Declaration of War Against Renewed Wolf Extermination
Under the title «Wolf. That's Enough!» the canton of Valais has filed a cantonal initiative to repeal the protection of the wolf.
The federal government should classify the species as huntable.
This week, a majority of the responsible National Council committee approved the motion (Wild beim Wild reported). Silva Semadeni, president of the environmental organisation «Pro Natura», calls it an «extermination motion,» writes the NZZ am Sonntag.
Pro Natura president Semadeni hopes that the initiative will be rejected in parliament. However, should the chambers “agree to the renewed extermination of this native species, there will certainly be a referendum and a public vote on the wolf,” said the Graubünden SP National Councillor. She points out that the federal government is currently developing a proposal that would allow for better regulation of the wolf population and make it easier to legally shoot a wolf if it causes significant damage or loses its wariness of settlements and people. “The Valais motion even harms the wolf’s opponents,” says Semadeni. “If it passes in parliament, it will take much longer before we reach a solution at the ballot box.”
Problem Wolf Moves On
The main problem cited by wolf opponents is the killing of livestock. How many sheep are killed in a given area depends, of course, on many factors, says Ralph Manz of the predator competence center Kora: “For example, on how many alpine pastures sheep flocks are protected by livestock guardian dogs and shepherds, whether protection is also implemented on spring and autumn grazing areas, and above all on the availability of the primary food source, i.e. the density of ungulates.” In addition, a single wolf can cause great damage in an unprotected flock and kill up to 70 animals in a year, says Manz. The number of livestock kills therefore fluctuates considerably. This is borne out by the latest data recorded by Kora. Last year, wolves in Switzerland killed 336 livestock animals: 317 sheep, 18 goats, and one head of cattle. This is the second-highest figure since a wolf first returned to Switzerland in 1998 — 150 more kills than the previous year. The distribution is striking: 174 kills occurred in Valais, 38 in Ticino, and 54 in the canton of Uri. In Uri, the vast majority of kills can likely be attributed to a single animal, wolf M 58. Although he was cleared for shooting, he could not be caught within the authorized timeframe and has since apparently migrated to Austria.
Also noteworthy: the Calanda pack in Grisons, which numbered up to ten wolves last year, has claimed only 37 livestock animals over the past five years — despite approximately 1,500 sheep being kept within its territory. Manz attributes this to the well-established livestock protection in this region.
Barking guardian dogs
Silva Semadeni sets a different figure against the wolf kill statistics: according to a study, around 4,000 sheep die annually in the mountains from disease, falls, or bad weather, she says — not least due to inadequate supervision: “Compared to that, the 300 kills seem modest.”
The mortality rate among wolves, however, is considerably higher. In the past two years, 28 animals have been genetically identified in Switzerland, with two packs and one pair confirmed. Together with roaming lone wolves, the population is estimated at just over 30 animals. But Switzerland’s wolves live dangerously: of the 62 males and 18 females documented since 1998, at least 19 have died unnatural deaths.
Valais SVP National Councillor Franz Ruppen finds this far from sufficient. He has championed the Valais initiative in the committee. Damage to livestock is too high, he argues, and livestock guardian dogs threaten and drive away tourists with their barking. And because the “disproportionate requirements of herd protection” make sheep farming unattractive, entire alpine pastures risk falling into disuse in the future. Ruppen wants the wolf gone: “There is no place for the wolf here,” he says, “our ancestors eradicated it when Switzerland was far less densely populated.”
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