Wolves, dogs and their Hybrids
Wolves, dogs and their Hybrids
We finally come to the end of our inquiry. The jury is ambushed around the corner, which is
quite normal; for this affair, as for many others, polemics abound. We have tried to take stock,
using both recent (Moriceau, Smith) or little-known works (Castres). It is impossible to
thoroughly understand the ins and outs without stepping back and putting the Beast of
Gévaudan in its global context.
I) France, the homeland of «devouring beasts?»
Does France hold the world record for «devouring beasts?» Before we answer this question, let
us first define the term. For historians, this is a recurring phenomenon, that of wolf attacks
against man. There are also «beast» stories, the course and context of which have no relation
with 18th-century Gévaudan. We can eliminate them right off, through a few famous examples:
1 – The wolves entered Paris. Between 1421 and 1440, wolves enter Paris and commit
ravages. A famous document attests it, le «Journal d’un bourgeois de Paris» («Diary of a
Parisian bourgeois.» This is during the Hundred-Year-War: plagues, famines and armed troops
ravage the country. Thousands of bodies are left unburied, providential manna for wolves,
opportunistic flesh-eaters who regulate their population depending on available resources, and
get bolder through lack of opposition. No resemblance to the situation of Gévaudan in 1764.
2 - The Beast of the Cévennes, 1809-1816 : We count 20 dead in 7 years, some of which can
be assigned to rabid wolves and maybe some others to vilainous crimes. In duration as in
context, no resemblance with Gévaudan.
3 – The Beast of the Cézallier : These are attacks against cattle between 1949 and 1951, in
Haute-Loire and Puy-de-Dôme ;
4 – The Beast of the Vosges : Between 1975 and 1994, cattle and domestic animals are killed
by an unidentified animal, probably a wolf raised by a private individual and released. A lynx
was also mentioned.
Let us return to genuine wolf attacks. Geneviève Carbone classifies them into three categories:
1 – Attacks by rabid wolves, the most important part. Not pertinent in our case; a rabid wolf dies
through hydrophobia in under 15 days.
2 – Defensive attacks: wolves that are hurt or defending their cubs. Nothing notable, or very
marginally, in Gévaudan.
3 – Predatory attacks. Both Geneviève Carbone and Daniel Bernard (1) acknowledge them, but
disagree about their magnitude and echo. Carbone explains that from the 8th century onward,
the Church has always linked the massive appearance of wolves to the loss of faith. Jean Marc
Moriceau mentions very numerous attacks against Man in France, but then another dispute
starts concerning their magnitude. Let us examine the case of the Besnais forest, also known as
«Beast of Touraine,» 1693-1694. For Moriceau, there were 130 victims, whereas for Louis,
quoting Buffière, himself quoting Marie-Rose Souty who perused the archives, there were
«only» 72 victims, with doubts concerning the real causes (rabies, wandering dogs...)
In short, there is a great part of truth but also a mythic aura probably resulting from the
superstitions formerly sustained by the Church. If we compare with other European countries, it
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is a fact that France seems to hold the sad record: Jean Marc Moriceau counts 1165 attacks
between 1580 and 1842 (2), whereas Genevière Carbone only mentions a few attacks since the
16th century in Germany and in Austria, due to rabies; about 440 attacks in 500 years in Italy, a
bit more in Spain. It is therefore tempting for «traditional» historians to put our Beast of
Gévaudan among the «French beast affairs» in general. We, however, think it is different.
II) Of lupine mores
Once again, not claiming to be zoologists, we will let specialists talk. The first remark is from
Geneviève Carbone: the modification of natural environments can cause genetic and
behavioural mutations among the species subjected to them. This is basic Darwinism. In the
case of the wolf, she numbers 32 sub-species appearing between 1758 and 1943. Supposing
the Beast was a wolf from one of those sub-species, Castres indicates it could be as different
from other wolves «as a Charolais bull from an Aubrac bull.» Carbone emphasizes the notion of
territory, a fundamental among wolves, as well as the primary objective of founding a new family
among young mature individuals leaving the herd. Wolves adapt very well as neighbours to
humans. She notes than in 1970 in Italy, 43% of food resources came from from garbage
dumps, 85% in the case of some regions in Spain. Finally, quoting Buffon and the studies of
Rollinat in 1929, she confirms that predation against humans is exceptional but real.
Another factor must be emphasized: from May 1764 to May 1767, 251 wolves were shot in
Gévaudan (3), with no incidence on the rhythm of the attacks. It is tempting for historians to
demonstrate that hunting periods must be linked with punctual drops in attacks, but in the case
of the Beast, there are serious doubts on that point. Carbone emphasizes that in the vast
majority of cases, the predatory waves are seasonal, from April to August; the Beast, however,
kills year-round. Concerning attacks on humans, she writes that they target the upper body and
head as a priority, and that of course it is mainly aimed at children, but also remarks that while
wolves are stubborn and will follow their prey, they abandon their victim when faced with serious
resistance or the arrival of reinforcements. Moreover, wolves hunt in herds, and attacks initiated
by a lone individual are very rare. Let us remark that Aristotle, in his time, described the
«monolycos» or lone wolf that attacked humans. As we can see, some traits fit our Beast, other
do not.
III) When dogs sin with wolves...
…the result is called a HYBRID. Dogs and wolves (and all members of the «canis» group in
general: coyotes, foxes, etc.) can cross-breed, and the result can in turn reproduce, contrarily to
other well-known hybrids such as tigons (a hybrid of lion and tiger) or mules (hybrids of donkeys
and horses). In the case of dogs and wolves, there are multiple examples where such crosses
are used to reinforce the genetic pool of hunting and fighting dogs. Wolf defenders remind us
that cross-breeding is exceedingly rare in nature, such breeding requiring
the intervention of man. Some authors, believers in a man/animal association, have until now
claimed that natural hybrids of dogs and wolves were practically impossible, and could only be
human in origin, and therefore criminal. Castres contradicts this and mentions the existence of
natural hybrids in Spain and Portugal. Recent news items support this: a TV report on France2
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two years ago, as well as a series of reports on the situation in Russia. «Organized herds» of
dogs and wolves are present in great city parks in the centre of Russia and reportedly killed 105
people in a few years, forcing Putin himself to order their destruction. Last year, predation
among domestic cattle by a group of hybrids was reported in Croatia, information confirmed by
researcher Jasna Jeremic, who explains it through radical modification of the wolves’
environment. Finally, the veterinary faculty of Zagreb estimates that 30% of the wolf groups
studied are of a hybrid nature (4). Some of these wolves and dogs turned wild do not hesitate to
attack the caddies of supermarket clients to steal food, a nice example of adaptation when
faced with a modified environment... It is true that the dogs in questions (huskies, malamutes or
Samoyed) are not exactly mere dachshunds...
Finally, it is impossible to master the temper of such hybrids, because of Mandel’s law on
recessive traits: you can get fearful and obedient specimens as well as versatile and dangerous
ones. Jeremic’s report also demonstrates the diversity of aspects among hybrid descendants
inside a group: hair, size, etc. Hybrids can look life their father or their mother, or even be
albinos (a case observed in Dalmatia). Let us remember here the testimonies of Jean Tesseidre
and Jacques Bastide on September 1765: they are attacked by the Beast, unprepared, as the
animal they describe mixes characteristics from both dog and wolf. An animal with a versatile
and dangerous behaviour, with very different attack tactics from a wolf’s?
Let us end this chapter with an interesting hint. The first attacks took place south of Langognes
on the borders of Ardèche. Many authors, supporters of the «man/animal» association, suggest
a possible training of the Beast in the forest of Mercoire, where «Messire» is supposed to have
had a domain, and the hunts did start in that forest. Once again, no texts, no documents... but
20 years apart, without communication (Moriceau does not quote Geaorges André Daniel
Castres’s thesis), both authors report that the first crimes or attacks started in Vivarais
(Ardèche) in the spring of 1764. There the initial focus for what was to become the Beast of
Gévaudan seems to be located.
IV) Environment and mutations
As Geneviève Carbonne states in her book «Le Larousse des Loups,» under pressure from the
modification of their environment, species are led to evolve. These modifications concern
behaviour as well as physical characteristics. Several examples of behavioural adaptations to
environmental modifications caused by man were reported in the media:
- Tigers in India and Bangladesh. The extension of slash-and-burn agriculture as well as the
vertiginous development of population during the last century, caused a multiplication of
predatory attacks against man.
- Sharks: the most spectacular case is the one that took place in 1916, on the island of Martha’s
Vineyard, near Cape Cod (Massachussets, USA). For over a week, a great white shark spread
panic, devouring 5 swimmers. Forbidding bathing in the sea and a fierce hunt chased away the
big fish. This episode was Peter Benchley’s historical basis for his best-seller, «Jaws.» More
recently, deadly shark attacks were recorded at Charm El Cheik in the Red Sea, a popular sea
resort in Egypt, as well as in La Réunion (5).
- Lions: the very famous episode of the Tsavo lions (Kenya) is undoubtedly the closest example
to our affair, especially through the political angle. To sum up the facts:
In 1898, the British Empire, at the height of its power, decides to link the railway network of
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South Africa with that descending from Egypt. At Tsavo, the work is interrupted by two lions that
devour dozens of workers, and the papers mock the helplessness of the British. Only the
perseverance of engineer Patterson, who tracks and shoots them after months of pursuit, will
end the story. Those lions were named «Ghost» and «Darkness.» Stephen Hopkins, in 1997,
made a very fine movie of this: «The Ghost and the Darkness.» with Val Kilmer and Michael
Douglas (6). 135 deaths were attributed to those two lions, that presented rather specific
characteristics: no mane, an exceptional size (6) and very bad teeth. The press then mentioned
monstrous and bizarre lions...
It happens that the Museum of Natural History in Lausanne made an inquiry into that episode.
Here are their conclusions, based on the work of two American researchers (7).
- Engineer Patterson grossly exaggerated the number of victims: 28 in fact, the rest resulting
from attacks dating from before and after the end of the work. Such attacks still take place
today, for the same reasons as tiger attacks in India;
- Elephant hunting by ivory traders had reduced grasslands and profited thorny shrubs, causing
the disappearance of small ungulates, the lions’ favourite prey. The situation had been
exacerbated by an epidemics of bovine plague, imported by colonists. The lions had then turned
to man, easy prey for those two old, toothless males. The mane’s disappearance among older
lions is similar to baldness in men. Michel Louis also mentions a sub-species (8).
What about 1764 Gévaudan? Population pressure is three times as high as nowadays (about
200,000 inhabitants, against 76800 today). This population is not concentrated in towns, but
scattered along paths and among isolated farms. The raising of cattle is expanding, with fewer
sheep; the latter are, moreover, well protected by hounds. Woods are retreating, even though
they are denser than today, with different species of trees). Only in 1805 will an edict by
Napoleon start a vast reforesting operation. We do therefore witness a widespread mutation of
the wolf’s environment.
Notes
(1) Daniel Bernard : «Des loups & des hommes, histoire et traditions populaires,» éditions
Gérard Tisserand, De Borée, Clermont-Ferrand, 2000.
(2) Jean-Marc Moriceau : «Les loups mangeurs d’homme,» L’Histoire n° 299, june 2005. See
also the very recent «L’homme contre le loup, une guerre de 2000 ans,» Fayard, Paris 2011.
(3) Auguste André, «Tableau des loups abattus en Gévaudan,» in «La Bête du Gévaudan,» éditions Lacour-Ollé, Paris 1884.
(4) Article from the online magazine Paperblog, reported by «La Gazette de la Bête,» and
Bernard Soulier.
(5) I dived several times in the area 15 years ago, when the resort was not a big town yet;
since then, it has grown worse than La Baule ! (UK: think Bournemouth; US: Miami Beach) And
sharks, previously only rarely seen, have become more numerous.
(6) Stephen Hopkins : «The Ghost and the Darkness», VHS Paramount/CIC 1998.
(7) In «Le Monde -Planète» , 06/11/2009. See also the Museum of Lausanne’s website.
(8) See also Michel Louis’s book : «Terreur dans la brousse,» éditions Perrin, Paris 2011. The
corpses of both lions are visible in the Museum of Natural History in Chicago, and Kenya
demands their return.
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Canadians and Europeans wolves from the wolves reserve of Gévaudan:
{gallery}/gevaudan/Les_chiens_Loups_etc{/gallery}
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