The Swedish forest has changed. Wild boar, fallow and red deer have increased in many areas, placing new demands on wildlife management. This is according to a new report funded by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency. One of the researchers behind the report is social anthropologist Annelie Sjölander-Lindqvist, who works at the Gothenburg Research Institute.
As wild boar, red deer and fallow deer have become more common in Sweden, the conditions for wildlife management have changed.
Management now needs to take into account not only moose and deer, but also other hoofed animals living in the forest. But there are currently shortcomings in this work, according to a new research initiative funded by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency.
"What we see is that there is a mismatch between the design of management and ecological conditions. This in turn affects collaboration. Something that is an important foundation stone for wildlife management."
So says social anthropologist Annelie Sjölander-Lindqvist, one of the researchers behind the report.
'What the results show is that geographical differences play an important role. These geographical differences, such as the fact that in northern Sweden we have large management areas with mainly moose while in the more southern parts of the country there are not only moose but also other ungulates that affect management."
Researchers from different fields
The six-year research programme is based on interdisciplinarity, with researchers from many different fields collaborating on their research. Ecologists, political scientists, human ecologists and social anthropologists have enriched each other's work, says Annelie Sjölander-Lindqvist. Something that has been very favourable:
"It has enabled us to highlight and increase our knowledge of the complexity of Swedish wildlife management; we know that ecological, individual and systemic aspects all need to be considered in order to increase the degree of goal fulfilment and achieve the best possible cooperation between hunters and landowners."
Read the press release (in Swedish): Ny forskningsrapport lyfter vikten av älgens foder och geografiskt anpassad förvaltning
