2023-04-23 04:06:08
After Carinthia, Tyrol and Lower Austria, Upper Austria also announced in April that it would change its wolf ordinance in order to be able to shoot risky or problem animals. A look at the livestock statistics for 2022 shows that Carinthia and Tyrol, each with just over 400 animals killed, had by far the highest numbers; two sheep were listed in Upper Austria and 15 in Lower Austria. Throughout Austria, however, the cracks increased enormously over the years.
If you compare the tears of the previous year throughout Austria with those of 2021, you can see a significant increase in the dead animals that are attributed to wolves, these are mainly sheep and goats, because 782 of these animals were killed in the previous year, 498 It was still animals in 2021 that were killed according to the compilation of the Austria Center “Bear, Wolf, Lynx”. Goats are in the minority as they are rarely kept.
If one takes the total of livestock losses not only in terms of killed animals, but also in terms of injured or lost animals, supplemented by a few cases of cattle, horses, wild game, mainly due to wolves, an even more extreme picture emerges, because this is where the jump starts from 672 in 2021 to 1,780 in the previous year. Here, too, Tyrol and Carinthia are at the top, with a total of 980 and 879 animals respectively.
The occurrence of bears in Austria, on the other hand, is not such a problem, as is also shown by the figures from 2022: In Carinthia, a plundered beehive was attributed to a bear, only in Tyrol does the bear appear larger, 41 sheep were killed and 66 disappeared in this one year charged. In September 2022, a bear in Häselgehr in the Tyrolean Lechtal made headlines, which is said to have killed more than 30 sheep and goats.
In the Tyrol, the wolf has become a permanent topic in view of numerous sheep kills and primarily arouses the peasantry, but also other areas of society. Most recently, the black-red state government, which has been in office since autumn 2022, clearly tightened the screws. In February, an amendment to the hunting law was passed with a broad majority in the state parliament, with the exception of the Greens. “Risk or harmful animal” can thus be released for shooting.
The ordinances are immediately legally effective and can be implemented without delays due to objections. The latter meant that no wolf was legally shot in the federal state. With regard to the new regulation, Black and Red spoke openly of a legal border crossing. Organizations such as the WWF or the “Association once morest Animal Factories” (VGT), on the other hand, identified a clear breach of EU law.
The regulation also applies to other “large carnivores” or “large carnivores” such as bears, lynx and golden jackals. The shooting of wolves, for example, is possible if a wolf repeatedly attacks grazing animals in the alpine protection area, according to those responsible for politics. A launch warrant is valid for a maximum of eight weeks and within a ten kilometer radius of the initial attack. It is issued when at least five sheep or goats are killed or at least one cow, horse or donkey is killed or injured in a single attack.
With the exception of the Greens, the other political parties in Tyrol are also calling for the lowering of the protection status of wolves at European level. Most recently, Tyrolean ÖVP members of the National Council once once more attacked Environment Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens) because of her “wolf policy”. A total of 19 different wolves and three bears were found in Tyrol in 2022. According to the state, there have been at least five different wolves and two bears this year.
In the state of Carinthia, which is affected in a similar way to Tyrol, there has been a separate ordinance since January 2022 that makes it easier to shoot wolves. Specifically, a distinction is made between harmful wolves (which have been shown to kill several livestock) and high-risk wolves (which venture into populated areas several times). This ordinance was tightened once more three months ago: Among other things, the total number of killed farm animals above which a wolf is considered a harmful wolf was reduced.
According to information from the office of the responsible officer Martin Gruber (ÖVP), it was said on APA request that so far three wolves have been killed in Carinthia in accordance with the regulations. The regulation will initially apply for two years following it first came into force – so in January 2024 the situation will be reassessed and a decision will be made as to whether it will be extended. Meanwhile, there are indications that a third and even a fourth wolf pack might have formed in Carinthia, reported the “Kurier”, citing Carinthian wolf commissioner Roman Kirnbauer. In 2022, 390 sheep were killed by wolves in Carinthia, more than 400 are missing.
In Styria, on the other hand, the situation is completely different from that in Carinthia or Tyrol, according to an evaluation by the office of Environment Minister Ursula Lackner (SPÖ), because ten animals were killed by wolves in 2021, and then only two in 2022. “At the moment we therefore see no need for action – but we are following the situation closely in order to be able to take further steps if necessary,” said the statement to the APA.
Last but not least, Lackner regularly exchanges views on this topic with the Agricultural Councilor Hans Seitinger (ÖVP) as well as with farmers and those affected. In his function as chairman of the Styrian Farmers’ Association, Seitinger is committed to harmonizing the regulations: “Wolves are a threat to alpine farming and thus to biodiversity, tourism and agriculture. We have to be prepared, because in the neighboring federal states the wolf populations are exploding and with them the Since wolves know no federal state borders, it is clear to me that the respective regulations of the federal states need to be harmonized in order to protect humans and animals from problem wolves.”
In Upper Austria, however, the need for a new draft, which will be examined at the end of April, was justified by a wolf because of the killing of nine sheep in Gramastetten (Urfahr district) at the beginning of the month. Currently, four packs are likely to live in the north-eastern border area, and 25 wolves are likely to be in Upper Austria. This year, 14 wild animal reports have already been received, three of which can be proven to be due to wolves. There were twelve reports of farm animals, nine of which were proven wolf tears, according to Provincial Councilor Michaela Langer-Weninger (ÖVP).
There are also plans for changes in terms of wolves in Vorarlberg. One is currently considering what it takes to be able to react more quickly in the event of a “problem wolf”, “that is currently being worked on”, says Hubert Schatz, state wildlife ecologist and head of the coordination group for large carnivores. Among other things, the coordination group determines which preventive measures are to be implemented and how to proceed in the event of wolf sightings or killings.
The state of Vorarlberg has also been financing a pilot project for herd protection since 2016, so further training events are offered with sheep farmers, shepherds and alp owners. The situation is currently calm, says Schatz. The wolf was wiped out in Vorarlberg in the 19th century, and there was evidence for the first time in 2014. Since then, livestock have been killed once more and once more, most recently in July 2022 and this winter.
In Salzburg it has been a long time since political agreement was reached on how to deal with problem wolves. In 2020, the state initially tried to authorize a first shooting by decision, but the state administrative court canceled it months later following objections from nature conservation organizations – among other things because milder means had not been tried. The suspicious animal had long since moved on by this point. The state is therefore using the possibility in the hunting law to determine so-called action areas. This means that there is always the legal possibility of approving the shooting of wolves in certain areas by ordinance in specific cases, despite the strict conservation and protection regulations, explained the state’s wolf commissioner, Hubert Stock.
A compromise between the ÖVP and the Greens in the state government is to be examined, among other things, as to whether livestock protection measures were reasonable. In Salzburg in 2019 and 2021 there were individual incidents with dozens of killed and injured sheep, in the relatively quiet year 2022 twelve livestock were killed in four wolf attacks.
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