Three shot wolf pups discovered in Germany
Three illegally shot wolf pups were discovered in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. The perpetrators are being sought.
Perpetrators sought: According to media reports a shot wolf pup was discovered last Sunday in a maize field near Plöwen in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
Suspected gunshot wounds
Two further wolves — both juveniles — were found dead on Tuesday, 28 September, along the Elbe near Boizenburg. All three animals reportedly showed signs of gunshot wounds. The carcasses were handed over to specialists at the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research for further examination. Police and prosecutors are investigating on suspicion of a violation of the Federal Nature Conservation Act.
PETA offers reward
PETA is offering a reward of 3,000 euros for information leading to the conviction of the perpetrator or perpetrators.
Unfortunately, politicians — including the outgoing Federal Minister of Agriculture Julia Klöckner — are fuelling prejudices against wolves by calling for easier culling regulations. We all need to accept that wolves are an integral part and an enrichment of our natural world. Peaceful coexistence must be the goal.
Peter Höffken, specialist advisor at PETA
After recreational hunters wiped out wolves in Germany in the 19th century, it took over 100 years for them to resettle here. Since the year 2000, the wolf has once again been resident in this country — not least due to the strict protective measures in place since 1990. Currently, 128 wolf packs live here.
Shooting strictly protected species such as wolves or lynx is no minor offence and can be punished by up to five years in prison. After road accidents, illegal hunting is the second most common cause of death. Of a total of 126 animals found dead, 98 died in traffic. Eleven wolves were killed illegally. The perpetrators are almost never caught.PETA is calling for a specialist and regionally independent investigative authority to solve illegal killings of protected animal species.
More on the subject of recreational hunting: In the dossier Poaching and hunting crime in Switzerland we document cases, legal questions and recurring patterns. What the research says about this is shown by Hunting fact-checked: the state of research.
The position of IG Wild beim Wild: IG Wild beim Wild rejects recreational hunting. Our model is the canton of Geneva, which has managed without recreational hunting since 1974: without hunting seasons, without hunting dogs, without driven hunts, without high seats, without the animal cruelty and crime that go hand in hand with hunting season elsewhere. What has worked there for over fifty years disproves every position paper by JagdSchweiz. An association that bases its policy on claims it refutes in its own documents is not a professional organisation, but a factory for misinformation.
