Wolf attack

Wolf attacks are injuries to humans or their property by gray wolves. Their frequency varies based on the human and wolf populations and the interactions of these populations. Wolves, like any predator, choose prey based on circumstances. If a human is juvenile, small, alone or injured this increases the chance of a wolf attack as it would any prey species; a population of both wolves and humans living in the same environment increases the chances of a predatory circumstance occurring. Wolf attacks are rare where human wolf interactions are rare and escalate as human wolf interactions escalate. Experts categorize wolf attacks into various types, including rabies-infected, predatory, agonistic, and defensive.

The country with the most extensive historical records is France, where nearly 10,000 fatal attacks were documented from 1200 to 1920. A study by the Norwegian Institute of Nature Research showed that there were eight fatal attacks in Europe and Russia, three in North America, and more than 200 in south Asia in the half-century up to 2002. The updated edition of the study revealed 498 attacks on humans worldwide for the years 2002 to 2020, with 25 deaths, including 14 attributed to rabies.