The illegal shooting and snaring of legally protected wolves in Poland

Abstract In central Europe, wolves Canis lupus prey on wild ungulates - main game species and occasionally kill livestock. The recovery of wolf population across the continent coincides with an increasing incidence of illegal killing, which level remains unknown. We analysed the illegal killing of wolves in Poland, where the species is strictly protected since 1998. We opportunistically collected data on wolves illegally shot and snared from 2002 to 2020, revealing their geographical extent and sex and age structure. Furthermore, we estimated their mortality rate due to illegal shooting on the basis of 16 GPS/GSM collared individuals between 2014 and 2020. We recorded 54 illegally shot and 37 snared wolves. The majority (63.7%) were killed between 2017 and 2020, mostly in Western Poland. The sex structure was similar between shot and snared individuals. In both groups, the wolves over one-year old prevailed, although there were 18 pups among shot wolves. We identified 6 shot and 3 snared breeders. Out of 16 GPS/GSM collared individuals, six were shot giving the mortality rate of 0.33 per year. Simulations revealed that the pooled number of wolves illegally shot in Poland annually, is between 147 and 1134 (99% highest density interval) or 216 and 1000 (95%). In six out of seven cases, in which the person who shot a wolf was eventually sentenced, hunters were responsible. We conclude that the present regulations concerning the prevention of illegal killing, pursuing and punishing the perpetrators of the illegal killing of wolves, require urgent improvements in order to effectively mitigate the problem.