The grey wolf (Canis lupus) is one of the most widespread mammals in the world today, as it inhabits the whole of Europe, most of the territory of Asia and North America, and it can even be found in the Arctic. Being the second biggest predator in our country, it has an immensely important part in nature as well as in human life. Its presence indicates a well preserved and pristine nature. Furthermore, the predation is a significant factor in preserving the natural balance and biodiversity. The past times saw the wolf roam most of Europe and Asia all the way to India and China in the South, but it was eradicated from the part of Middle and North Europe in the 19th and 20th centuries. Rewards were offered for each wolf kill for a long time and this lead to fluctuation of the population in that period and it brought the wolf to the brink of extinction. The wolf is a protected species nowadays, both, in our country as well as internationally and since it was granted the status of a protected species, its numbers have been increasing. The wolf was never completely extinct in Slovenia, so that today's population represents one of the few autochthonous populations living in Europe. The preservation of the wolf in Slovenia is induced by the people's mindset of great beasts, which is why it is important to educate the students in order for them to form a positive mindset towards the wolf as well. Slovenia is the bridge between the Alps and the Dinarides, and that is why it is vital to maintain the autochthonous population, so the wolf can spread into Western Europe. The diploma paper's main goal was to determine the attitudes of students of the high school towards the wolf. We set out to determine if there were any differences in attitudes between female and male students, the attitudes between students of lower and higher levels, and between students who have lower and higher grades at biology classes. The results have shown that there are statistically important discrepancies in the attitudes towards wolves when it comes to gender, as the female students nurture more positive mindsets and attitudes towards the wolf from the point of view of protection of the species that the male students, who are more positive about the interaction with the wolf. In terms of high school levels and biology class grades, we have found that the differences are minimal which might be a consequence of a low level of topic examination, in both, elementary and high schools.
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