droppings in the forest that the wolves were observed in, so scientists can learn more about the genetics of the black wolves.
The Associated Press reported that the video camera was set up by Joanna Toczydlowska, a project coordinator with the wildlife organization, to study beavers.
But she was surprised when she reviewed the recorded footage and saw wolves instead. She decided to leave the camera in place to learn more about the rare animals.
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“It’s something new and unusual,” Toczydlowska told the wire service.
In one of the clips captured, a gray wolf and black wolf crossed a stream in the forest, though slowly as the water was nearly up to their bellies. Once near the other side, the two wolves jumped onto the bank before walking away.
In another clip recorded in the fall, two black wolves and a gray wolf were seen crossing the same stream.
The researchers would not disclose the location of the sightings, in order to protect the rare wolves.
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In Poland, the majority of the nearly 3,000 wolves are gray with red or black accents.
The black fur is likely from a genetic mutation that occurred with domesticated dogs thousands of years ago.
In Europe, dark fur is rare, though in Yellowstone National Park in the United States, at least half of the wolf population has black fur.
Toczydlowska said the two black wolves were likely siblings and about a year old, which she hypothesized on the basis that wolves travel in families and the two were about 66 pounds. She also said at least one of the black wolves spotted was a male.
Wolves were nearly extinct in Poland by the 1950s, though the population has rebounded in recent years, particularly in the central part of the country.
Toczydlowska and her colleagues help educate the public on how to safely live in areas inhabited by packs of wolves.
“For people, it’s a new phenomenon,” Roman Gula, head of the organization’s wolf monitoring project, told the AP. “Education is one of our major, major goals.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
