https://phys.org/news/2025-03-wolves-rapid-recovery-europe-decade.html
"Wolf populations in Europe increased by nearly 60% in a decade, according to a
study led by Cecilia Di Bernardi and Guillaume Chapron at the Swedish
University of Agricultural Sciences, published in the open-access journal
PLOS
Sustainability and Transformation.
Large carnivore populations are declining worldwide. However, in Europe,
conservation policies have supported the recovery of wolves (Canis lupus) in
recent decades. To understand current trends in their populations, researchers
collated data on wolf numbers in 34 countries across Europe. They found that by
2022, at least 21,500 wolves lived in Europe—an increase of 58% compared to the
estimated population of 12,000 a decade earlier.
In most countries analyzed, wolf populations were increasing, with only three
countries reporting declines over the previous decade. The researchers also
investigated sources of conflict between humans and wolves, such as livestock
deaths. They estimated that in the European Union, wolves killed 56,000
domestic animals per year, out of a total population of 279 million livestock.
Although the risk varied between countries, on average, livestock faced a 0.02%
chance of being killed by wolves each year. Compensating farmers for these
losses cost European countries 17 million euros annually. Still, wolves can
also have positive economic impacts, such as reducing traffic accidents and
damage to forestry plantations by controlling wild deer populations. However,
there wasn't enough data available to quantify these benefits.
Considering Europe's large human population and the widespread alteration of
landscapes for agriculture, industry and urbanization, the rapid recovery of
wolves over the last decade highlights their extraordinary adaptability.
However, as conservationists transition from saving endangered populations to
sustaining a successful recovery, the challenge will be to adapt national and
international policies to ensure that humans and wolves can coexist sustainably
in the long term, the authors say."
Via
What Could Go Right? S7 E4:
https://theprogressnetwork.org/progress-march-2025/
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
