Wisent: Return to the Solothurn Thal planned
The wisent, extinct in Switzerland for around 1,000 years, could find a new home in the Thal Nature Park. Bulls can weigh up to one tonne. More about wildlife in Switzerland.
The wisent, the European counterpart to the American bison, could find a new home in the Thal Nature Park. The ancient cattle have been considered extinct in Switzerland for around 1’000 years. Female wisents weigh around 500 to 600 kilograms, while bulls can reach up to one tonne.
The wisent is the largest and heaviest land mammal in Europe, and populated the forests of north-western Switzerland until the late Middle Ages.
As early as next year, 15 to 20 wisents are to be placed in the Sollmatt area in Welschenrohr.
Around ten wild cattle are to be housed in a 20-hectare show enclosure near an organic farm. The remaining animals are to be given a 100-hectare enclosure on the northern flank of the Jura. If everything goes according to plan, organic farmer Benjamin Brunner will care for the wisents in the Thal during an initial ten-year trial period.
On this forested area, the animals are to be prepared for their release into the wild. An electric fence is expected to be removed after around one to two years. It is hoped that by then the animals will have developed a sense of belonging to this location. First, however, experience must be gathered regarding the animals’ behaviour. The project will therefore be accompanied by researchers and the data continuously evaluated.
Federal and cantonal approval required
To realise the «Wisent im Thal» project, not only the local population, forestry, recreational hunters and politicians need to be brought on board, but permits must also be obtained from the cantonal and federal authorities, as Reinhard Schnidrig from the Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) explains. The FOEN is aware that a project is being prepared in the Thal, but has not yet been able to review it, says the head of the Wildlife and Forest Biodiversity Section.
What is certain, however, is that the wisent is a species that has been eradicated in Switzerland. Relocating them to large enclosures with woodland areas requires a forestry permit from the canton in which the site is located. For release into the wild, a permit under the federal Hunting Act is also required.
Various framework conditions must be reviewed by the authorities, including the availability of a sufficiently large habitat. The project, which is estimated to cost CHF 4.4 million, is to be financed by a foundation as well as through annual revenues from the wildlife viewing enclosure amounting to CHF 1.8 million.
Benjamin Brunner plays an important role in this. He is a member of the Wisent Thal project group, which also includes National Councillor Stefan Müller-Altermatt (Herbetswil), Christina Stauffer, and Darius Weber. As Switzerland's first wisent ranger, the organic farmer would be responsible not only for external communications and the care of the animals, but also for documenting any damage in the forest. This damage is to be compensated as fully as possible.
Solothurn Farmers' Association is concerned
The wisent project is also raising fears: some farmers worry that the animals could damage agricultural land.
The Farmers' Association takes the position that there is no room in the densely populated northwestern Switzerland for the reintroduction of wild animals that have not been present in the region for centuries. Such a project, in which at least 100 hectares are to be fenced off at the outset, also contradicts all legal regulations that farmers — and other people in the canton of Solothurn — are obliged to comply with.
It cannot be acceptable that such large areas are fenced off for the reintroduction of a wild animal, and that the legally guaranteed access to forests and open land for the public is restricted or even made impossible. Such an extensive fence is also inadmissible under current spatial planning legislation.
