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https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/feb/07/swedish-hunters-shoot-dead-54-wolves-in-largest-cull-ever-in-country>
"Hunters have shot dead 54 wolves in a month in Sweden’s largest and most
controversial cull of the animals yet, prompting fury from conservationists and
satisfaction among farmers who consider the predators a threat to their
livelihoods.
The Stockholm government has authorised the shooting of 75 wolves in its 2023
cull, more than twice last year’s figure, despite warnings from scientists that
wolf numbers are not large enough to sustain a healthy population.
“Wolves are a threat for those of us who live in rural areas,” said Kjell-Arne
Ottosson, a Christian Democrat MP and vice-president of the parliament’s
environment and agriculture committee. “We have to manage that. We have to take
this seriously.”
Farmers say more than 340 sheep were killed in 2021 by a Swedish wolf
population estimated at about 460. The predators, which in the 1960s were
thought to be extinct in Sweden, are also resented by hunters, who say the dogs
they use to track and drive deer and elk are regularly attacked.
“This cull is absolutely necessary to slow the growth of wolves. Sweden’s wolf
population is the largest we have had in modern times,” Gunnar Glöersen,
predator manager at the Swedish Hunters’ Association, told public broadcaster
SVT.
However, the scale of this year’s planned cull – only 203 wolves have been shot
in total in Sweden in the 12 years since authorised hunting resumed – has
alarmed conservationists. “It’s tragic,” said Daniel Ekblom of the Nature
Conservation Society. “It could have consequences for a long time to come.”
Scientists have said the that to sustain a healthy population, the wolf
population roaming Sweden and Finland should not fall below 500, and Sweden’s
Environmental Protection Agency has said at least 300 are necessary to avoid
harmful inbreeding.
Led by centre- and far-right parties, however, Sweden’s parliament voted two
years ago to cap the wolf population at 270, while the Swedish Hunters’
Association wants to go even further and lower the limit to 150 animals.
Wolf numbers fell steeply in Sweden after 1789, when a law was passed allowing
commoners to hunt. That led to the decimation of the deer and elk populations,
prompting wolves to prey more on livestock – and the state to pay a bounty for
every wolf killed."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
