Missing shots: has the possibility of shooting wolves been lacking for 20 years in France

Abstract

Wolves were exterminated in France in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Therefore, livestock breeders and herders were unprepared when wolves arrived from Italy in 1993, the year after France committed to the European Union (EU) to protect wolves. Today, ~580 wolves, whose numbers are growing exponentially, are present in over one-third of France. During the last 10 years, livestock deaths from wolves have grown linearly from 3215 in 2009 to 12451 in 2019, despite France implementing extensive damage protection measures since 2004, including reinforced human presence, livestock guard dogs, secured pasture fencing and electrified night pens. The failure to prevent damage is clear. Wolves enter mosaic landscapes where grazing livestock are abundant and easy prey. Wolves are intelligent and opportunistic. As a strictly protected species, it seems they no longer associate livestock with humans and humans with danger. Half of the successful attacks now occur during the day, notwithstanding the presence of dogs and humans. Considering the high costs of unsatisfactory protection, France recently modified its wolf management policy. In addition to non-lethal means of protection, breeders that have suffered several attacks by wolves are now permitted, by derogation to the law, to defensively shoot wolves. Based upon evidence from other countries, we suggest re-establishing a reciprocal relationship with wolves. Breeders and herders should be allowed to shoot wolves to defend their herds against wolf attacks, not after several successful predation events. Defence shooting would also upgrade the efficiency of non-lethal means, as warning signals for wolves to respect. Rather than passive coexistence, we need to embrace a dynamic and ever-evolving process of coadaptation between humans and wolves, relying on the adaptive capacities of both.

Welcoming Wolves? Governing the Return of Large Carnivores in Traditional Pastoral Landscapes

“…While nonlethal mechanisms have proved effective in location A, wider application, research, and innovation (for instance technological solutions) are needed to illustrate their viability under conditions such as those in location B (Eklund et al, 2017;GCG, 2018). For instance, a study from the Alps, which have similar conditions (abrupt topography, small and scattered flocks, and high tourists numbers), showed that damage continued to increase despite widespread implementation of guardian dogs and enclosures, since wolves had adapted their hunting patterns (Meuret et al, 2021). There was also weak support for these measures among cattle farmers, such as those in location B and C, since they would imply drastic changes in husbandry regimes.…”

Des chiens pour protéger contre les loups des brebis en parcs clôturés : une pratique nouvelle et encore problématique

“…Les modalités concrètes de sa mise en oeuvre pour assurer son efficacité soulève de nombreuses questions. L'enjeu est important face aux pertes liées à la prédation en élevage par des loups, ayant présenté en France une croissance d'allure linéaire (+ 1000 animaux tués par an) entre 2009 et 2019 (Meuret et al, 2020), avec un total de 12 451 animaux tués en 2019, dont 90 % pour les Alpes et la Provence (Dreal AURA, 2020). L'élevage ovin est particulièrement touché, représentant 90 % des pertes.…”

“…estives, grands espaces non clôturés, ont été les premiers touchés par la prédation (Vincent, 2011). Les dispositifs d'action publique se sont succédés en France depuis 1997, visant à limiter les dégâts de la prédation (Meuret et al, 2017(Meuret et al, , 2020. Ils se sont d'abord focalisés sur ces troupeaux d'estive, avec la mise en oeuvre de plusieurs moyens de protection : regroupement nocturne en enclos, renforcement de la présence humaine et utilisation de chiens de protection.…”

Guard Dogs to Protect Sheep Grazing in Fenced Pastures Against Wolf: a New and Still Challenging Practice

“…The practical modalities to ensure its effective implementation raise several questions. The stakes are high, given the amount of losses from wolf depredation on livestock, which in France has shown a linear increase (+ 1000 killed animals per year, all species considered) between 2009 and 2019 (Meuret et al, 2020), with a total of 12,451 livestock killed in 2019, 90% of which were in the Alps and Provence (Dreal AURA, 2020). Sheep farming is particularly affected, accounting each year for 90% of the total losses in France.…”

“…wide unfenced areas, were the first to be affected by wolf predation (Vincent, 2011). As a consequence, starting in 1997, a series of national management plans and their sets of protective means aiming at limiting predation (Meuret et al, 2017(Meuret et al, , 2020, first focused on summer high-mountain pastures and large collective sheep flocks. They have encouraged the implementation of three protection means: systematic grouping of livestock in electrified night pens, supplementary human presence day and night, and guard dogs.…”