PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
The wolf (Canis lupus) is a priority species listed in Annex II of the EU Habitats Directive. Populations have recovered in Europe, in terms of both the numbers and the space occupied; the species’ range has increased by over 25% in the past decade. Due to an average density of about 95 people per km2 in permanent wolf ranges, wolves are increasingly adapting to the presence of humans. They are found in and expanding into urban and peri-urban areas. As a result, more interactions are expected between wolves and people, with an increasing level of wolf habituation to food from human sources. As this habituation to the human environment grows, wolf interactions with human activities will increase. Given the limited knowledge of local people and authorities on how to deal with such encounters, conflicts which hinder the long-term conservation efforts and wolf-human coexistence arise. Such conflicts may result in illegal retaliatory wolf killings, sometimes with methods (e.g. poisoning) negatively impacting populations of both wolves and other endangered species.
OBJECTIVES
LIFE WILD WOLF aims to contribute to the wolf’s long-term conservation in Europe and reduce human-related conflicts. The project will operate in eight countries: Croatia, Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Slovenia and Sweden.
The project’s specific objectives are to:
- Identify patterns and drivers of habituated or confident behaviour;
- Neutralise attractants and raise awareness on wolf behaviour;
- Increase the relevant authorities’ capacity to deal with potentially critical situations;
- Improve the ability of local communities to report potentially critical situations and behave appropriately;
- Establish emergency teams; and
- Develop operational protocols for interventions (including monitoring, communication, removal of attractants, aversive conditioning and eventually capture).
RESULTS
Expected results:
- Events reported as problematic reduced by 70%;
- Requests for directions on interventions decreased by 90%;
- Time spent on interventions needed for dealing with situations perceived as dangerous reduced by 70%;
- Depredation events (including domestic livestock and pets) decreased by 70%, thus reducing negative human attitudes to the presence of wolves;
- Attractors reduced by 70%, diminishing the presence of wolves in and near human settlements;
- Presence of wild prey in Portugal increased by 20% - thus reducing wolf depredation of domestic livestock - by restoring 400 ha of various forest and shrub habitats, listed in Annex I of the Habitats Directive.
