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Afghanistan at a glance
Little is known about wolves in this country. The Wildlife Conservation Society’s website includes this information:
“The wolf still occupies about 90% of its original range in Afghanistan, although this claim has not been well substantiated. Almost nothing is known about the status of this species in Iraq although its range includes countries on either side and it is historically known to occur there. In Pakistan, gazelle are known to be the primary prey of the wolf, while in other neighboring countries saiga antelope, deer, wild goats and sheep, and other ungulates and livestock make up the majority of the diet.
“The central Asian population is estimated to range between 89,000-105,000 individuals, and the IUCN Canid Specialist Group estimates about 1,000 wolves potentially remain in Afghanistan. The major threat to wolves in Afghanistan and Iraq is human persecution because wolves are considered a pest species that preys on livestock. In Afghanistan, wolf pelts are often used to make hats or blankets. However, the Eurasian wolf is protected in Afghanistan and cannot be transported internationally without a CITES permit.”
Species Information
Species
Common Name: gray wolf
Latin Name: Canis lupus
Subspecies
Common Name:
Latin Name: Canis lupus lupus
Current Wolf Population, Trend, Status
Number of wolves: About 1,000
Population trend: Decreasing
Legal protection: Protected, according to this story from 2009
This page was last updated in 2020.
Additional Information
- Media coverage
Afghanistan Bright Spot: Wildlife surviving in war zones (National Geographic)
Starving wolves kill six Afghan villagers (The Telegraph, 2005) - Government of Afghanistan releases its first ever list of protected species (2009)
- The Killer Wolves of Maiwand, Afghanistan
Research
- Conserving wildlife and wild lands in conflict zones: Afghanistan
- Wildlife Survey Program: Status of Mammals in Wakhan Afghanistan (2008)
- Capacity building for biodiversity conservation in Afghanistan.
- Afghanistan’s Wildlife: Past and present
- A transboundary study of spatiotemporal patterns of livestock predation and prey preferences by snow leopard and wolf in the Pamir
- War and wildlife: a post-conflict assessment of Afghanistan’s Wakhan Corridor
- Large mammals surviving conflict in the eastern forest of Afghanistan
- Hunting in Afghanistan: variation and motivations across species
- The Integration of Biodiversity into National Environmental Assessment Procedures
- Wildlife trade products available to U.S. military personnel serving in Afghanistan
