![Location of the three study areas where wolf-livestock conflicts have been evaluated: a) Tzoumerka National Park (present study), b) Prespes National Park (Iliopoulos and Petridou 2017), and c) Oiti National Park (Iliopoulos and Petridou 2012, Iliopoulos et al 2015). Map shows most current wolf distribution in Greece [adapted from: (Iliopoulos et al. 2016)]](https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Maria-Petridou-3/publication/332414177/figure/fig5/AS:747861083959297@1555315385821/Location-of-the-three-study-areas-where-wolf-livestock-conflicts-have-been-evaluated-a_Q320.jpg)
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Wolf-livestock conflict in Tzoumerka National Park and comparisons with other protected areas of Greece
Abstract and Figures
Livestock depredation is one of the main wolf-human conflict issues both in Europe and worldwide. The aim of the project is to study and evaluate wolf-livestock conflicts in Tzoumerka NP and to compare our findings with other protected areas in Greece. We have in particular set the following six research objectives:
1. To assess and describe traditional free-ranging livestock raisers’ profile in Tzoumerka NP.
2. To record wolf depredation levels on cattle, sheep and goat herds as the main baseline metric of wolf-human conflicts in Tzoumerka NP.
3. To identify and evaluate the principal damage prevention methods adopted by local livestock farmers in Tzoumerka NP.
4. To assess levels of livestock guarding dog mortality due to the illegal use of poisoned baits as a major conservation problem in the area in Tzoumerka NP.
5. To evaluate satisfaction levels of livestock farmers regarding the national compensation system in Tzoumerka NP.
6. To compare the main results stemming from Tzoumerka NP with other similar studies previously completed in other protected areas and draw relevant conclusions.
© 2019 University of Ioannina and WWF Greece
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In Iberian Peninsula, the economic impact of wolf damages on cattle is high and is becoming more relevant in recent times since cattle numbers are getting proportionally higher among livestock species. In this scope, the Iberian pilot action ““Exploring traditional husbandry methods to reduce wolf predation on free-ranging cattle in Portugal and Spain” is focused on assessing cattle husbandry practices that are compatible with the wolf’s presence. This project involved researchers and cattle producers from Spain and Portugal working together to examine how traditional husbandry practices can be restored or adapted to a modern context to better protect cattle in wolf areas. The Pilot action was focused in two mountainous regions in northern Iberian Peninsula, located in the Peneda-Gerês National Park (Portugal) and Cantabrian Mountains (Spain) which are a clear example of areas with cattle-wolf conflicts. In both regions, high wolf densities occur in a human-dominated landscape where livestock husbandry, and especially cattle production, is an important economic activity.
Documento que compila a informação mais atual sobre o lobo-ibérico em Portugal, relevante para o Plano de Ação para a Conservação do Lobo-Ibérico em Portugal (PACLobo).
Understanding the feeding habits of wolves is essential for designing and implementing fundamental management processes across the range of the species. This is even more important within human-dominated areas, such as southern Europe, and more especially Greece. In this context, we analyzed 123 scat samples, collected between 2010 and 2012, from a mixed agricultural, forested and human-dominated area, centered on the municipality of Domokos in central continental Greece. We used standard laboratory procedures for scat analysis and calculated percentages of frequency of occurrence (FO%), average volume (AV%) and biomass index (BM%) to assess diet composition, and estimated prey selectivity. Domestic prey composed the bulk of wolf diet (FO%=73.5, AV%=84.8, BM%=97.2), wild ungulates were almost absent (FO%=0.5, AV%=0.8, BM%=1.2), whereas grass consumption was high in our area (FO%=19.5, AV%=11.0). The high dependence on livestock corroborates previous studies from Greece and other countries in southern Europe. Goat (FO%=46.0, AV%=61.2, BM%=64.9) was the main prey and was strongly selected, with sheep (FO%=11.5, AV%=9.0, BM%=11.2), pig carrion and cattle ranking behind (FO%=11.5, AV%=10.1, BM%=8.7 and FO%=4.5, AV%=4.5, BM%=12.4, respectively). No differences across seasons were detected, except from pig carrion, which increased during winter. The preference for goats is probably associated with its grazing behavior. High livestock consumption generally results in increased human-wolf conflict. Thus, substantial improvement of husbandry practices and restoration of wild ungulate populations are recommended to facilitate wolf-human coexistence in Greece.
Freely available for download:
https://www.degruyter.com/view/j/mamm.ahead-of-print/mammalia-2018-0021/mammalia-2018-0021.xml
The present study describes the use of poison baits against so-called pest species in Greece and explores various aspects of this illegal practice. Data were collected from 2000 to 2016, and a total of 1015 poisoning incidents in rural areas causing the death of 3248 animals were examined. In 58.7% of investigated cases, the motives remained unknown; in the remaining cases, human-wildlife conflicts and retaliatory actions among stakeholders (e.g., hunters vs. livestock breeders) were found to be the main reasons for poison bait use. The target animals for these actions were mainly mammalian carnivores, and stray canids, all of which were blamed for livestock and game losses. Avian scavengers were the wildlife species most affected by secondary poisoning (30% of the wildlife fatalities), whereas shepherd dogs accounted for 66.4% of domestic animal losses. Toxicological analyses showed that a wide range of chemical substances were used, mostly legal or banned pesticides (e.g., carbamates, organophosphates, and organochlorines) and potassium cyanide. Furthermore, the widespread trafficking of black marketed insecticides was also recorded, with methomyl (in powder form) and carbofuran being most common. The majority of poisoning events (72%) took place outside protected areas, while in approximately 73.4% of them, no official reporting to the competent authorities was made. Overall, the study highlights the significant impact of illegal poison bait use on wildlife in Greece and addresses its extreme socioeconomic complexity. The need for an integrated national anti-poison strategy is discussed.
Successful coexistence between large carnivores and humans is conditional upon effective mitigation of the impact of these species on humans, such as through livestock depredation. It is therefore essential for conservation practitioners, carnivore managing authorities, or livestock owners to know the effectiveness of interventions intended to reduce livestock predation by large carnivores. We reviewed the scientific literature (1990–2016), searching for evidence of the effectiveness of interventions. We found experimental and quasi-experimental studies were rare within the field, and only 21 studies applied a case-control study design (3.7% of reviewed publications). We used a relative risk ratio to evaluate the studied interventions: changing livestock type, keeping livestock in enclosures, guarding or livestock guarding dogs, predator removal, using shock collars on carnivores, sterilizing carnivores, and using visual or auditory deterrents to frighten carnivores. Although there was a general lack of scientific evidence of the effectiveness of any of these interventions, some interventions reduced the risk of depredation whereas other interventions did not result in reduced depredation. We urge managers and stakeholders to move towards an evidence-based large carnivore management practice and researchers to conduct studies of intervention effectiveness with a randomized case-control design combined with systematic reviewing to evaluate the evidence.
Worldwide, native predators are killed to protect livestock, an action that can undermine wildlife conservation
efforts and create conflicts among stakeholders. An ongoing example is occurring in the western United States,
where wolves (Canis lupus) were eradicated by the 1930s but are again present in parts of their historic range.
While livestock losses to wolves represent a small fraction of overall livestock mortality, the response to these
depredations has resulted in widespread conflicts including significant efforts at lethal wolf control to reduce
impacts on livestock producers, especially those with large-scale grazing operations on public lands. A variety
of nonlethal methods have proven effective in reducing livestock losses to wolves in small-scale operations but
in large-scale, open-range grazing operations, nonlethal management strategies are often presumed ineffective or infeasible. To demonstrate that nonlethal techniques can be effective at large scales, we report a 7-year case study where we strategically applied nonlethal predator deterrents and animal husbandry techniques on an adaptive basis (i.e., based on terrain, proximity to den or rendezvous sites, avoiding overexposure to techniques such as certain lights or sound devices that could result in wolves losing their fear of that device, etc.) to protect sheep (Ovis aries) and wolves on public grazing lands in Idaho. We collected data on sheep depredation mortalities in the protected demonstration study area and compared these data to an adjacent wolf-occupied area where sheep were grazed without the added nonlethal protection measures. Over the 7-year period, sheep depredation losses to wolves were 3.5 times higher in the Nonprotected Area (NPA) than in the Protected Area (PA). Furthermore, no wolves were lethally controlled within the PA and sheep depredation losses to wolves were just 0.02% of the total number of sheep present, the lowest loss rate among sheep-grazing areas in wolf range statewide, whereas wolves were lethally controlled in the NPA. Our demonstration project provides evidence that proactive use of a variety of nonlethal techniques applied conditionally can help reduce depredation on large open-range operations.
This study surveys the current status of large carnivores in Europe and assesses their impact on livestock from the available data on compensation payments and from field research. Recommendations on livestock protection measures are provided, as well as on the integration of these into locally adapted holistic management systems.
en Human–wildlife conflict is a major conservation challenge, and compensation for wildlife damage is a widely used economic tool to mitigate this conflict. The effectiveness of this management tool is widely debated. The relative importance of factors associated with compensation success is unclear, and little is known about global geographic or taxonomic differences in the application of compensation programs. We reviewed research on wildlife‐damage compensation to determine geographic and taxonomic gaps, analyze patterns of positive and negative comments related to compensation, and assess the relative magnitude of global compensation payments. We analyzed 288 publications referencing wildlife compensation and identified 138 unique compensation programs. These publications reported US$222 million (adjusted for inflation) spent on compensation in 50 countries since 1980. Europeans published the most articles, and compensation funding was highest in Europe, where depredation by wolves and bears was the most frequently compensated damage. Authors of the publications we reviewed made twice as many negative comments as positive comments about compensation. Three‐quarters of the negative comments related to program administration. Conversely, three‐quarters of the positive comments related to program outcomes. The 3 most common suggestions to improve compensation programs included requiring claimants to employ damage‐prevention practices, such as improving livestock husbandry or fencing of crops to receive compensation (n = 25, 15%); modifying ex post compensation schemes to some form of outcome‐based performance payment (n = 21, 12%); and altering programs to make compensation payments more quickly (n = 14, 8%). We suggest that further understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of compensation as a conflict‐mitigation tool will require more systematic evaluation of the factors driving these opinions and that differentiating process and outcomes and understanding linkages between them will result in more fruitful analyses and ultimately more effective conflict mitigation.
Abstract
pt Patrones Globales y Tendencias de la Compensación del Conflicto Humano – Fauna Silvestre
Resumen
El conflicto humano – fauna silvestre es un enorme reto para la conservación, y la compensación del daño hecho a la fauna es una herramienta única utilizada ampliamente para mitigar este conflicto. La efectividad de esta herramienta de manejo se debate ampliamente. La importancia relativa de los factores asociados con el éxito de la compensación no es clara y se sabe poco sobre las diferencias geográficas o taxonómicas en la aplicación de los programas de compensación. Revisamos las investigaciones sobre la compensación del daño a la fauna para determinar los vacíos geográficos y taxonómicos, analizar los patrones de los comentarios positivos y negativos relacionados con la compensación, y valorar la magnitud relativa de los pagos de compensación global. Analizamos 288 publicaciones con referencias a la compensación de fauna e identificamos 138 programas únicos de compensación. Estas publicaciones reportaron USD $222 millones (ajustados a la inflación) gastados en la compensación en 50 países desde 1980. Los europeos publicaron la mayoría de los artículos, y el financiamiento de la compensación fue más alto en Europa, en donde la depredación por lobos y osos fue el daño compensado con mayor frecuencia. Tres‐cuartos de los comentarios negativos se relacionaron con la administración del programa. Al contrario, tres‐cuartos de los comentarios positivos se relacionaron con los resultados de los programas. Las tres sugerencias más comunes para mejorar los programas de compensación incluyeron requerir que los solicitantes emplearan prácticas de prevención del daño, como la mejora de la crianza de ganado o la colocación de cercas alrededor de cultivos para recibir compensación (n = 25, 15%); modificar los esquemas post‐modificación anteriores en alguna forma de pago de desempeño basado en el resultado (n = 21, 12%); y alterar los programas para realizar pagos de compensación de forma más rápida (n = 14, 8%). Sugerimos que el futuro entendimiento de las fortalezas y debilidades de la compensación como herramienta en la mitigación del conflicto requerirá evaluaciones más sistemáticas de los factores que conducen a estas opiniones y que diferenciar los procesos y resultados y entender las conexiones entre ellos resultará en análisis más fructíferos, y finalmente una mitigación de conflictos más efectiva.