Valais auctions off death – to trophy hunters

Valais is the only canton that permits hunting of ibex by foreign trophy hunters.

Editorial team Wild beim Wild — 7 August 2015

In Switzerland today, observed colonies show a stable ibex population of around 17’128 individuals (in contrast to the strongly declining, unstable chamois population).

To prevent the numbers from rising further, around 50 ibex are released for shooting by foreign trophy hunters each year in September. In Valais, a total of around 400 to 450 ibex are killed each year by cantonal and out-of-canton trophy hunters, and 500 in Graubünden. This is typically just over 10% of a colony’s population.

The cantonal hunting authority in Valais draws up an annual price list that precisely determines the cost of ibex shoots based on horn length. A buck with horns up to 55 centimetres can cost around 3,000 francs, one with horns 85 centimetres long already 8,000 francs, one with 95 centimetres 10’000 francs, and a rare, truly exceptional buck with 110 centimetres even 20’000 francs, writes the Tages-Anzeiger.

«Demand for old bucks is immense,» says hunting inspector Peter Scheibler. Indeed, there are long waiting lists for ibex shoots and an annual draw for permits among interested parties. In the process, the finest bucks are reserved almost exclusively for wealthy out-of-canton hobby hunters. The canton’s annual revenue from ibex hunting is estimated at around 400’000 francs. The Canton of Valais uses this revenue, among other things, to combat the wolf.

Since 1990, the federal government has permitted population regulation, even though ibex are protected under federal law and the Bern Convention!

The sheep subsidy madness

In Switzerland, around half of the approximately 425,000 sheep spend the summer in alpine grazing areas. Thousands of these sheep never return to the valley — mainly due to health neglect by their owners, being forgotten on the alp, falling into ravines, struck by lightning, and so on. Wolves prey on approximately 200 sheep per year. Due to numerous cullings, the wolf population has been stagnating at around 25 individuals for 20 years. Despite this minimal population, facilitating the shooting of protected wolves remains a standing item on the hunters' agenda.

Demanding that there be no damage to livestock is just as illusory as demanding that there be no traffic accidents.

Livestock protection measures receive around 850,000 Swiss francs in support per year. However, it is primarily the shepherds of Valais who resist the use of livestock guardian dogs. While these dogs offer effective protection, they are considered impractical from an economic standpoint. Additionally, the herd would need to be further secured with an electric fence — which in turn involves (unsubsidised) labour.

In many areas, the excessive numbers of sheep displace wildlife into less optimal habitats. The impact of sheep grazing on soil erosion and soil loss continues to spark controversial debate. There are areas where improper sheep husbandry, trampling damage, and over- or underuse of vegetation cause greater harm than ski runs.

Why does the subsidy bonanza for sheep overproduction not become a target of political action, given strained finances and a drive for austerity?

If hunting of ibex, chamois, and similar species were not permitted, the corresponding populations would naturally prevent alpine pastures from becoming overgrown with shrubs, and millions in direct payments and subsidies paid out to hobby sheep farmers could be saved. With around 100 francs per year, every Swiss taxpayer (whether they wish to for ethical reasons or not) subsidises a sheep destined for the butcher — amounting to 40 to 45 million francs per year.

The tourism industry could also soar to unimagined heights if tourists were once again able to see and photograph wildlife.

Wildlife has a scientific wildlife management deserves, not hunting. This could finally be put on a sustainable footing with the millions saved from sheep subsidies, including immunocontraception.

If living beings have to be destroyed by trophy hunters to keep finances under control, something is going seriously wrong in the canton of Valais and in this country.

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