Steel Walls and Barbed Wire: Consequences for Wildlife
The increasing number of borders in Europe, such as the Polish-Belarusian wall, endanger wildlife like European bison by severely restricting their migrations and movements.
Between 2014 and 2022, the length of border fences in the EU increased rapidly, with severe consequences for animal populations.
According to the European Parliament, the length of fences along the EU's external and internal borders nearly increased sevenfold between 2014 and 2022, from 315 to 2’048 kilometers.
Invisible Danger for Wildlife
Experts warn that these steel walls and barbed wire fences, designed to keep people out, also have significant – and often overlooked – impacts on animals.
Furthermore, there are warnings that wildlife can be injured by these barriers, while the fragmentation of their habitats and their separation from one another reduces their resilience.
Along the borders between Russia and Mongolia or between Russia and China, herds of ungulates can be crushed in large numbers during their migrations when they are pressed against the barriers.
On the African continent, large-scale border fences have caused mass die-offs of herbivores by blocking their access to water sources.
The Białowieża Forest as an Example
Particularly in areas such as the Białowieża Forest, physical borders have impeded animal migration and altered their social behavior. These changes can lead to conflicts with humans, especially when animals encroach on agricultural areas in search of food.
Rising nationalism and political tensions in Europe have led to the creation of new impermeable borders. These political decisions have resulted in environmental impact assessments often being disregarded. Experts suggest making borders more wildlife-friendly, but there are concerns that this may not be sufficient to mitigate the negative impacts. Functioning Wildlife corridors are essential for the preservation of biodiversity.
A comprehensive political solution is necessary to address the problems for both humans and animals.
Once a fence is erected, it is nearly impossible to remove it. Politicians love large fences because they clearly delineate what happens on one side and what happens on the other.
More on the subject of recreational hunting: 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.
