Media reports about wolves dying at the hands of poachers have recently become increasingly frequent. Not long ago, a male of this species died in agony in a snare in a forest near Brunów. As Polskie Radio Wrocław reported, the predator suffered for approximately two weeks. To find out the scale of the problem, we asked Dr Sabina Pierużek-Nowak, head of Stowarzyszenie dla Natury Wilk. “Alarmingly large,” the ecologist replied. “The problem is that if roe deer, deer or wild boar are caught in snares, the poacher takes them away. When a wolf is caught, the poacher waits for the animal to die. This usually means many days of suffering for the animal.

According to S. Pierużek-Nowak, one problem is that this practice is rarely condemned in Poland. “People think it is a marginal issue,” says the head of the organization. “But it is a phenomenon affecting many animal species.

What is more, in a sense, animals such as wolves are worse off than game animals. “The forest guard is focused primarily on protecting game species. There is no institution in the country that is legally obliged to actively combat the killing of protected species,” the ecologist emphasizes.

What can be done? “People need to be informed; there must be social opposition to the illegal killing of animals,” emphasizes Sabina Pierużek-Nowak. “Especially since residents of villages near forests usually know who is involved in poaching.

If a wolf’s paw gets caught in a snare, it has no chance of freeing itself and can, at most, bite the limb off. There was such a case in Nadleśnictwo Przemków. Within one month, a she-wolf fell into snares twice. The first time, she freed herself by biting off her paw. Unfortunately, the second time she was unable to escape. The infection became so severe that the veterinarian could not save the she-wolf.

Even sadder, wolves sometimes fall victim to… hunters, who do not hide their negative attitude toward these predators because they regard them as a kind of competition (they hunt the same game). Videos are sent to the media and authorities—probably to give these mammals a bad name—showing, for example, a pack of wolves from the United States. All with a note claiming that the recording was made somewhere in Poland. “It often later turns out that the video was sent by a hunter,” adds the head of the association.

What do you think about this? We invite you to join the discussion.