PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
The wolf (Canis lupus) that became extinct in many countries of Central and Western Europe, is on the list of protected species under the Bern convention and a priority species below the 39° parallel in Greece, listed in Annex II of the Habitat’s Directive.
In Greece the wolf that was considered as a pest species until 1991, became extinct in the Peloponese in the late 1930’s and has lost 30% of its former range during the last 20 years in the continental land. Since then, the species is protected by the Forest Code on Wild Fauna. The total Greek population is now roughly estimated to be at least between 500 and 700 individuals (instead of 150-300 prior to the beginning of this project) and its distribution range includes the central and northern mountainous and semi-mountainous parts of continental Greece.
The number of individuals targeted in the project area, located below the 39° parallel, represents about 19% of the EU population and 100% of the national population below the same latitude. The project area, however, extended above the 39° parallel in order to take into account the connectivity of wolves’ sub-populations in central and northern Greece.
The main threats for the species are human-caused mortality, limited food resource availability, range fragmentation, reduction of ecological corridors, and lack of public support related to low awareness levels and to the negative perception of the wolf by specific target groups (mountainous human populations, hunters, livestock breeders etc.). Another parameter that was originally considered to be a threat, genetic pollution, is finally not so important, as the project's results show.
OBJECTIVES
The actions foreseen by the project addressed the entire scope of the aforementioned threats to the species. The main objective of the project was to contribute to the restitution and maintenance of Canis lupus population size above minimum viable population levels especially in the southern part of the project area, located below the 39° parallel. The long-term objective was to ensure the necessary conditions for positive population trends throughout the project area. The expected results and related means were the following:
Control of direct human-caused mortality, through support of law implementation. Minimisation of human-wolf interference and its subsequent effects on Canis lupus populations, through the increase of natural prey availability and the increase of the use of preventive measures. Improvement of the present compensation system, through lobbying of the organisation of farmers’ insurance (ELGA). Improvement of connectivity between Canis lupus sub-populations, through the protection of ecological corridors and the delineation of permanent 'priority monitoring units' of about 200-400 km2. Improvement of existing legal framework for species and important areas, through lobbying at the appropriate public bodies. Increase of public awareness, through educational material and presentations.
RESULTS
The project addressed the issue of wolf conservation in Central Greece in an integrated way. Actions undertaken were complementary, and most of them have been implemented quite successfully. A series of technical reports were produced, the purpose of which was to better guide concrete conservation actions such as the increase of preventive measures, the improvement of the national compensation system, and species monitoring. The data collection and the various field actions, including species monitoring, helped re-evaluate the importance of species threats. (Note: according to the proposal, the main threats were human-caused mortality, genetic pollution and interspecific competition, decrease of food availability, range fragmentation, lack of public and political support, lack of appropriate legal protection framework). The project managed to successfully address the following threats:
Reduction of the human-wolf conflict: the project succeeded in reducing the eternal conflict with humans by a) contributing to the improvement of prevention, through the provision of shepherd dogs, b) supporting the efficient and just compensation for damage, by providing complementary compensations and by promoting changes in the national compensation system, c) improving the wolf’s image, through extensive campaigns for the broad public, creation of specific communication materials for target groups, and through continuous contacts with livestock owners, and d)eliminating the phenomenon of captive wolves by creating a Wolf sanctuary that hosts wolves that were kept illegally by individuals, and that were confiscated by the Forest Services (fenced area, that also serves for public awareness purposes). Hybridisation: The studies undertaken (genetic analysis of wolf samples) revealed that genetic pollution (i.e. hybridisation with feral dogs) is not an important threat for the species in Greece. Therefore, the beneficiary did not undertake any actions against this threat, other than public awareness. Range fragmentation: the project monitored closely the factors related to the species’ distribution (such as food availability, land uses, artificial barriers), and concluded that wolf distribution is closely related to the presence of animal husbandry activities. As far as fragmentation is concerned, particular efforts were undertaken in order to avoid the disastrous effects of highway construction. Lack of public and political support: through its extensive public awareness campaign, the project managed to improve the very negative public image of the wolf. It is worth noting that the awareness campaign targeted in parallel both the broad public and specific target groups. On the other hand, the project did not address the following threats: Food source management: the project did not manage to undertake the corresponding actions, as foreseen in the approved proposal (promotion of pilot closure of certain garbage dumps and the monitoring of wolf population responses, reintroduction/ reinforcement of wild-ungulates). The actions were viewed in a negative way by the Ministry of Agriculture, which agreed to it only after the project’s end. This agreement was a result of significant pressure from the beneficiary. Creation of an appropriate legal framework: the legal note elaborated provided some interesting guidelines, but despite the lobbying efforts no actual modifications in the legal framework were achieved during the project. The project contributed significantly to the knowledge of the population, distribution and ecology of the wolf (almost nothing was known prior to the project on this species in Greece). The approved proposal (based on a study by the University of Athens) indicated that the wolf population in Greece amounted to 150-300 individuals. The project re-evaluated these figures, and estimated that the wolf population totals to at least between 500-700 individuals, while human-related mortality is about 25% (a figure which is below the 30-35% considered as being the maximum mortality rate that wolf populations can sustain in good living conditions). Nevertheless, the Ministry of Agriculture estimates that wolf population is between 1500-2000 individuals, but despite the Commission's insistence that a consensus be reached, neither parties agreed to a common figure. Yet, it should be stressed that the beneficiary made full use of the collected data also in his extended contacts with neighbouring countries, which share the same wolf populations (Albania, FYROM, Bulgaria), in the context of extra-LIFE activities. The project has also been particularly successful with the implementation of some urgent conservation actions, such as the distribution of local breed shepherd dogs and the provision of additional compensation payments to livestock raisers. In both cases, local demand for these measures exceeded by far the supply. In terms of long-run conservation of the species, the project placed particular emphasis on the measure regarding the compensation system improvement. The beneficiary made concrete and realistic proposals to the competent authority (ELGA, the National Farmers' Insurance Union), who considered the proposals and integrated some of them in the new legislation that is being drafted for the revision of the compensation system. Nevertheless, the main obstacle for the implementation of Arcturos' proposal by ELGA is the availability of funds. A major success of the project is the inclusion of a special measure for the Greek shepherd dog in the agrienvironmental programme for organic breeding. The public awareness campaign undertaken in the context of the project is one of the most extensive and complete undertaken under a LIFE-Nature project. Given the species' controversial nature, the beneficiary used all the possible means to change the public opinion on the "big bad wolf:" 220 articles in the local and national press, at least 25 radio programmes and 34 TV programmes are the impressive results of the media work. Moreover, a series of high quality communication material, presentations and seminars were developed. It should also be noted that the beneficiary managed to mobilise own funds or direct donations for the creation of certain products, such as a TV publicity spot presented on national television, as well as for the creation of an information centre on the wolf, near the sanctuary. In addition to his contractual obligations, the beneficiary undertook a series of complementary actions, in order to respond to needs/situations that arose during the project, the main two being the modifications in the national agricultural insurance system and the rumours about wolf re-introductions. In both cases, the beneficiary adopted a pro-active stance and carried out extensive lobbying. Furthermore, in order to deal with the re-introduction rumours, which were propagated by national media and had significantly affected public opinion, the beneficiary not only undertook an extensive public awareness campaign but also spoke to the National Broadcasting Council, which reprimanded the media for the unsubstantiated articles and programmes on wolf re-introductions. Another action undertaken, which was not directly a contractual obligation, was the elaboration of the study concerning the impact of the construction of the Egnatia highway section Panagia-Lamia, and the corresponding lobbying towards the constructing company and the national authorities. The beneficiary’s proposals for mitigation measures were accepted, and the Ministry even decided to fund a six-year monitoring project in order to evaluate wolf (and other animal) responses to the mitigation measures.
