Where to see the wolf and the animals of Sila

Would you like to safely observe the fascinating Sila Wolf and the other animals of Sila up close?

Come on a guided excursion in the Sila National Park, on the trail of the Sila wolf and the other fauna species that populate it. It will be an exciting experience for the whole family, with respect for nature.

The main area where wolves live in Calabria is the Sila Plateau, which extends over three provinces (Cosenza, Catanzaro and Crotone), corresponding to the definitions of Sila Grande, Greca and Piccola.  

Here, among dense coniferous forests, unspoilt clearings, arable land and an undergrowth rich in fruit and other Sila animals, the king of the Calabrian mountains roams undisturbed: his majesty, the Sila wolf.

The symbol of the National Park itself, the Sila Wolf had been hunted for centuries, until the crucial date of 1970, when a law was finally introduced to safeguard it.

Elegant, agile, discreet and beautiful to observe, the Sila Wolf is smaller than its European and American "cousins" (weighing 25-35 kg), with a greyish coat that turns reddish in the summer, long legs and great physical endurance, allowing it to cover up to 30 km at a trot. The most developed sense? The sense of smell, 100 times more sensitive than the human one.

Wolves in Calabria live in packs governed by a strict hierarchy: first comes the dominant male, then the dominant female and, following this, the other members.

Why is Sila one of Italy's most favourable habitats for wolves? Probably because the Sila wolf has managed to survive and hide from man better than in other areas, being the southernmost specimen of its species on the European continent. It seems that it was from the forests of Sila that the individuals that repopulated the entire peninsula from the 1970s onwards left. 

Today, various environmental associations and expert guides lead exciting excursions along the trails of the Sila National Park on the trail of the Sila Wolf and other predators.

Scheduled observations take place both during the day and at night, particularly during the summer period, and make it possible to camp and listen in silence to the howling of the Sila wolf.

Are you a wildlife lover? Within the park, you can get to know and observe many other animals of the Sila up close.

A few examples? You'll be spoilt for choice!

The park's biodiversity counts 175 different species of mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish that inhabit the Sila lakes.

The Reserves and Protected Areas within the park enable its preservation and encourage variety.

Among the most frequently encountered animals in the Sila are the fallow deer and deer, the wild cat, birds of prey, the otter, the hare (including a species endemic to the Mediterranean) and the squirrel.

The latter, known in the local dialect as "zaccanedda", in reference to its liveliness, is a separate species (Sciurus Meridionalis), different from the traditional red squirrel because of its black coat.