Predators That Kill Humans: Myth, Reality, Context and the Politics of Wolf Attacks on People

Linnell, John D. C.; Alleau, Julien

doi:10.1007/978-3-319-22246-2_17

Cited by 38 publications

(56 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…Recovering wolves attract public attention for their own sake and for their impact on domestic flocks of livestock. Wolves are also animals that have been and are still able to threaten humans directly (Linnell et al ., ; Moriceau, ; Linnell & Alleau, ). By contrast, the public rarely considers how wolves might benefit humans and natural ecosystems by mitigating undesired ecological, agricultural, forestry, and societal (health, accidents) consequences of dense deer populations.…”

Section: Consequences Of Wolf Recoverymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The relationship between wolves and humans has a long and complex history (Moriceau, ; Alleau & Linnell, ; Linnell & Alleau, ; Treves & Bonacic, ; Lescureux, ). In many societies, observations of, and interactions with, wolves led to cultural learning in humans (Lescureux & Linnell, , and references therein), potentially leading to respect (Boitani, ; Treves & Bonacic, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Deer, wolves, and people: costs, benefits and challenges of living together

2020

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Human-driven species annihilations loom as a major crisis. However the recovery of deer and wolf populations in many parts of the northern hemisphere has resulted in conflicts and controversies rather than in relief. Both species interact in complex ways with their environment, each other, and humans. We review these interactions in the context of the ecological and human costs and benefits associated with these species. We integrate scattered information to widen our perspective on the nature and perception of these costs and benefits and how they link to each other and ongoing controversies regarding how we manage deer and wolf populations. After revisiting the ecological roles deer and wolves play in contemporary ecosystems, we explore how they interact, directly and indirectly, with human groups including farmers, foresters, shepherds, and hunters. Interactions with deer and wolves generate various axes of tension, posing both ecological and sociological challenges. Resolving these tensions and conflicts requires that we address key questions using integrative approaches: what are the ecological consequences of deer and wolf recovery? How do they influence each other? What are the social and socio-ecological consequences of large deer populations and wolf presence? Finally, what key obstacles must be overcome to allow deer, wolves and people to coexist? Reviewing contemporary ecological and sociological results suggests insights and ways to improve our understanding and resolve long-standing challenges to coexistence. We should begin by agreeing to enhance aggregate benefits while minimizing the collective costs we incur by interacting with deer and wolves. We should also view these species, and ourselves, as parts of integrated ecosystems subject to long-term dynamics. If co-existence is our goal, we need deer and wolves to persevere in ways that are compatible with human interests. Our human interests, however, should be inclusive and fairly value all the costs and benefits deer and wolves entail including their intrinsic value. Shifts in human attitudes and cultural learning that are already occurring will reshape our ecological interactions with deer and wolves.Biological Reviews 95 (2020) 782-801

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Section: Consequences Of Wolf Recoverymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Deer, wolves, and people: costs, benefits and challenges of living together

2020

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“…"Examination of historical records and recent reports provides a massive body of evidence showing that wolves have been involved in many cases of attacks on humans. Although some of these attacks are linked to rabid wolves, there is a lot of evidence of predatory attacks" (Linnell et al 2016). Professor Jean-Marc Moriceau from the University of Caen has found that 9,031 people were killed by wolves in France (Moriceau 2007).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Co-existence between Humans and Wolves – A New Challenge for the Old World

Granlund¹

2018

vertebrate_pest_conference

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After centuries of persecution, European wolf populations are recovering across many areas due to favorable legislation and the rise of the "rewilding" movement over the past few decades. The central mechanism triggering the rewilding of Europe was the European Union Habitat Directive, approved in May of 1992. The directive classifies the wolf as a strictly protected species and all EU-countries have implemented the directive in their legislation. Since the 1990's, the number of wolves in Europe has steadily increased and the total number of wolves, excluding Russia, Belarus and Ukraine, exceeds 12,000 wolves. At the same time conflicts between farmers, wolf protectors and authorities are becoming more frequent. Wolves living in Central Europe, Finland and Scandinavia must cope with the fact that there are human settlements throughout their habitat. This results in a strong habituation to humans and a growing number of attacks against cattle and sheep under the cover of darkness as well during dawn, dusk, and night. The appearance of wolves in settled areas in broad daylight seems to be more and more the rule rather than the exception. While authorities explain this as being a part of the wolf's normal behavior, human tolerance in areas where wolves return is rapidly lowering. Wolves' depredation on livestock, and especially a behavior called surplus killing, has resulted in several clashes between farmers and authorities in France and Italy. Surplus killing is a behavior exhibited by wolves in which they kill more prey than they are able to consume and then abandon the remainder. Incidents from Southern Europe show that a single wolf pack may kill hundreds of sheep in one single attack. In this paper I will review the implications of human-wolf coexistence in settled areas in different parts of Europe. I will highlight a number of problems experienced as well as solutions and their outcome.

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“…Fear is a frequent component of conflict discourses. While the fear of bear attacks is easy to understand because the risks they represent are well understood (Penteriani et al 2016), the fear of wolves has also emerged as a major discourse in areas where they return after long absences, despite the extremely low risk of actual attack (Røskaft et al 2003;Linnell and Alleau 2015). A range of other social conflicts exist where large carnivores, especially wolves, have become symbols and surrogates for wider struggles such as those between traditional rural and urban publics, over modern vs traditional lifestyles and values, over different knowledge systems, and the struggle for power between regional, national and international bodies (Skogen et al 2013).…”

Section: Europe's Carnivores -Recovery and Conflictsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The issue of individual wolves and bears not displaying the desired or expected level of shyness to humans has emerged as a key conflict area across Europe. While the phenomena associated with bears and food conditioning / habituation are relatively well understood from an ecological and management point of view (Huber et al 2016), the parallel issue with wolves is not well documented (Linnell and Alleau 2015). The use of targeted control to remove specific individuals that display specific undesired behaviours is established as a fairly normal part of wildlife management practices, although it can still be controversial in certain cases (Rosen and Bath 2009).…”

Section: The Multi-functionality Of Large Carnivore Huntingmentioning

confidence: 99%

When is it acceptable to kill a strictly protected carnivore? Exploring the legal constraints on wildlife management within Europe’s Bern Convention

Linnell¹,

Trouwborst²,

Fleurke³

2017

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As wolf populations expand across Europe, many countries face challenges in finding ways to address the concerns of some elements among the rural stakeholders who are being asked to share their landscapes with wolves for the first time in several generations. In these recovery landscapes, wolves are associated with a wide range of conflicts that include economic, psychological, perceptional, social, cultural and political dimensions. A recurring demand concerns the desire to introduce the use of carefully regulated lethal control of wolves, through either culling by state employees or hunting conducted by rural hunters. Introducing such measures can be very controversial, and many critics challenge their legality under the international wildlife conservation instruments that have nurtured wolf recovery. We evaluate this issue for the case of wolves in Norway, which are strictly protected under the Bern Convention. Drawing on the latest results of social science research, we present the multiple lines of argumentation that are often used to justify killing wolves and relate these to the criteria for exceptions that exist under the Bern Convention. We conclude that while the Convention provides apparent scope for allowing the killing of wolves as a means to address conflicts, this must be clearly justified and proportional to the conservation status of wolves so as to not endanger their recovery.

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Predators That Kill Humans: Myth, Reality, Context and the Politics of Wolf Attacks on People

Cited by 38 publications

References 34 publications

Deer, wolves, and people: costs, benefits and challenges of living together

Deer, wolves, and people: costs, benefits and challenges of living together

Co-existence between Humans and Wolves – A New Challenge for the Old World

When is it acceptable to kill a strictly protected carnivore? Exploring the legal constraints on wildlife management within Europe’s Bern Convention

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