EU Law May Threaten Croatia's Brown Bears

Croatia's recent induction into the European Union could spell trouble for the nation's brown bears, according to researchers from Imperial College London and Zagreb University.

Brown bears in Croatia have historically been managed as game animals, meaning a certain quota is allowed to be hunted annually. But Croatia's July 1 inclusion in the EU binds the nation to EU rules and regulations, one of which deems brown bears a protected species.

The researchers contend that changing the bear's status to protected may seem like a positive outcome, but that on the ground it could lead to more bears being killed than before. A hunting system with take limits, the researchers argue, ensures a necessary degree of public support for the bears, which they say is vital for the creature's long-term survival.

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species places Eurasian brown bear as a species of Least Concern.

An EU protected status would ban bear hunting, but the animals could be killed if they are deemed "problem animals." The researchers argue that the instance of "problems" reported by locals will likely increase as their tolerance drops for an animal that no longer brings in revenue and supports jobs in the hunting sector.

"There is strong evidence that Croatia's current system is beneficial for both local people and the bear population, and changing it could result in more tension between people and bears," said E.J. Milner-Gulland from the Department of Life Sciences at Imperial College London. "We are not implying that trophy hunting is an appropriate management option for all brown bear populations. However, not every country is the same, and there needs to be regional variation in conservation policies so that people are able to manage their own populations of high priority species successfully."

Currently the Croatian hunting system allows for up to 15 percent of the total bear population to be hunted for sport each year. The researchers contend that this system has benefited the local economy while keeping brown bear populations stable.

Brown bears in neighboring Slovenia, in contrast, are protected under the EU legislation. Locals there have little to gain from the presence of the bears, which can damage crops and threaten livestock. Twenty percent of Slovenia's bear population has been killed each of the last five years, the researchers report, compared to 8 percent in Croatia.

"Local hunting associations in Croatia currently have a positive relationship with the bears; the bear is accepted and valued by local communities," Milner-Gulland said. "By contrast, many Slovenians have a negative attitude to bears, and we think this is because, unlike in Croatia, they see bears as nuisances rather than economically valuable and useful. If hunting was outlawed in Croatia, this would probably put a strain on the Croatians' relationships with bears and could result in increased conflict between people and bears."

Milner-Gulland said there is no one-size-fits-all solution to animal management and that the EU should leave conservation decisions to regional and local authorities.

A paper detailing the research is published in the European Journal of Wildlife Research.