The brightly colored bullet is through the church. In Gelderland, nature managers are allowed to put balls of paint in an air gun and empty them at the wolf. The judge decided this on Wednesday. The animal must then fear humans again.
And that is desperately needed. The least rational species of animals, humans, have decided that wolves need to be fed and flashed as soon as they spot the wolf’s paws. This went on for days in a row in the Drenthe hamlet of Oude Willem. Thanks to this approach, the ‘shy’ wolf learns that people are not a threat and increasingly seeks them out.
The judge’s decision comes after a legal battle lasting more than a year. The province of Gelderland wanted to put an end to the remarkable behavior of a wolf on De Hoge Veluwe with painful paint bullets. The animal roamed among family members and showed photographers its gray flanks. The Fauna Protection Society objected to the plan, because the province needed to provide better substantiation as to why the wolf was allowed to be shot.
Two flavors
The paintball plan was mocked everywhere in the country. But he who does not dare, does not win. Creating behavioral adaptation in wolves is quite an underrated area of expertise, because the schools of thought about the best wolf approach are like a pack of double custard. ‘Shooting for fun’ or ‘setting fences for good’. There is nothing more in the pack.
The five years of the wolf’s presence have now taught us that the latter is not the ultimate solution. The solution to shooting is also fairly simple: not every wolf takes livestock or seeks out people. Not every wolf needs to die. In the eating list of the fauna organization BIJ12 you will exceptionally often read the same wolf codes. The ‘Wapsewolf’ (GW3151m), which was shot dead on July 9, 2023, had already killed a hundred sheep in its young life, partly within wolf-resistant grids. When the animal completely involuntarily exchanged the farmer’s hunting field for the eternal alternative, there were suddenly fewer attacks locally on well-protected livestock. A farmer from the area said this.
Feigning unity
A paint ball to deter a behaviorally disturbed wolf is now possible. Everything stands or falls with the execution. What does a wolf learn when a ranger out of nowhere shoots him with his paintball gun from behind a tree? Quite little. At most: this place is nasty. Or this man with his green clothes is scary.
If the wolf must shrink from man, man must feign unity. In other words: a large container with guns should be placed at all parking lots in the Hoge Veluwe, the Drents-Friese Wold and Hart van Drenthe. Do you see a glimpse of the wolf? No, no photos. Bang.
Anyway, the exemption for such a paintball fight in the forest now only applies to supervisors on the Veluwe. Until February 1st at least. And oh yes, the tame wolf from over a year ago has already disappeared. A stone on the forest floor and a good dose of voice have less legal term.