22,000 raccoons in MV: hunting season brings the alarm for nature!
22,000 raccoons in MV: hunting season brings the alarm for nature!
In the 2023/2024 hunting season, almost 22,000 raccoons were shot in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, a number that reflects the five-year average of 20,000 animals. This survey underlines the growing population of the invasive way, which is detected in over 90 percent of the hunting districts. Environmental Minister Till Backhaus (SPD) drew attention to the need to further promote hunting during an event of the State Hunting Association in Rostock in order to regulate the raccoon's existence. According to the Ostsee-Zeitung The purchase of traps should be supported with 50 euros per trap and 100 euros for falling transmitters. Nevertheless, a direct "raccoon premium" cannot be financed for budgetary reasons.
The spread of raccoons in Germany is alarming. They spread especially in the northeast and in the middle of the country. In some federal states there are already more raccoons than the local red foxes, which threatens the ecological balance. In addition to their influence on the animal fauna, raccoons have also been identified as predators of amphibians such as toads , frogs and MOLCHEN , which reinforced their role as a threat to endangered species
threat to biological diversity
A study from 2023, which was carried out as part of the Zowiac composite project, examines the hunting behavior of raccoons in nature reserves. The team led by the parasitologist Sven Klimpel found that raccoons have an inventory-threatening effect on various types of amphibians and reptiles. Genetic analyzes confirmed that raccoons target grass frogs, earth toads and yellow -bellied skills. An example of their hunting behavior was documented in a nature reserve in East Hesse, where skin toads were found in just one hour via 400 , which indicates a targeted hunting and reproduction threat. mdr reports that laboratory examinations at the Goethe University also provided significant results, such as the detection of tissue and bones of local snakes in the Gastric contents of raccoons.
The asculap snap, which is strongly at risk in the red lists as ’, shows the worrying extent of the threat. Genetic evidence of raccoon-DNA on open eggs and on the asculap sneak illustrate that raccoons are able to hunt also protected species and to have a significant impact on biological diversity.
conclusion
The challenges in dealing with raccoon population require urgent measures and a continuation of the hunting in order to control the spread of this kind and to protect the local flora and fauna. In view of the fact that raccoons are now native to many parts of Germany, the discussion about suitable management strategies is more urgent than ever. The German Hunting Association calls for increased promotion of catch hunting to counteract this threat.
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| Ort | Rostock, Deutschland |
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