Ibex Auction: Hobby Hunters Subsidise Wolf-Baiting
At ibex auctions, hobby hunters pay up to 40'000 francs for a kill. A portion of the proceeds flows into the lobby against the wolf.
While in Graubünden only local hobby hunters are permitted to hunt ibex, in Valais this is also open to foreigners — even though the European Environment Agency has assessed the status of the population in these areas as inadequate.
Valais is the only canton that allows foreign trophy hunters to hunt ibex.
Ibex hunting brings 650’000 francs into state coffers
The mountain canton permits trophy hunters from around the world to shoot ibex for a fee, accompanied by a Valais game warden. What represents an adventure for foreign hobby hunters is a lucrative business for travel agencies and the canton of Valais: ibex hunting brings 650’000 francs into state coffers each year. The canton of Valais uses these revenues, among other things, to subsequently combat the wolf.
In the canton of Valais, individual shooting permits can be purchased. Particularly popular among hobby hunters are ibex, whose horns are prized as hunting trophies. The bigger, the better.
This trophy hunting has been practiced since the early 1990s, but was largely unknown to the public. That has changed, at least in French-speaking Switzerland, since last Sunday. The RTS programme «Mise au point» aired a report on this practice that was very poorly received by viewers. Poor shots, suffering animals, wealthy people from around the world whose sole aim is to hang the longest possible ibex horns on their wall — at best next to a lion's head or buffalo horns. A petition was launched and has already gathered thousands of signatures, and the Lower Valais Greens have already announced they will intervene at the upcoming Grand Council session.
State Councillor Jacques Melly has also responded to the programme. Speaking to RTS, the State Councillor responsible for hunting said that since April there had already been consideration of banning this type of ibex hunting for foreigners. “It no longer reflects the spirit of the times.”
Several aspects of these ibex safaris deserve scrutiny. For instance, the responsible cantonal office actively cooperates with agencies that promote and organise the entire experience, including helicopter flights into the high mountains. In some cases, local game wardens who accompany visiting hunters to the animal are also said to have received large tips — something that is prohibited for public employees.
Hunting licences for ibex
This results in approximately 350 ibex being shot in the region each year. In the canton of Graubünden, the figure is around 500 animals. It is estimated that a total of 18’000 ibex live in the Swiss Alps.
Anyone wishing to shoot an ibex in Switzerland must, however, dig deep into their pockets. A German hunting travel agency offers a 3-day ibex hunt for around 3’000 euros, with hotel and meal costs on top of that.
The licence to hunt a male ibex with one-metre-long horns in Valais costs 13’000 francs. Each additional centimetre costs 500 francs. Added to this are the costs of guiding, accommodation, and a companion, which amount to around 3’000 to 4’000 francs. A tourist who travelled from the United States for the hunt reports having paid 20’000 francs for a three-day trip.
Trophy hunting threatens the balance
The Valais hunting inspector Peter Scheiberl explained to «Rundschau» that this was not trophy hunting but rather a regulation of stock levels, which was absolutely justifiable, even if the trophies subsequently ended up abroad. This hunting continued to ensure sustainability.
The stated goal of hunting is therefore the stabilisation of the population. According to the federal hunting statistics, the ibex population in the canton of Valais has been stable at around 5’000 animals since 2008.
Jean-Michel Gaillard, a research director at the University of Lyon, states that around 36 percent of all ibex older than 11 years are shot. That is a very large proportion. Since it is primarily older ibex that reproduce, hunting threatens the balance of the herds. The hunting authorities in Valais, however, see no risk.
The example of the perverted hunting administrations of Valais, Graubünden, and Zurich shows that the federal government must under no circumstances cede more power to the cantons. On the contrary!
Dossier: Wolf in Switzerland: Facts, Policy, and the Limits of Hunting
