Camperdown Wildlife Centre is shut to the public on Wednesday as staff try to process the death of the park’s five wolves.
The pack was put down after showing abnormal behaviour in the wake of an operation to the alpha male, Loki.
Staff were said to be “devastated” at the loss of the animals – which leaves the Dundee zoo without any wolves.
A post on the centre’s Facebook page on Wednesday morning said: “Camperdown Wildlife Centre will be closed to the public today (Wednesday March 29) to allow our colleagues to process recent events.
“We thank you for your patience and understanding.”
Bosses have not been confirmed when the centre will reopen.
‘Wolves are extremely social animals’
It comes as an animal expert has explained why the wolves may have been behaving differently – and why this may have led to the decision to put down four otherwise healthy animals.
Dr Vasilis Louca, from the school of biological sciences at Aberdeen University, says small packs can suffer following the loss of their alpha male.
He told The Courier: “Wolves are extremely social animals that exhibit very complex interactions.
“The alpha male (or female) within a pack are known to play a key role in relation to the coherency of the pack.
“Often, in wild groups, following the death of an alpha individual, the pack will often dissolve. Research shows that this is even more profound when the alpha male dies (as opposed to the alpha female).
“Smaller packs also tend to be more badly affected by the loss of an alpha individual and are at higher risk of dissolving as a group.”
He says rising stress levels may explain the “anxious” behaviour staff said they had observed at Camperdown after Loki’s illness.
This may also have led to the wolves expressing behaviour they had previously “suppressed” – leading to a “dramatic” change.
Asked whether this meant euthanasia was the best course of action for the wolves, Dr Vasilis added: “This would be quite difficult to answer, as we do not have all the information and how the wolves behaved before and after the death of the alpha male.
“If that group were to be broken up, with the wolves sent individually to other parks or zoos, that would have created issues too, as it would have been very difficult to integrate new wolves into existing groups elsewhere.
“I am sure that the staff at the animal park have the welfare of the animals as their top priority and considered and exhausted all other options before resorting to euthanasia.”
Leisure and Culture Dundee – which runs the zoo – has not offered a full explanation about why the decision was taken.
But in a statement on Tuesday, a spokesperson said: “We can assure everyone that this difficult decision was taken following expert advice and consultation with the relevant professional bodies.”
Hundreds of people have signed a petition demanding an “inquiry” into why the animals were put down.
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