Data from: Home range and habitat selection of wolves recolonising Central European human-dominated landscapes

Decades of persecution has resulted in the long-term absence of grey
wolves (Canis lupus) from most European countries. However, recent changes
in both legislation and public attitudes toward wolves has eased the
pressure, allowing wolves to rapidly re-establish territories in their
previous Central European habitats over the last 20 years. Unfortunately,
these habitats are now heavily altered by humans. Understanding the
spatial ecology of wolves in such highly modified environments is crucial,
given the high potential for conflict and the need to reconcile their
return with multiple human concerns. We equipped 20 wolves, originating
from seven packs in six Central European regions, with GPS collars,
allowing us to calculate monthly average home range sizes for 14 of the
animals of 213.3 km2 using Autocorrelated Kernel Density Estimation. We
then used ESA WorldCover data to assess the mosaic of available habitats
used within each home range. Our data confirmed a general seasonal pattern
for breeding individuals, with smaller apparent home ranges during the
reproduction phase, and no specific pattern for non-breeders. Predictably,
our wolves showed a general preference for remote areas, and especially
forests, though some wolves within military training areas also showed a
broader preference for grassland, possibly influenced by local land use
and high availability of prey. Our results provide a comprehensive insight
into the ecology of wolves during their re-colonisation of Central Europe.
Though wolves are spreading relatively quickly across Central European
landscapes, their permanent reoccupation remains uncertain due to
conflicts with the human population. To secure the restoration of European
wolf populations, further robust biological data, including data on
spatial ecology, will be needed to clearly identify any management
implications.