Italy: Nutrias to be sterilised in Turin
A project presented this month by the non-conventional animal centre of the University of Turin proposes sterilising nutrias with the help of drones.
A project presented this month by the non-conventional animal centre of the University of Turin proposes sterilising nutrias with the help of drones.
Sterilisation instead of culling
The aim is to curb their uncontrolled spread. A European law requires population control of this species, according to Italian media.
The nutria, also known as the coypu or river rat, and less commonly as the swamp beaver or nutria rat, is a rodent native to South America that has become naturalised in Central Europe.
It is a species that was introduced to Italy in the 1970s for fur production and has spread following its release into the wild.
Nutrias are now to be counted with the help of drones, and at least 100 individuals are to be sterilised. According to the plan drawn up by animal welfare advocates and the University of Turin, the population should be reduced by 40% within 4 years.
EU Union list of invasive species
In the “Union list” of invasive species, the EU identifies animal and plant species whose spread can damage habitats, species, or ecosystems, and therefore harm biodiversity. In 2017, the list was expanded from 37 to 49 species. This includes nutrias, even though they have long since become established residents. More on wildlife and environment and nature conservation.
More on the subject of recreational hunting: In our dossiers on recreational hunting gather fact-checks, analyses and background reports. 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.
