Forest and game

Despite all the efforts of hunters and land managers, roe deer fawns are still injured during spring mowing. More fawns could be saved if we knew where roe deer mothers prefer to place their fawns, and which bed sites the fawns actually choose within a meadow. To answer these questions, more than 600 bed sites throughout Bavaria were characterised and analysed in a research project.

The Alpine region: on the one hand a habitat for wild animals, on the other hand an increasingly popular recreational area. But when humans and wild animals meet, there is often a clash of interests. Raising the sensitivity of recreational visitors to the needs of wildlife can help to preserve the Alpine region as a wildlife habitat. To be successful in this, we need to take a closer look at how people use their leisure time, and at their motivation.

Every fifth adult deer examined in the Bavarian part of the project area was infected with the giant American liver fluke. In the Šumava National Park, it was even more than every fourth adult that was infected. In cooperation with other partners, the Bavarian Institute of Forestry (LWF) has investigated the spread of this introduced parasite and its effects on wildlife.

Raccoons have been living in Swiss forests several decades. Unlike in central Germany where the animals, originally introduced from America, have in many places become a plague, they are not yet very many in Switzerland.

To preserve the many functions of mountain forests, including their prevention of avalanches, erosion or landslides, a wildlife management that takes into account the demands of wildlife, society and the ecosystem is required. The focus of this research initiative is on the three common ungulates in mountain forests: chamois, red deer and roe deer.

How many chamois actually are there in a particular area, and how are they distributed across the area? A new research project of the LWF (Bavarian State Institute of Forestry) examines the space-time behaviour of chamois in the Bavarian alpine region in detail.

In Central Europe, the red deer generally lives a hidden life in the forest. It remains in its refuge in a quiet area of the forest during the day, only emerging into open areas at dusk. Because red deer nowadays have practically no natural predators, intensive hunting is necessary.

Around 300,000 wild animals are run over in Germany each year - meaning there is around one accident involving a wild animal every 90 seconds. When and where do wildlife accidents happen particularly often, and what can be done to avoid accidents as far as possible? You will find answers to the most frequently asked questions here.

The management concept has been implemented since 2008. The concept is based on extensive research conducted prior to the development process. The key element of this management concept is a spatial concept with regulations concerning not only recreational uses, but also hunting, forestry and habitat management.

Every year, 260,000 wild animals are killed in road accidents. Eight-five percent of those animals are roe deer. In Germany, one accident involving wildlife happens every two minutes. Does the light stimulus of the blue reflectors minimize behavior of wildlife that leads to accidents?

Climate change has prompted three of the most common ungulate species in the Alps – chamois, ibex and red deer – to move to higher elevations in the late summer and autumn. The tendency of roe deer to move to higher ground was weaker.

In Switzerland beavers were wiped out in the 19th Century but they were reintroduced in 1956. Due to their long absence a large amount of knowledge about living with beavers was lost. In regards to conflict free cohabitation we once again have to learn how to live with the beaver.