Deficiencies in Natura 2000 for protecting recovering large carnivores: A spotlight on the wolf Canis lupus in Poland

Abstract

If protected areas are to remain relevant in our dynamic world they must be adapted to changes in species ranges. In the EU one of the most notable such changes is the recent recovery of large carnivores, which are protected by Natura 2000 at the national and population levels. However, the Natura 2000 network was designed prior to their recent recovery, which raises the question whether the network is sufficient to protect the contemporary ranges of large carnivores. To investigate this question we evaluated Natura 2000 coverage of the three wolf Canis lupus populations in Poland. Wolf tracking data showed that wolves have recolonised almost all suitable habitat in Poland (as determined by a recent habitat suitability model), so we calculated the overlap between the Natura 2000 network and all wolf habitat in Poland. On the basis of published Natura 2000 criteria, we used 20% as the minimum required coverage. At the national level, wolves are sufficiently protected (22% coverage), but at the population level, the Baltic and Carpathian populations are far better protected (28 and 47%, respectively) than the endangered Central European Lowland population (12%). As Natura 2000 insufficiently protects the most endangered wolf population in Poland, we recommend expansion of Natura 2000 to protect at least an additional 8% of wolf habitat in western Poland, and discuss which specific forests are most in need of additional coverage. Implementation of these actions will have positive conservation implications and help Poland to fulfil its Habitats Directive obligations. As it is likely that similar gaps in Natura 2000 are arising in other EU member states experiencing large carnivore recoveries, particularly in Central Europe, we make the case for a flexible approach to Natura 2000 and suggest that such coverage evaluations may be beneficial elsewhere.

Mammal use of wildlife crossing structures along a new motorway in an area recently recolonized by wolves

“…The motorway cuts through a southern part of the LSF, going through territories of three wolf family groups (Nowak and Mysłajek 2016). It also crosses two Natura 2000 sites (SPA and SAC) (Świerkosz et al 2012;Diserens et al 2017), and the western ecological corridor linking Natura 2000 sites in western Poland (Jędrzejewski et al 2009). This section of the A4 motorway is a four-lane motorway of 27 m width, fenced along both sides with an exclusion fence made of woven wire 2.4 m tall buried to a Table S1 for detailed description of wildlife crossing structures depth of 40-60 cm and mesh size decreasing downwards from 25 × 5 cm at the top to 5 × 15 cm at the ground.…”

“…The ongoing development of road infrastructure in member states that joined the EU in the twenty-first century coincided with a significant increase of populations of wild ungulates in central Europe (Linnell and Zachos 2010;Borowik et al 2013), and recent recolonization by wolves (Canis lupus) (Nowak and Mysłajek 2016;Reinhardt et al 2019). At the same time, an extensive network of Natura 2000 sites was designated through the implementation of the Habitat Directive to protect rare habitats and species, among them wolves (Diserens et al 2017). In these circumstances, the connectivity of habitats cut by newly constructed motorways has to be maintained to secure the integrity of the Natura 2000 network.…”

Social and environmental factors influencing contemporary cases of wolf aggression towards people in Poland

“…Case #1 took part in the central part of the Bieszczady Mountains, in the Cisna community, situated in the easternmost part of Polish Carpathian Mts, near the Polish-Ukrainian and Polish-Slovakian borders. The site is located at the western edge of the Bieszczady National Park (hereafter BNP), being a part of the Natura 2000 site Bieszczady PLC180001 protecting large carnivores habitats (N 49°1′-49°13′, E 22°7 ′-22°51′) (Diserens et al 2017). More than 80% of the area is covered with dense mountainous forests of mostly natural character.…”

“…The area is mainly covered with planted Scots pine Pinus sylvestris monocultures (Kusiak and Dymek-Kusiak 2002). There are several, although small, Natura 2000 sites protecting wolf habitats (Diserens et al 2017). The whole forest is state owned, intensively harvested by the National Forest Holding "State Forests" and with a dense network of logging roads.…”

First Molecular Identification of Taenia hydatigena in Wild Ungulates in Poland

“…Therefore, infection of moose and wild boar in Poland with T. hydatigena may result from growing levels of wolf colonization across the country (Nowak and Mysłajek 2016 ). Recent studies indicate that the wolf population has increased from 500 to over 1500 individuals over the last decade (Diserens et al 2017 ). The genetic similarity of our metacestodes to T. hydatigena from wolves across the German border may be accounted for by the fact that the wolves inhabiting north-eastern Poland migrated and settled in western Poland and Germany, forming a Central European wolf population (Czarnomska et al 2013 ).…”