PostedAugust 31, 2022, 8:33 PM
StudyScare wolves to change their behavior
A trial conducted in Italy shows that wolves can change their behavior. Frightened by rubber bullets, the test animal reduced its attacks on farm animals.
“The non-lethal scaring of wolves can radically change their behavior and lead them to attack livestock animals on a massive scale,” the Swiss Wolf Group (GLS) announced on Wednesday in a press release. This is shown by a first scientific study carried out in the Italian Alps, by a research team from the University of Sassari.
The dominant male of a pack of wolves was fitted with a transmitter and then scared away with rubber bullets. The results of this first trial reveal that the animal “reduced its attacks on livestock by 70%, even increased its hunting of wild animals by 89% and its daily movements by 74%. He was also much more fierce towards humans than before, ”lists the GLS.
“The advantage of scaring over killing is that it allows wolves to learn,” continues the GLS. When the wolves are killed, others immediately arrive and can behave in ways that are just as undesirable for livestock and mountain pasture staff. “The education of wolves is preferable for their protection,” concludes the GLS.
(comm/aze)