– The damage caused by lynx in southern and central Sweden is not of such an extent that we think there is justification for licensed hunting in those parts of the country, says Benny Gäfvert, predator expert at WWF, and continues:
– We have around 50-100 attacks per year on domestic animals in southern and central Sweden, which can be seen as relatively few when compared to other risks of injury that exist.
WWF also questions whether the exception made for hunting is compatible with the EU’s species and habitats directive, where hunting of a strictly protected species is generally prohibited. In the directive, there are listed species and nature types that are of interest to preserve in order to secure biological diversity.
The tribe has grown
After a few years of declining numbers, the Swedish lynx population has grown. The latest inventory from the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency shows that there are around 1,450 lynx in the country, about 60 are in Jönköping County, where you can now shoot 17. According to the authority, the population is therefore by a margin above the reference value for favorable conservation status, which is at least 870 individuals.
– If you meet the established minimum level for the lynx to be able to survive in the long term, then we delegate the right to the county administrations to decide on license hunting. Then it is entirely their question whether license hunting is appropriate and if it is necessary, says Carl-Johan Lindström, head of the wildlife management unit at the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency.
– However, when the hunt is over, we look at how many were killed and what the population looks like. We evaluate and then we have the opportunity to take back this right, if we see that there are risks for the population, he adds.