In order for the Tatra Mountain Sheep Dogs to protect livestock successfully, they should stay together with the animals
they are to protect for the whole pasture season, both day and
night. The most important thing for a guarding dog to successfully ward off attacks by wolves is the dog’s freedom; they
should stay untethered the whole time. In our experience they
able development of the region in a way that allows wildlife to
survive in a good condition in the long term is very important
for the area.
Meetings with wolves
Even though wolves in such a crowded region as the Beskidy Mountains are often in close proximity to people, there
are not many reports of meetings with these animals. This
shows that these predators efficiently avoid us, and do not
pose a threat to humans. People often ask how they should
behave when meet a wolf, if the animal does not run away
but stands and watches? Such behaviour is not evidence of
aggressiveness. No doubt wolves are intelligent and inquisi-
Wolves
in the Beskidy Mountains,
the western-most part
of the Polish Carpathian Mountains
Sheep in a pen surrounded with fladry
in the Zywiec Beskidy Mountains © M. Figura
damage is not very high in the region, and compensation is
paid by the Polish government, but for affected breeders it can
be an important obstacle to farming practice. The Association
for Nature WOLF has initiated a project to implement effective methods of livestock protection against wolf attacks. We
organise training for breeders, publish and distribute manuals, and provide fladry sets and electric fences to farms affected by wolf attacks.
In addition, we provide Tatra Mountains Sheep Dog pups
to the biggest farms, where they are raised to efficiently guard
sheep flocks and cattle herds.
Wolf © A. Tabor
tive creatures. Their sight is adapted to hunting in darkness,
monochrome, and less sharp than human vision. Thus, they
need more time to recognise immobile objects from a distance. They have also much better sense of smell, which they
rely on more than sight. For this reason they will sometimes
wait until the human odour reaches them before moving
away. In such a situation one should keep calm and wait until the wolf goes away. Because of long-term vaccination of
foxes against rabies, wolves suffering from this disease are
very rare in Poland. However, every case of strange wolf behaviour or dead individuals should be reported to an appropriate vet service.
Wolf seminar in the Beskidy Mountains © S. Nowak
Tatra Mountains Sheep Dog guarding sheep in the Silesian
Beskid Mountains © S. Nowak
are not aggressive towards people. They react with loud barking to a stranger’s presence, but this is a normal and very useful reaction, which helps to deter intruders from approaching
livestock, including wolves. Tethered guarding dogs are completely helpless in the event of wolf attack, and sheep or cattle
can be killed and eaten by predators a few metres away from
dogs struggling with a chain or rope.
About AfN WOLF
Resolving conflicts
The most serious problem resulting from wolf presence in
the Beskidy Mountains is damage to livestock. The level of
nivore impact on forest ecosystems. AfN WOLF also creates and disseminates educational materials within Poland
and abroad.
Pup of TMSD with a sheep © R.W.Mysłajek
The Association for Nature WOLF (AfN WOLF), founded
in 1996, is a non-profit organisation, dedicated to conservation of mammals, particularly carnivores, and their habitats.
In 2006 we obtained charity status. Our members are a team
of highly experienced biologists, foresters and other professions, whose expertise span many fields. We carry out our
own scientific research and conduct wide-ranging ecological
education both in Poland and abroad.
AfN WOLF is convinced that understanding the ecology
of carnivores is essential to protect their populations and
manage their sustainability for the future. Our strategy to
save wolves, lynx, bears and other carnivores in Europe is a
combination of research, conservation, education, and resolving conflicts, beginning with long-term studies to understand and monitor the factors affecting survival of these
species. Results of these studies are used to develop conservation policies and programmes to sustain their populations. AfN WOLF actively works with local, national and international communities to raise awareness, communicate,
educate and train.
Some of AfN WOLF approaches include:
• conducting scientific research and publishing papers and
books (both scientific and popular) on the results of research in carnivore biology, ecology, human impact, resolving conflicts and species survival. AfN WOLF also develops reccomendations for forest and hunting management,
and implements livestock management practices, such as
our programme of wolf/human conflict resolution.
• creating and managing long-term conservation strategies
for the wolf and lynx throughout their range in Poland. We
also develop projects of ecological corridors and implement
recommendations for spatial planning, and transportation
infrastructure plans, to protect important large carnivores
habitats and preserve their integrity and connectivity using
a variety of mitigation measures.
• carrying out conservation education programmes focused
on key professional groups, showing benefits of large car-
Members of AfN WOLF installing fladry around a sheep pen
in the Beskidy Mountains © R.W.Mysłajek
You can find more information on wolves, our activity and
wolf seminars on our website: www.wolf.most.org.pl
The project of wolf conservation
in the Beskidy Mountains is supported by:
Photo of the wolf © A.Tabor
Publisher: The Association for Nature WOLF
Postal address: Twardorzeczka 229, 34-324 Lipowa, Poland
Phones: + 48 606 110046, +48 604 625228.
E-mail: [email protected]
www.wolf.most.org.pl
Bank account: PKO BP Bielsko-Biała
Swift code: BPKOPLPW
Account number: PL81 1020 1390 0000 6702 0115 6348
Text:
Dr. Sabina Nowak & Robert W. Mysłajek MSc.
The Association for Nature WOLF, Twardorzeczka 2008
animals do not form the basis of wolf diet, but are occasionally killed as a supplement to wild prey. The consistent use
of efficient methods of livestock protection can significantly
decrease the level of damage.
Remains of wolf prey are an important source of food for
many different animal species such as martens, foxes, badgers,
bears, ravens, buzzards, goshawks, blackbirds, tits, and many
invertebrates. Wolves are therefore an important element of
a healthy forest ecosystem, providing it with many different
benefits, and their presence is also beneficial for foresters and
people who use the forest for recreation.
Wilk © J. Walencik
T
he Carpathian Mountains are one of the wildest and
most attractive regions of Europe. Amongst the most
charismatic wild animals of this region are the large
carnivores – the wolf, the lynx and the bear – rare species,
extirpated from many other parts of Europe. These species
occur not only in the eastern, most remote parts of the Polish
Carpathians, but also in the western part – the Beskidy Mountains – an area densely inhabited by humans (150 people/1
km2). This region is divided on three mountain ranges: the
Zywiecki Beskid Mts., the Silesian Beskid Mts., and the Maly
Beskid Mts. The first one is inhabited by all large carnivores,
whereas the others only by wolves. Because of the presence of
large predators, three Natura 2000 sites have been established
in the Beskidy Mountains.
Since 1996 the Association for Nature WOLF has conducted studies on large carnivore populations in the western part
of the Polish Carpathians. We investigate changes in their
number and distribution, study their diet, habitat preferences, and effect on the ungulate community and on livestock.
We put much emphasis on resolving conflicts between people
and large carnivores, particularly through the introduction of
efficient measures of livestock protection.
The wolf is the most controversial of the large carnivores.
Due to long-term persecution before and after the Second
World War, the wolf was a threatened species in the region.
However, a few individuals survived in the most remote parts
of the Zywiecki Beskid Mountains, and from the mid 1980s to
the end of the 20th century, they gradually repopulated most
of the region. Recently they have also recoverd the Maly Beskid Mountains.
Wolf tracks in summer and winter in the Beskidy Mts. © S. Nowak
Map of the Beskidy Mountains
The legal status of wolves
Wolves have been strictly protected in the western part of
the Carpathian Mountains since 1995, and in the whole of
Poland since 1998. Only the Minister of Environment can authorise culling of individuals that repeatedly cause damage to
livestock.
Where do Beskidian wolves live?
Wolves inhabit large forests, choosing for resting places the
most remote parts. In the Beskidy Mountains such places are
situated in dense thickets, at high elevations. They cover the
whole forest in search of food, and their tracks can be found
on logging roads, in places where ungulates feed, on meadows, near feeders, and even close to forest edges. In winter,
when ungulates migrate from high elevations covered by
deep snow, to valleys and the neighbourhood of human settlements, wolves follow them. Their tracks can then be seen
very close to villages.
How many wolves are in the Beskidy Mountains?
Currently wolves inhabit the whole area of the Beskidy
Mountains. There are about 30 individuals in 7 packs, depending on the time of year. Their numbers are limited by
intense human pressure on local forests, and a winter hunting
season for wolves across the border in Slovakia.
What do wolves eat in the Beskidy Mountains?
Red deer and roe deer form the basis of wolf diet in the
Beskidy Mountains. Wild boar and hare make up only a
small percentage of their food. Wolves kill mostly juvenile
and female deer, and occasionally males. The most common
method of hunting used by wolves is a short chase after the
animals have been located. Deer are well adapted to outrun
wolves in long chases, and adult wild boar can defend themselves efficiently. Thus, in most cases wolves can only catch
young, less experienced, weaker, old or sick individuals.
This is the reason that these predators play a selective and
sanitary role in the wild. Wolves keep the ungulate population in good condition; they improve their age and sex
structure, and prevent overpopulation, reducing competition for food.
Furthermore, predators, when removing part of the deer
population, protect the forest from overbrowsing. In Poland,
browsing by deer results in huge losses to the forestry industry; causing significant problems with tree-planting, and necessitating the introduction of expensive mitigation measures. The impact of wolves on deer numbers is extremely
important in the Beskidy Mountains, where large-scale
replacement with native tree species is being conducted in
order to save mountain forests threatened by the extensive
decay of spruce trees.
Wolves sometimes prey on livestock, particularly those
left without supervision. In the Beskidy Mountains domestic
Wolf pack in the Beskidy Mts © Ingo Tesch
Private life of wolves
Wolves live in family groups, which are called packs, all
year round. They hunt and raise young together. Each pack
maintains a separate territory; the average territory size in the
Beskidy Mountains is 150 km2, and depends mainly on red
and roe deer densities within the area. Wolves from the same
pack defend their territories against intruders – wolves from
neighbouring groups or migrating individuals. The average
number of wolves in a pack is 4, but can vary from 2 to 6,
depending on the season and local conditions.
During the day wolves rest together in a quiet place, such
as a dense thicket. After dusk they leave to hunt, in winter
usually as a whole pack, and in summer in smaller groups.
They can travel 15-30 km through rough mountain terrain
in search of food, inspecting foraging areas of ungulates in
several valleys. Around dawn they come back to the resting
place. Not all hunts are successful, and wolves frequently return home hungry.
How wolves raise their pups?
Wolves reproduce once a year. In the Beskidy Mountains
the mating season takes place in February-March. Delivery
of litters occurs from mid-April to mid-May. In each family
group only one pair reproduces. All pack members care for
the young with solidarity and devotion. They share all food
with the pups. Young pups spend the whole day playing and
learning rules of life in a family group, as well as hunting
tactics.
As the ground in the
Beskidy Mountains is too
stony to excavate regular
dens, pups are mostly born
under large tree stumps or
in dense spruce thickets. In
May the weather in the Beskidy Mountains is unpredictable; frosts, snowfalls,
or long-lasting rainstorms
can occur. Although litter
size is usually 4-6, half of
the pups perish during the
first three months. Mostly
no more then two survive
until winter. The first winter is always a serious challenge for pups, and many
die, unable to cope with the Wolf pup © R.W. Mysłajek
difficulties of living in the
mountains, especially travelling long distances in deep snow
(up to 1.5 m) searching for food.
Threats
Their current legally protected status does not secure a
safe existence for wolves. As with all wild animals, they die
from diseases, parasites, starvation, wounds, or old age. In the
Beskidy Mountains an important threat to wolves is human
activity. In the Zywiecki Beskidy Mountains, legal hunting in
Slovakia has a direct influence on wolf numbers, because all
packs have trans-border territories. Increasing urbanisation
and fragmentation of forests, development of villages and ski-
Motocross in the Beskidy Mountains © S.Nowak
ing infrastructure, particularly at higher elevations, causes
many problems for wolves. Another problem is the development of motorways and dual carriageways in the region, as
they create barriers between mountain ranges. Also, a large
number of four-wheel drive cars, motocross bikes, all-terrain vehicles and snowmobiles illegally enter the forests every
weekend. As a result there are fewer quiet areas, where wild
animals can raise their young.
The attitude of people towards this species is important for
the survival of the wolf population. Many prejudices against
wolves are still common in Poland. Poaching or illegal killing
of wolves is not treated as a crime, and is not generally met
with negative reaction within rural communities.
Chances for co-existence
The future of wolves in the region first of all depends on the
acceptance of their presence in forests and people’s ability to
recognise their positive impact on the natural environment.
The presence of large carnivores and many other rare species
of animals and plants in the Beskidy Mountains can be used
as an economic benefit – a distinguishing feature of the region
to develop local eco-tourism. This, combined with the traditional architecture and hospitality, and tasty and healthy local food, can attract people from across Europe to the region.
The status of Natura 2000 sites for all three of the Beskidy
Mountain ranges should support such initiatives. The sustain-