A filmmaker has captured the clearest pictures yet of the wolf pack that is living in the Veluwe national park.

At least three cubs have been born in the pack and rangers say there could be as many as five young wolves living with the three adults. The pictures, taken by wildlife photographer Patrick van Es, show two of the cubs walking across the heathland.

Wolf expert Glenn Lelieveld, of Wolven in Nederland, confirmed that the animals on film are the same cubs that were spotted for the first time three months ago – the first to be born in the country in 200 years. They are believed to have been born in April.

‘They’re growing extremely fast,’ Lelieveld told Omroep Gelderland. ‘The wolf cubs are going out with their parents to learn how to hunt and in a few months’ time they’ll be able to do it independently. They’ll stay in the pack for around two years to refine their hunting skills.’

The exact location where the film was made is being kept secret to protect the wolves from being disturbed by tourists. Rangers handed out fines to several dozen ‘wolf tourists’ over the summer who were found lurking in woodlands during the hours of darkness.

There have been concerns among farmers that the wolves could prey on livestock, but research by Wageningen Environmental Research found there had been no instances of wolves attacking sheep in the Veluwe in the last three months.