The provincial authorities of the Swiss canton of Graubünden have granted permission to shoot a wolf. Shooting wolves is possible because Switzerland, which is not an EU member, expanded its hunting law last year.
An Austrian wolf and landscape expert calls the expanded Swiss law an example for a new EU wolf policy.
In the past summer months, about 60 sheep in Graubünden have fallen victim to wolf attacks, including ten on a high alpine pasture near the village of Klosters. There, 15 attacks took place and the wolves killed more than 10 sheep on protected pastures, meeting the legal criterion for a hunting permit.
In the past, much stricter criteria applied in Switzerland, so that a shooting permit was never granted. In 2020, a referendum was held on a possible reopening of wolf hunting, but it was rejected by a very slim majority. Nevertheless, the Swiss government decided to heed the opinion of the large minority. Although hunting is not 'unlimited'ly allowed, the exceptions have been expanded.
The Swiss hunting law now requires DNA evidence to establish that the same wolf has attacked a sheep flock at least fifteen times within four months. At least ten animals must have been injured or killed. Furthermore, such a flock must have been protected or guarded at the time, through fences and enclosures or guard dogs.
The permit applies only to that one wolf. Earlier this year elsewhere in Switzerland, a 'wrong' wolf was shot after a permit was issued. Switzerland does not kill wolves to keep the number of packs small but only shoots the notorious sheep killers.
Also, too many permits may not be granted in a short period. The number of wolves allowed to be killed in a canton may not exceed half the number of young wolves in the pack.
Austrian wolf expert Gregor Grill of the Landwirtschaftskammer in Salzburg believes that citizens in EU countries should also have a voice regarding the management of wolf populations. In increasing numbers of EU countries, discussions arise about 'nuisance' as the wolf expands from the east and south further north and west across Europe.
Grill finds it nonsense to say that humans and wolves should live peacefully side by side. He points out that while every species needs its own habitat and living space, the Habitats Directive (FHH) is outdated because the wolf is no longer listed as a 'threatened species' on the red list. 'It is utterly absurd to advocate for coexistence between humans and carnivores, because such a thing never existed'.