Growing phenomenon
We must save the torn sheep and goats, slaughtered cows and killed donkeys from Gargano to Salento where the presence of the wolf has multiplied in recent years with the repetition of massacres in farms. This is what the Coldiretti Puglia, in relation to the latest massacre that occurred in Brindisi, in the rural area near the airport, where wolves mauled sheep from a farm to death. Based on ISPRA estimates on the average density of wolves in areas subject to non-invasive genetic sampling, there are - notes Coldiretti Puglia - peaks of 6 wolves per 100km2 in the provinces of Bari, Taranto and BAT, but also in Foggia there are 5,3 wolves per 100km2, with the phenomenon that is growing in the province of Lecce, an escalating phenomenon that has led to the pronouncement of the Permanent Committee of the Bern Convention on the Conservation of Wild Flora and Fauna and their Natural Habitats, a body of the Council of Europe, in favor of the European Union's request to lower the level of protection for wolves. The address meets the growing requests from local authorities for greater flexibility to more actively manage critical concentrations of wolves.
Risk of extinction
According to an estimate by Ispra, the wolf population in Italy – Coldiretti recalls – has increased to around 3.300 specimens, 950 in the Alpine regions and almost 2.400 along the rest of the peninsula. Data according to which the wolf is no longer at risk of extinction – Coldiretti underlines – while the danger of the disappearance of the presence of man in the mountains and inland areas is increasing, with devastating effects on the economy and on the employment of these territories, but also on the hydrogeological structure. Without the constant maintenance work ensured by agricultural companies – Coldiretti concludes – environmental degradation increases, bringing with it landslides and floods, made even more devastating by the effects of climate change.
Lost biodiversity
After the wolf attacks, in addition to the sometimes injured or killed animals, there is also – Coldiretti Puglia points out – the damage caused by the fright and the state of stress caused by the attacks, with reduced milk production and abortions in the surviving animals. Containment measures are essential to prevent the pastures from dying and forcing thousands of families to flee who have populated the most difficult rural areas for generations where livestock farming is the main activity, but also the many young people who have laboriously returned to restore the lost biodiversity with the recovery of the historic Apulian breeds, such as the 'Gentile' sheep from Altamura or the 'Moscia' from Lecce. The problem of large carnivores is becoming unsustainable and a solution must be found quickly.
A danger to be avoided
In recent years, it has become necessary to constantly monitor flocks and herds, in order to protect them from attacks because fences and sheepdogs are often not enough to ward off the danger. Farmers' resistance is at its limit - explains the regional Coldiretti - it is urgent to find new ways of action that allow us to organize a more effective management system for these predatory animals, which are no longer endangered species. Moreover, this situation is added - adds Coldiretti Puglia - to the problems of overpopulation of numerous other wild species, from wild boars to starlings, from cormorants to hares to green parrots, which multiply in a situation of absolute lack of adequate planning measures necessary to avoid conflict with agricultural work. Responsibility is needed in the defense of livestock, shepherds and breeders who courageously continue to guard the mountains and guarantee the beauty of the landscape. Without pastures – concludes Coldiretti Puglia – the hills thin out, the environment degrades and landslides and floods threaten the cities (source: Coldiretti Puglia).
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