Coexistence with wolves is not easy, especially for farmers who must protect livestock from these predators. Photos: 123rf.com
FROM foxes to wolves to raccoons, whether for economic, environmental or sanitary reasons, some animals are considered pests because of the damage they can cause.
All around the world, the relevant authorities sometimes regulate these animal populations through culling campaigns -- a controversial practice.
Wild boars have long roamed the landscape, a symbol of nature's fauna at home in the wild. But they are now considered an undesirable species that causes damage to crops, causes road accidents and is increasingly venturing into cities and suburban areas.
These animals are viewed in a particularly dim light in Italy, where there are no less than 2.3 million of them. The video testimonies showing them venturing into the country's cities in search of food have multiplied in recent years. And while these urban excursions used to amuse city dwellers, they are increasingly exasperating them. Many Italians are complaining about the almost invasive presence of wild boars all over the country, including in Rome.
Faced with the scale of the phenomenon, Giorgia Meloni's government passed an amendment at the end of December allowing these mammals to be killed for public safety reasons, even in protected areas and in towns. Local and regional police officers, as well as the national forestry police and licensed private hunters, will be able to participate in these culls, according to the Italian daily newspaper, La Stampa.
This controversial measure also allows the consumption and sale of the meat of slaughtered wild boars, after it has been subjected to analysis by health authorities.
Animal rights groups are up in arms. They fear that this amendment, supported by the Italian Prime Minister's far-right Fratelli d'Italia party, will lead to the "indiscriminate killing of wild animals," in the words of the Italian International Organization for Animal Protection (OIPA).
The leader of Italy's Green Party, Angelo Bonelli, announced his intention to file an appeal in the Italian Parliament against the measure, which he said would violate the country's constitution as well as European rules on nature conservation.
"This measure will allow the killing of species protected by the EU, it does not only concern wild boars, but also bears, wolves, foxes," he told La Stampa, adding that it is a "gift to the hunting lobby".
In Switzerland, it isn't the presence of wild boars that's causing trouble, but that of wolves. After reappearing in the country three decades ago, these predators are reproducing exponentially with an annual increase of 25 to 30%, according to figures from the wolf protection organisation, Groupe Loup Suisse.
More than 250 wolf packs were living in the Alps in 2021. And coexistence is not always easy, especially for farmers who must protect livestock from the predatory nature of these animals.
With this in mind, in December, the Swiss Parliament accepted a proposition to actively regulate the wolf population by relaxing the conditions for killing the animals.
This project proposes to authorise the elimination of packs or parts of packs in order to "prevent serious damage or a concrete danger". In other words, Switzerland's cantons will be able to kill wolves that approach inhabited areas or for which livestock protection measures are ineffective.
A "judicious measure", as the Federal Council stated in an official report. This will "make it possible to shoot wolves that are losing their natural fear and are increasingly venturing into built-up areas and posing a risk to humans", it adds.
Many nature conservation groups disagree and criticise the Swiss Federal Council's proposal, pointing to the ineffectiveness of the preventive regulation of wolves.
"We always come back to this preventive regulation which does not work, as studies in Europe and the United States have shown. We should not make the wolf sacred, but neither should we base our decisions on emotions. With this project, we're selling dreams to livestock farmers, but the effects will not correspond to what they hope for. It's like throwing a small bucket of water on a forest fire," Isabelle Germanier, a spokeswoman for the Groupe Loup Suisse, told the ArcInfo news site.
Wolf advocates are talking about a potential referendum on the issue by the end of February, when the consultation process on the bill ends.
In Japan, local authorities are looking to technology to help them fight the proliferation of so-called "pests" in the country.
The municipality of Fukuchiyama, not far from Kyoto, has acquired drones to scare and drive out game, for example.
These robots, manufactured by Aero Japan, are equipped with speakers to broadcast the sounds of barking hunting dogs. Their use has resulted in the capture of nearly 100 deer and wild boar in two years, according to the Japan Times. This is enough to prompt other Japanese municipalities to order these high-tech gadgets, which cost ¥1.5mil yen (about RM50,685).
Elsewhere in the country, hunters are relying on a wolf scarecrow (or "Monster Wolf") to keep bears at bay. This robot has everything it takes to scare off wild animals with its flashing red eyes, and a built-in speaker that plays growls, barks and gunshot sounds.
It is mounted on a cart to allow it to patrol autonomously in certain areas. These technological innovations can help tackle the proliferation of wild animals in Japan, while compensating for the ageing of local hunters.
Indeed, there are some 200,000 licensed hunters today, compared to 518,000 in 1975, according to the Japan Times. Most of them are over 60 years old, which suggests that they will soon be hanging up their guns.
But, unfortunately for Japan's wildlife, their succession seems to be secured in the form of hunting drones and wolf scarecrows. – AFP
