Sweden: Wolf hunters come up empty on first day

Largest wolf hunt in recent history

Sweden has begun the largest wolf slaughter in recent history, and environmentalists warn that it could severely impact the population.

On Monday, The Guardian accompanied 200 hobby hunters who ventured into the frosty forests between Gävleborg and Dalarna from midnight until 3 p.m. on a wolf hunt. Throughout the month, groups across Sweden are being dispatched to hunt the predators.

On Monday, the hobby hunters circled locations where they suspected wolves to be. They released dogs whose task was to track down the wolves and drive them along a trail toward the waiting hobby hunters, but they had no success, and the hobby hunters returned home empty-handed.

Wildlife conservationists in Sweden and elsewhere condemned the start of what has been called the world's largest wolf killing, claiming that eliminating more than one fifth of the country's endangered wildlife could have serious consequences for biodiversity.

Last winter, Sweden approved the killing of 27 wolves, while hobby hunters in neighbouring Norway were granted permission to kill 51 wolves — approximately 60% of the population — and Finland approved the killing of 27 wolves.

Criticism from conservationists

While Gunnar Glöersen, the press spokesperson for the Swedish Hunters' Association, believes that the hunt is definitely necessary to curb the spread of wolves, Daniel Ekblom of the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation described the slaughter as tragic.

Other opponents of the killing pointed to the tiny wolf population in Sweden. Italy, for example, is only about half the size of Sweden, yet has around 3’000 wolves that are legally protected.

«Wolves, as apex predators in the food chain, are a necessity for biodiversity», warned Marie Stegard, head of the anti-hunting group Jaktkritikerna, pointing out that the killing of such a large proportion of the population byhobby huntershas serious consequences for animals and the environment.

Hobby hunting is a controversial political issue in Sweden, as a powerful lobby is able to persuade legislators to allow the killing of more animals.

«It is obvious that there is considerable political demand for regulated hunting of wolves, but also of lynx and bears», Stegard noted.

Swedish government seeks to halve wolf population

In May 2022, the Swedish government announced its intention to drastically reduce the wolf population, potentially cutting the current population of around 400 animals by half, a move that could violate EU regulations.

The organisation had previously held that the number of wolves in Sweden should not fall below 300, with regular new arrivals from outside the country required if the population is to remain sustainable and avoid damage through inbreeding.

Wolf populations in Sweden declined after a 1789 ordinance permitting citizens to hunt devastated deer and elk herds, forcing wolves to prey on livestock. By the mid-18th century they had disappeared from the south of the country and were considered extinct a century later.

In the 1980s, however, three wolves from the Russian-Finnish population migrated to southern Sweden, establishing a new Swedish-Norwegian population now estimated at around 480 individuals in approximately 40 packs.

Conservationists maintain that a population of 300 animals is the absolute minimum and that the Swedish ecosystem could comfortably sustain a population of 1’000. They accuse the government of yielding to the country's powerful hunting lobby.

Studies and sources:

• Genome sequencing reveals loss of haplotype diversity in Scandinavian wolves
• Genome sequencing reveals extensive inbreeding in Scandinavian wolves
• Genomic consequences of inbreeding in Scandinavian wolves
• Scientists respond to the planned culling operation