Large carnivores are charismatic species. Wolves, bears, lynxes and wolverines are top predators that are starting to return to regions where they were completely wiped out by hunters in the past. Their conservation in highly populated continents like Europe requires integration with human activities.

In some EU Member States, a lack of natural prey, habitat loss and unprotected livestock contribute to attacks from large carnivores on domestic animals. Conflict takes place due to wild prey competition with humans and a fear from people to coexist with a large predator. Yet, achieving coexistence with large carnivores is possible and necessary to ensure the long-term conservation of the European natural environment.

Following the recently published study by the European Parliament’s Committee on Petitions (21st  February 2018) entitled ‘Large Carnivore Management Plans of Protection: Best Practices in EU Member States’, a group of MEPs and policy and conservation experts met today (7 March 2018) at the European Parliament to address the issue. The study presents the regulatory measures and effective techniques that have been developed and tested to minimise wildlife conflicts and help humans to successfully coexist with large carnivores in the long term.

Sirpa Pietikäinen MEP (EPP), President of the European Parliament’s Intergroup on the Welfare and Conservation of Animals hosted the event with MEPs Anja Hazekamp (GUE/NGL) and Pascal Durand (Greens/EFA). Co-organisers included Eurogroup for Animals, Humane Society International/Europe, and Luonto-Liiton susiryhmä.

During the event, experts from across the EU came together to discuss the various possible solutions and strategies, which can be adopted, to achieve long term coexistence with large carnivores for the benefit of people and wildlife conservation.      

Ilaria Di Silvestre, Wildlife Programme Leader at Eurogroup for Animals, stated, “In recent years, numerous EU-funded projects have shown that coexistence with large carnivores is possible and has already been achieved in many regions in the EU. We welcome the newly published study by the European Parliament’s Committee on Petitions as it presents the regulatory measures and effective techniques that have been developed and tested to minimise conflicts. Now Member States should promote the methods that are demonstrated to have a high success rate and facilitate their implementation, instead of calling for more derogations to the Habitats Directive.”

“Instead of hunting, coexisting with local wildlife in rural communities will create significant economic opportunities in the form of sustainable wildlife-based eco-tourism and at the same time greatly improve the health of the ecosystems” added  Francisco Sánchez Molina, Luonto-Liiton susiryhmä International Campaign Coordinator.

Background information

• Large carnivore species such as wolves, bears, lynx, jackals and wolverines are listed in the Annexes of the EU Habitats Directive (Council Directive 92/43/EEC).
• Since the establishment of LIFE, the EU funding programme for the Environment, in 1992, more than 40 projects on coexistence with large carnivores have been carried out with EU funding. These projects have played a valuable role in testing and implementing ways of managing and minimising conflicts between large carnivores and humans.
• The installation of electric fences or fladry to protect herds from predator attacks, the use of livestock guarding dogs, the deployment of intervention units and experts on predators are some of the solutions that have been implemented and demonstrated to have a high success rate in minimising predator attacks on herds.
• The European Commission has consistently rejected demands to review the EU Habitats Directive. Such calls have nonetheless been recently repeated by MEPs in an own-initiative report on the current situation and future prospects for the sheep and goat sectors in the EU. This was recently adopted by the AGRI Committee and a Parliamentary report on the EU Action Plan for nature, people and economy. 

For further information on our wildlife programme, click here.