Global warming brings jackals to Western Europe
Warmer weather and decline of rivals are driving westward migration from Asia Minor

Jackals have been spotted in Western Europe, driven across the Alps by global warming and the decline of rival species.
Sightings were reported by hunters in the Haute-Savoie region of France and confirmed by mammal experts at the University of Geneva who analysed footage from automatic camera traps on the Swiss border.
About one third the size of wolves, golden jackals have been slowly migrating westward from their native Asia Minor since the early 1980s. Moving through the Balkans, they have flourished in central European countries such as Hungary and Romania, due to a combination of warmer weather and the decline of the indigenous wolf population. They have more recently settled in Germany, Switzerland and Italy.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Twenty-five years after wolves returned to France, sparking a war between environmentalists and farmers whose flocks they ravaged, the appearance of jackals “has given hill farmers in southern France another reason for fear”, says The Times.
The paper says despite the state culling over 40 wolves this autumn, more than 10,000 sheep have been reported killed by the predators this year.
Conservationists are calling for legislation to protect jackals in the same way as wolves. Jean-Francois Darmstaedter, head of the wolf protection group Ferus, said: “If we do nothing, the risk is that a golden jackal will soon be killed by a trigger-happy hunter.”
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Today's political cartoons - April 20, 2025
Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - Pam Bondi, retirement planning, and more
By The Week US
-
5 heavy-handed cartoons about ICE and deportation
Cartoons Artists take on international students, the Supreme Court, and more
By The Week US
-
Exploring the three great gardens of Japan
The Week Recommends Beautiful gardens are 'the stuff of Japanese landscape legends'
By The Week UK
-
Inside the Israel-Turkey geopolitical dance across Syria
THE EXPLAINER As Syria struggles in the wake of the Assad regime's collapse, its neighbors are carefully coordinating to avoid potential military confrontations
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
What does the Le Pen verdict mean for the future of French politics?
TODAY'S BIG QUESTION Convicted of embezzlement and slapped with a five year ban on running for public office, where does arch-conservative Marine Le Pen go from here — and will the movement she leads follow?
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
'Like a sound from hell': Serbia and sonic weapons
The Explainer Half a million people sign petition alleging Serbian police used an illegal 'sound cannon' to disrupt anti-government protests
By Abby Wilson
-
The arrest of the Philippines' former president leaves the country's drug war in disarray
In the Spotlight Rodrigo Duterte was arrested by the ICC earlier this month
By Justin Klawans, The Week US
-
Ukrainian election: who could replace Zelenskyy?
The Explainer Donald Trump's 'dictator' jibe raises pressure on Ukraine to the polls while the country is under martial law
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK
-
Why Serbian protesters set off smoke bombs in parliament
THE EXPLAINER Ongoing anti-corruption protests erupted into full view this week as Serbian protesters threw the country's legislature into chaos
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
Who is the Hat Man? 'Shadow people' and sleep paralysis
In Depth 'Sleep demons' have plagued our dreams throughout the centuries, but the explanation could be medical
By The Week Staff
-
Why Assad fell so fast
The Explainer The newly liberated Syria is in an incredibly precarious position, but it's too soon to succumb to defeatist gloom
By The Week UK