Study: Misguided hunting policy is making red deer sick
Hesse has an inbreeding problem: it concerns the red deer, which lives in abundance in the forests of the Brothers Grimm. But behind this seemingly idyllic wildlife fairy-tale world, things are crumbling badly. Wildlife biologists at Justus Liebig University Giessen have now determined that there is virtually no exchange between the isolated populations.
In 2018, the first animal with a shortened lower jaw was discovered in Hesse — a deformity that occurs as a result of inbreeding.
Not a single population in Hesse has sufficient genetic diversity for the species Cervus elaphus, the red deer, to adapt to changing environmental conditions in the future, says Prof. Gerald Reiner, lead author of the new study, adding: The long-term survival of our largest native wild animal species is therefore in question.
Red deer zones as a genetic trap
Hesse is one of several federal states in which red deer are only permitted to exist in so-called red deer zones. Outside these areas, they must be eradicated by law. “Far more than motorways or railway lines, it is the legislature that fragments red deer habitats in Hesse,” says Dr. Andreas Kinser, Deputy Head of Nature and Species Conservation at the Deutsche Wildtier Stiftung. “The misguided hunting policy bears responsibility for the decline in genetic diversity, which is an essential component of biodiversity."
Petition for the abolition of red deer zones
But it is not only Hesse that is making red deer sick. In Baden-Württemberg, red deer are only permitted to exist on four percent of the state's area, divided into five legally defined red deer zones. To give red deer a voice, the Deutsche Wildtier Stiftung has launched the world's first “bellowed” petition. Around 25’000 nature and species conservationists have already signed at change.org/rothirsch signed in favor of abolishing red deer districts. “The loss of genetic diversity is irreversible,” says Andreas Kinser. “To turn things around, politicians must finally allow the red deer’s natural migrations.”
