A wolf has been identified as the predator responsible for killing two sheep in the Dahl region, with genetic analysis revealing it to be a female wolf – a first for Luxembourg since the species' reappearance in 2017.

In December, two sheep were found dead in a meadow in the Dahl region, killed by a predator. The Nature and Forest Agency (ANF) has now confirmed that the predator was a wolf.

At the end of December, the ANF issued a press release stating that, based on an initial assessment, a wolf could not be ruled out as the culprit. To confirm the predator's identity, samples were taken from bite marks on one of the sheep in hopes of extracting sufficient saliva containing usable DNA. These samples were sent to the Senckenberg Institute in Gelnhausen, Germany, a leading laboratory specialising in genetic analysis.

The results, recently delivered to the ANF, confirmed through species analysis that the animal responsible for the sheep deaths was indeed a wolf. As a result, the affected sheep farmer will receive full compensation.

Further analysis revealed that the wolf was female, marking the first reported presence of a female wolf in the Grand Duchy since wolves reappeared in Luxembourg in 2017. Genetic testing also identified the animal as GW3691f, a wolf born in the Netherlands and first genetically registered in October 2023.

Wolves are known to inhabit nearby regions of Belgium and the Netherlands, where entire packs have been documented.