The cemetery roe deer from Basel are being relocated to the Jura
The roe deer population in the Hörnli cemetery has grown steadily. As a result, the animals are under stress among themselves. There are problems with inbreeding. Animal welfare advocates opposed shooting the animals. Now the authorities have found a solution, together with the animal welfare advocates.
In recent years, the roe deer at the Hörnli cemetery have multiplied greatly; today there are approximately 60 animals. The habitat within the cemetery is too small for a population of this size. The canton therefore wanted to regulate the roe deer population through culling. In order to save the animals' lives, the Fondation Franz Weber campaigned for the relocation of the animals.
Previous measures had little effect
Almost three years ago, the canton wanted to regulate the roe deer population through culling. Broad opposition formed against this. A petition with over 80’000 signatures called for a halt to the shooting. The recreational hunters fail as population control.
Pilot project for relocation
The Fondation Franz Weber has advocated for the relocation of the roe deer and found a new habitat in the canton of Jura for 20 animals. The relocation is being carried out by the environmental consultancy ECOTEC from Geneva under the direction of Prof. Dr. Claude Fischer. The Federal Office for the Environment has granted approval.
Fence as a long-term solution
If the pilot project is successful, a further relocation will be considered in due course. Once the main part of the cemetery is free of roe deer, a new fence and new gate management are to ensure that no new roe deer can enter the grounds. More on the topic Switzerland.
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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.
