Hunters who will not report illegal wolf killing: Self-policing or resistance with political overtones?

Ketil Skogen,Erica Von Essen,Olve Krange

doi:10.1007/s13280-021-01588-w

Abstract

Illegal killing of wildlife is challenging conservation efforts worldwide. Ecological research has shown that illegal killing is severely affecting the transboundary Swedish-Norwegian wolf population. A previous study indicated that unwillingness to report illegal killing of wolves among Swedish hunters contains an element of protest against perceived unjust treatment of hunting and hunters but that it could also simply be a reflection of ineffective law enforcement in the backcountry, driving hunters to effect forms of self-policing. Based on a survey of Norwegian hunters, the present research goes one step further. One in five hunters decline to report illegal wolf killings, and unwillingness to report is predicted by lack of trust in environmental institutions and a general anti-elite sentiment. Hunting-related issues and other factors also affect outcomes, but to a lesser degree. We conclude that unwillingness to report is often part of an oppositional stance related not only to wildlife management and conservation, but to contemporary social change in rural areas and perceived societal power relations. It is unlikely that reluctance to report is driven by frustration over inefficient official enforcement. While a political dimension is not always articulated, overlooking it may stoke conflicts and fortify a perception of unjust power relations.

Highlights

Biologists estimate that illegal killing is a prevalent cause of mortality in Scandinavian large carnivore populations and affects the conservation status of lynx, wolverines, brown bears and wolves in Norway and Sweden
How does illegal wolf killing compare to other huntingrelated offences? In Fig. 1, these other offences are displayed along with killing a wolf illegally, and we can see the percentage of respondents in each category: ‘‘Report’’, ‘‘handle internally’’ and ‘‘do nothing’’
In line with what has previously been observed in studies of environmental attitudes, including attitudes towards wolves (Skogen and Thrane 2007; Krange et al 2017a) and climate change (Krange and Skogen 2019) trust in the institutions and collective actors that share and manage a hegemonic discourse in the field of environmental politics is a defining part of what we for the sake of brevity may term comprehensive ‘‘worldviews’’ (Skogen and Krange 2020)

Summary

Introduction

Biologists estimate that illegal killing is a prevalent cause of mortality in Scandinavian large carnivore populations and affects the conservation status of lynx, wolverines, brown bears and wolves in Norway and Sweden. Concerning the transboundary Swedish-Norwegian wolf population, it has been estimated that about half of all mortality was caused by illegal killing from 1991 to 2006 (Liberg et al 2012) and the number of illegal killings remains high (Liberg et al 2020). While there may be several explanations, annual monitoring shows an area in the Swedish counties of Dalarna and Varmland with prime wolf habitat but where wolves seem to disappear before they reproduce. This is known as the ‘‘black hole’’ among biologists and managers, who unanimously blame illegal killings. Despite a few high-profile police operations and ensuing trials, which have all involved hunters, most instances of illegal wolf killing are never investigated

Methods

Results

Conclusion