Academic literature on the topic 'Wolves – conservation'

Wolf (Canis lupus) conservation is multidimensional. Its aspects include the consensus between different interest groups. The present research aimed to assess the attitude and knowledge of the students (N = 483 students from three schools age 14-19) enrolled in the environmentalist, veterinary and agricultural technician study programmes through a questionnaire, as their profession represents a part of this multidimensional consensus. The research results indicate that students have neutral to positive attitudes toward wolves, generally. Their knowledge of wolves, however, is limited. Agricultural technicians showed the most negative attitudes toward wolves and the lowest knowledge. Overall, correlations between all attitudinal dimensions and correlations between attitudinal dimensions and knowledge were found, with the highest correlations between conservation dimension and all other dimensions including knowledge. The research findings support the widespread assumption that education within the above-mentioned study programmes should focus also on the current socio-scientific issues of animal conservation. Special attention should be given to the education of agricultural technicians as their utilitarian view could interfere with the effective conservation of large carnivores. Keywords: attitudes toward wolves, knowledge about wolves, vocational upper secondary school students.

Top predators are disappearing worldwide, significantly changing ecosystems that depend on top-down regulation. Conflict with humans remains the primary roadblock for large carnivore conservation, but for the eastern wolf ( Canis lycaon ), disagreement over its evolutionary origins presents a significant barrier to conservation in Canada and has impeded protection for grey wolves ( Canis lupus ) in the USA. Here, we use 127 235 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) identified from restriction-site associated DNA sequencing (RAD-seq) of wolves and coyotes, in combination with genomic simulations, to test hypotheses of hybrid origins of Canis types in eastern North America. A principal components analysis revealed no evidence to support eastern wolves, or any other Canis type, as the product of grey wolf × western coyote hybridization. In contrast, simulations that included eastern wolves as a distinct taxon clarified the hybrid origins of Great Lakes-boreal wolves and eastern coyotes. Our results support the eastern wolf as a distinct genomic cluster in North America and help resolve hybrid origins of Great Lakes wolves and eastern coyotes. The data provide timely information that will shed new light on the debate over wolf conservation in eastern North America.

In Germany, the wolf population develops in a very dynamic manner. As a result, politics and society increasingly worry about human safety and whether the return of the wolf can be kept compatible with pasture grazing. Plans by the federal states (Länder) for wolf management serve both to prepare society for the return of wolves and to deal with likely emerging conflicts. In exceptional cases, conflict management may include the ‘removal’ of wolves, i.e. the killing of individual ‘problem-wolves’. This paper analyses the legal prerequisites for the removal of wolves; it also addresses the conditions that must be met for wolf management to be placed under a new legal framework – beyond the exemption regime under species protection law. In this context, the ‘favourable conservation status’ of wolves plays a key role.

Lateralization, or a left-right bias in behavior (e.g., handedness), was originally thought to exclusively exist in humans, but is now known to be widespread. Lateralization can exist at the individual or group level. In dogs (Canis lupus familiaris), tests of paw preference have produced inconsistent results. Because wolves (C. l.) differ genetically, morphologically, and behaviorally from dogs, I was interested in assessing them for lateralization. I examined lateralization (right versus left) of the foot captured (a step test analog) of wild wolves (n = 93) trapped for radiocollaring purposes in the Superior National Forest, Minnesota from 2011 – 2017 and 2019. No support was found for lateralization, and sex and age class were not significant predictors of which foot was captured. Because many mammals demonstrate lateralization, and because population-level lateralization is thought to convey increased social cohesion, it is surprising that wild wolves did not demonstrate population level lateralization. This step test analog may not have been an appropriate measure (as lateralization is task dependent) and / or wolf lateralization may exist at the individual level, but not the population level. Future work on wolf lateralization at both the individual and population levels examining pawedness via multiple tasks while accounting for potential confounding factors (such as different rearing conditions and methods) could provide clarification. Examining potential trade-offs between the costs and benefits of lateralization that these highly social animals may incur would be very interesting in terms of evolution and in comparison with dogs. Furthermore, because lateralization has been connected to emotional functioning and animal welfare, baseline lateralization data from wild wolves may inform captive wolf management and conservation, including the captive breeding programs for endangered Mexican wolves (C. l. baileyi) and red wolves (C. rufus) and other programs (e.g., educational facilities).

(1) Background: Conservation biology education is an important societal goal, targeting the worldwide promotion of biodiversity conservation. When learning about animals, direct experience poses an ideal opportunity to influence the participants’ attitudes and knowledge. However, in the case of large carnivores, direct experiences are scarcely possible, except at local zoos. School teaching should therefore rely on preserved materials, which are still originals. (2) Methods: Here, we investigated how students’ attitudes and knowledge regarding wolves can be improved in three different teaching contexts: (a) through conventional lectures, (b) through lectures combined with hands-on activities in the real classroom setting, and (c) through lectures with hands-on activities at the university. Students from general and vocational (veterinary) upper secondary school participated in the study. Attitudes and knowledge were tested before and after the teaching. (3) Results: Students displayed positive attitudes toward wolves and their prior knowledge had the highest influence on attitude ratings. Knowledge about wolves improved during teaching regardless of the teaching approach. The highest influence on attitudes and knowledge was observed in the university setting. (4) Conclusion: The university setting evidently produces the strongest effect so it is a recommended approach when designing conservational topics.

This paper reports results of the first range-wide study of the behaviors of free-living wolves in the High Arctic in response to human presence and discusses these behaviors from a conservation perspective. The study focused on wolves believed to have had little, if any, contact with humans and excluded data from areas where wolves have become habituated to people. Data consisted of incidental sightings of wolves on the Canadian Arctic Archipelago and in Greenland from 1819 to 2019. A total of 325 behavioral observations were identified: 163 from Greenland and 162 from Canada. The most commonly reported behaviors (71.4%) involved wolves seeking out humans: coming to campsites, following traveling dog teams, closely approaching a person, and following people. These behaviors are not typical of canids in lower latitudes and have the potential to create conflicts with people who might feel threatened owing to the centuries-old belief that wolves are dangerous. Some Arctic wolves have been shot in perceived self-defense, when in all likelihood the animals were only curious. In addition, aggression directed towards domestic dogs was the most common form of wolf-dog interaction and produced another source of conflict. The findings are important from a conservation perspective because of the small wolf population and the fact that vanishing sea ice is increasing human access to the Arctic wolf range. Appropriate and humanely used hazing techniques and outreach to stakeholders on what constitutes normal Arctic wolf behavior can mitigate the risk of conflict and contribute to the conservation of Arctic wolves on the Canadian Arctic Archipelago and in Greenland, while minimizing the risk that the natural behavior of this subspecies is altered by increased human activity.

An understanding of local perceptions of carnivores is important for conservation and management planning. In the central Himalayas, Nepal, we interviewed 428 individuals from 85 settlements using a semi-structured questionnaire to quantitatively assess local perceptions and tolerance of snow leopards and wolves. We used generalized linear mixed effect models to assess influential factors, and found that tolerance of snow leopards was much higher than of wolves. Interestingly, having experienced livestock losses had a minor impact on perceptions of the carnivores. Occupation of the respondents had a strong effect on perceptions of snow leopards but not of wolves. Literacy and age had weak impacts on snow leopard perceptions, but the interaction among these terms showed a marked effect, that is, being illiterate had a more marked negative impact among older respondents. Among the various factors affecting perceptions of wolves, numbers of livestock owned and gender were the most important predictors. People with larger livestock herds were more negative towards wolves. In terms of gender, males were more positive to wolves than females, but no such pattern was observed for snow leopards. People’s negative perceptions towards wolves were also related to the remoteness of the villages. Factors affecting people’s perceptions could not be generalized for the two species, and thus need to be addressed separately. We suggest future conservation projects and programs should prioritize remote settlements.

The use of geospatial technologies, including radio telemetry, GPS collars, and mapping software, has proliferated in wildlife conservation. In addition to being tools for research, though, tracking devices are increasingly used to control animals that have been reintroduced to natural areas. Animals with radio or GPS collars can be tracked, and when considered necessary, trapped and relocated or removed to captivity, a common practice in projects to reintroduce and conserve endangered carnivores. The assumption is that such actions will help to defuse conflicts over wildlife between wildlife managers and land users. Conservation has come to mean surveillance and control, a situation recently made possible by technology. This dissertation examines the role of geospatial technology in conservation through an examination of the Mexican Wolf Reintroduction Project taking place in Arizona and New Mexico. Major findings include: 1. Policies to monitor and control Mexican wolves represent a deferral of the struggle over priority uses of public lands; 2. State and local government agencies seized on the discourse of adaptive management to gain control over the reintroduction project and expand their institutional authority. Rather than a practice of "learning by doing" and collaboration, however, the adaptive management program that was implemented only operated smoothly when it held together a prior political consensus and fell apart when external factors worked to dissolve that consensus; 3. The policies of controlling "problem wolves" rest on a series of assumptions about human and wolf behavior that are unsubstantiated and likely false; 4. The embodied production of geospatial data about Mexican wolves is erased in project-authored maps, which privilege a partial perspective on Mexican wolf distribution and territory; and 5. The practices of Mexican wolf monitoring and control are best understood as political technologies of governance that constitute Mexican wolves as individualized, domesticated and, I argue, racialized subjects. The policies and practices governing the Mexican wolf reintroduction project, this dissertation shows, have relied on technological surveillance and control, with complex and contradictory results for people-wolf relations and the politics of conservation.

Maned wolves are endangered carnivores endemic to Brazil. This research aimed to compare the attitudes of interest groups towards the conservation of the maned wolf in urban and rural areas; to investigate how such attitudes may influence the maned wolf's status and conservation; and to recommend ways to incorporate such knowledge into strategies to conserve both wolf and habitat. The methodology used questionnaires and interviews. Questionnaires targeted people living in the neighbourhood of conservation areas, staff and students (year 8 and sixth-form) of local schools; staff and visitors to conservation areas and zoos in three main research locations: Greater São Paulo, the Low Mogiana region and São Carlos city. Other conservation areas and zoos within the São Paulo state contributed further data. The relationship between socio-demographic factors and attitudes towards the maned wolf conservation was also investigated to identify the most positive and negative profiles of respondents. Overall, results indicate a lack of antagonism between urban and rural populations. Results suggest that negative attitudes towards the maned wolf related to: misconceptions about feeding habits and to a lack of clear differentiation between the maned wolf and Canis lupus; perceptions of threat connected to the presence of the maned wolf on people's properties; and possibly values undermining local wildlife. Results, however, consistently indicated local people's tolerance towards the species and towards occasional predation events. Results also indicate discrepancies existing between bio/education professionals' expectations of local people's attitudes and the actual attitudes displayed by the latter. Recommendations addressed misconceptions and values regarding the maned wolf, inclusion of the local community and their issues, and relationships between interest groups for the benefit of maned wolf conservation. The positive attitudes of a majority towards the maned wolf suggest they may support actions favourable to the species and maintain their position in case of conflict. However, further investigation is advised into local people's awareness of the causes of the decline of the maned wolf and of how their behaviour may affect populations of wolves.

Dissertação de Mestrado Integrado em Medicina Veterinária
The Mexican gray wolf is the rarest subspecies of gray wolf in North America. It is officially “endangered” and its survival relies on good captive management and breeding programs. The present study’s main purpose is behavior evaluation and hormonal profile assessment during proestrus and estrus, in this species. Behavioral data and feces were obtained during the breeding season at the Endangered Wolf Center, and analyzed at the Saint Louis Zoo. Several behaviors presented moderate correlations. Differences were found between the frequencies of some behaviors in the pre and post conception periods. The average number of days between first detected Mount and first Copulatory Tie was three. Most frequent behaviors were described as well. A progesterone peak, associated with the onset of estrus, often coincided with the occurrence of Mounts and Copulatory Ties. Our predictions for conception dates were mostly in agreement with the existing hormonal data. These observations can be a basis for future reproductive situations – they allow for a better estimate of the ideal timing for Artificial Insemination and they add knowledge on reproductive patterns that characterize the breeding season of this species.
RESUMO - REPRODUÇÃO EM LOBOS MEXICANOS - COMPORTAMENTO & ENDOCRINOLOGIA BÁSICA DURANTE A ÉPOCA REPRODUTIVA - O lobo cinzento Mexicano é a subespécie mais rara de lobo cinzento na América do Norte. É oficialmente considerado "em perigo" e a sua sobrevivência depende de bons programas de gestão e reprodução em cativeiro. O principal objetivo deste estudo foi a avaliação do comportamento e perfis hormonais, durante o proestro e estro, nesta espécie. Os dados sobre comportamento e hormonas foram obtidos durante a época de reprodução, no Endangered Wolf Center, e analisadas no Jardim Zoológico de Saint Louis. Vários comportamentos apresentaram correlações moderadas. Também foram encontradas diferenças entre as frequências de alguns comportamentos nos períodos pré e pós-conceção. O número médio de dias entre a primeira “monta” e cópula detetadas foi três. Os comportamentos mais frequentes foram descritos. Um pico de progesterona, associado ao início do estro, coincidiu frequentemente com a ocorrência de montas e copulação. As previsões efetuadas das datas de conceção estiveram, geralmente, de acordo com os dados hormonais existentes. Estas observações podem vir a permitir uma melhor estimativa do momento ideal para Inseminação Artificial e acrescentam conhecimentos sobre os padrões reprodutivos que caracterizam a época reprodutiva desta espécie.

Rex Stout maintained his popular readership despite the often controversial and radical political content expressed in his detective fiction. His political ideals often made him many enemies. Stances such as his ardent opposition to censorship, racism, Nazism, Germany, Fascism, Communism, McCarthyism, and the unfettered FBI were potentially offensive to colleagues and readers from various political backgrounds. Yet Stout attempted to present radical messages via the content of his detective fiction with subtlety. As a literary traditionalist, he resisted using his fiction as a platform for an often extreme political agenda. Where political messages are apparent in his work, Stout employs various techniques to mute potentially offensive messages. First, his hugely successful bantering Archie Goodwin-Nero Wolfe detective duo—a combination of both the lippy American and the tidy, sanitary British detective schools—fosters exploration, contradiction, and conflict between political viewpoints. Archie often rejects or criticizes Wolfe's extreme political viewpoints. Second, Stout utilizes the contradictions between values that occur when the form of detective fiction counters his radical political messages. This suggests that the form of detective fiction (in this case the conventional patterns and attitudes reinforced by the genre) is as important as the content (in this case the muted political message or the lack of overt politics) in reinforcing or shaping political, economic, moral, and social viewpoints. An analysis of the novels The Black Mountain (1954) and The Doorbell Rang (1965) and the novellas "Not Quite Dead Enough" and "Booby Trap" (1944) from Stout's Nero Wolfe series demonstrates his use of detective fiction for both the expression of political viewpoints and the muting of those political messages.

Thesis (M. Sc.)--University of Alberta, 2009.
Title from pdf file main screen (viewed on Dec. 17, 2009). "A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Ecology, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta." Includes bibliographical references.

In 2010 and 2011, Manitoba Hydro in collaboration with Manitoba Conservation collared 65 gray wolves (Canis lupus) as part of a larger multi-year boreal woodland caribou research project. There is insufficient data regarding populations of gray wolves in Manitoba or their movements throughout the province. The objective of this study was to typify wolf movements in Manitoba to provide recommendations for industry and government for the development of policy and integrated resource management plans of this species. Of the 65-collared wolves, 11 were selected to examine their movements in three regions of the Province. It was found that wolf populations overlap one another in the study area, to varying degrees. Their ability to move long distances, creates challenges for resource managers, as most management plans only consider management at a regional scale rather than a multi-jurisdictional level. In addition, this examination of gray wolf movements will assist in understanding their role as predators on the protected boreal woodland caribou and depressed moose populations within the Province.

AbstractThis chapter describes 20 years of efforts to live with large carnivores in the Blackfoot watershed located in western Montana with a focus on the processes and projects that were developed to adapt to the presence of grizzly bears (Ursus arctos) and gray wolves (Canis lupus) under the capacity of a non-governmental organization called the Blackfoot Challenge. Initial efforts were focused on generating a shared understanding of the problem, engaging community members in the co-generation of data, and designing an inclusive decision-making process that led to the adoption of a suite of tools that represented the values of stakeholders who represented communities of place and interest. Between 2003 and 2018, damages and livestock depredations by grizzlies tended to remain below 10 conflicts per year. Confirmed and probable livestock depredations show a low level of 1.8 annual livestock losses per year to grizzlies. Between 2007 and 2020, the wolf population increased and eventually leveled off, while livestock losses to wolves remained low. Annual confirmed livestock losses to wolves have been 3.3 livestock per year with less than four wolves removed annually due to depredations in the core project area. The central lesson of this effort is that living with large carnivores requires bringing people together to build trust, to generate a shared understanding of the problem using science, and to develop a participatory and equitable approach for changing practices and adopting tools that foster coexistence with carnivores.

AbstractFollowing historical efforts to eradicate them, large carnivores including gray wolves (Canis lupus), mountain lions (Puma concolor), black bears (Ursus americanus), and grizzly bears (U. arctos), have demonstrated an ability to recover across rangeland habitats in western North America during the last 50 years. While former distributions of these species were greatly reduced by the early-1960s, all are exhibiting range expansion and population increase across much (e.g., mountain lion and black bear) or portions (e.g., wolf and grizzly bear) of their historical range. This recovery of large carnivores in western landscapes has led to increased conflict with humans and a greater need for science-based management strategies by agencies with statutory responsibility for wildlife conservation. As conflict potential with large carnivores has increased, so have proactive and reactive conflict management programs for those impacted by large carnivores. Imperative to any successful large carnivore conflict mitigation is a focused outreach and education program for those who live, work, and recreate in habitats where wolves, mountain lions, and bears occur. Managers are continually evaluating the challenges and realities of intact large carnivore guilds within rangeland settings. Research and monitoring furthers our understanding and efficacy of management strategies for large carnivores now and into the future, striving to build on knowledge regarding the intricacies of population dynamics among predators and prey, including domestic species and humans.

ZusammenfassungDie menschliche Perspektive in Mensch-Wildtier-Konflikten zu verstehen, ist wichtig für ein ganzheitliches Naturschutzmanagement, da solche Konflikte oft über die direkten Mensch-Tier-Begegnungen und deren negative Folgen hinausgehen. Stattdessen handelt es sich zumeist um Konflikte zwischen Menschen bzw. Interessengruppen („Stakeholder“), die verschiedene Ansichten zu Wildtieren und deren Management vertreten. Als „Human Dimensions of Wildlife“ (HDW) werden die menschlichen oder gesellschaftlichen Aspekte in Bezug auf Natur und Wildtiere bezeichnet. Als eine Teildisziplin der Naturschutzsozialwissenschaften („Conservation Social Sciences“) stellen sie einen inter- und transdisziplinären Ansatz dar, der vielfältige Sichtweisen zur Lösung komplexer Sachverhalte in das Naturschutzmanagement einbezieht. In diesem Kapitel stellen wir gängige HDW-Konzepte vor, illustrieren auf der Grundlage einschlägiger Literatur deren analytisches Potenzial und veranschaulichen praktische Anwendungen in Fallbeispielen zu Wölfen, Wildschweinen, Bibern und Fledermäusen.AbstractUnderstanding people in the context of human-wildlife conflict is important for integrated conservation management, as these conflicts often go beyond people and their direct encounters with or negative impacts from wildlife. They often include social conflicts among people or groups of people (i.e. stakeholders) that have different views about wildlife and how it should be managed. “Human Dimensions of Wildlife” (HDW) is a sub-discipline of “Conservation Social Sciences”, an inter- and transdisciplinary approach including multiple perspectives to solve complex conservation and management matters. Here, we provide an overview of frequently used HDW concepts and illustrate their predictive potential with evidence from the literature, while their practical application is demonstrated with examples and case studies on wolves, boars, beavers and bats.

ZusammenfassungMit dem anwachsenden Wolfsbestand nehmen auch die Übergriffe auf Nutztiere in Deutschland von Jahr zu Jahr zu. In einem Punkt sind sich Landwirtschaft, Naturschutz und Politik einig: Wolfsübergriffe auf Nutztiere sollen nachhaltig minimiert werden. Darüber, wie dieses Ziel am besten erreicht werden kann, gibt es jedoch unterschiedliche Ansichten. In der öffentlichen Debatte werden Forderungen nach einem vereinfachten Abschuss von Wölfen oder einer generellen Bejagung immer lauter. Dabei wird davon ausgegangen, dass durch solche Maßnahmen Nutztierschäden durch Wölfe nachhaltig minimiert werden könnten.Bevor Maßnahmen des Wildtiermanagements angewandt werden, braucht es klare Zielvorgaben. Die erste Frage muss daher lauten: Was ist das primäre Ziel der Managementmaßnahme? Auf Basis wissenschaftlicher Evidenz muss dann vorab evaluiert werden, ob die in Frage kommenden Maßnahmen geeignet sind, das Ziel zu erreichen. Dies ist zwingend, wenn die Maßnahmen auch das Töten von empfindungsfähigen und noch dazu streng geschützten Tieren beinhalten. Um überprüfen zu können, wie wirksam die gewählten Managementmaßnahmen im konkreten Einsatz sind, werden Kriterien zur Bewertung des Erfolgs benötigt.In diesem Kapitel gehen wir der Frage nach, welche Managementmaßnahmen nach aktuellem Wissensstand geeignet sind, das Ziel, Wolfsübergriffe auf Nutztiere nachhaltig zu minimieren, zu erreichen. Wir erläutern zunächst, warum Wölfe Nutztiere töten und ob es einen Zusammenhang zwischen der Anzahl der Wölfe und der Höhe der Nutztierschäden gibt. Dafür untersuchen wir unter anderem die Daten von Wolfsübergriffen auf Nutztiere in Deutschland. Anhand einer umfangreichen Literaturübersicht analysieren wir, ob die folgenden Managementmaßnahmen geeignet sind, Wolfsübergriffe auf Nutztiere nachhaltig zu minimieren: 1) eine generelle Bejagung von Wölfen, 2) die selektive Entnahme von einzelnen schadensverursachenden Wölfen und 3) nicht-letale Herdenschutzmethoden. Abschließend legen wir Empfehlungen zu einem evidenzbasierten und lösungsorientierten Wolfsmanagement in Bezug auf den Wolf-Nutztierkonflikt vor.In Deutschland steigen mit der Zunahme der Wolfsterritorien auch die Übergriffe auf Schafe und Ziegen. Allerdings unterscheidet sich die Stärke des Anstiegs zwischen den Bundesländern erheblich. Einzelne Bundesländer erreichen bei der gleichen Anzahl an Wolfsterritorien sehr unterschiedliche Schadensniveaus. Dies deutet darauf hin, dass das Ausmaß der Schäden nicht allein durch die Anzahl der Wölfe bestimmt wird. Wir vermuten, dass die Unterschiede im Schadensniveau vor allem in der unterschiedlichen Umsetzung von Herdenschutzmaßnahmen in den einzelnen Bundesländern begründet sind.Die Ergebnisse der Literaturrecherche bezüglich der Wirksamkeit von letalen und nicht-letalen Managementmaßnahmen zum Schutz von Nutztieren zeigen klar: Eine generelle Bejagung von Wölfen führt nicht zu einer Reduktion von Nutztierschäden. Es gibt keine wissenschaftlichen Belege dafür, dass durch eine Bejagung die Schäden deutlich und nachhaltig verringert werden, es sein denn, der Bestand wird drastisch reduziert oder ganz ausgelöscht. Das ist in Deutschland und in der Europäischen Union bei aktueller Rechtslage nicht möglich. Im Gegensatz zu einer undifferenzierten Bejagung des Wolfs kann der gezielte Abschuss von Einzeltieren wirksam sein, wenn es sich tatsächlich um Individuen handelt, die gelernt haben, empfohlene funktionstüchtige Schutzmaßnahmen zu überwinden. Allerdings sind solche Fälle selten, und es ist schwierig in der freien Natur, ein bestimmtes Individuum sicher zu identifizieren und zu töten. Nicht-letale Herdenschutzmaßnahmen sind im Vergleich zu letalen Maßnahmen deutlich besser geeignet, eine nachhaltige Reduktion der Schäden zu erreichen. Der einzige Weg, um in Koexistenz mit Wölfen eine dauerhafte Reduktion von Schäden an Nutztieren zu erreichen, ist die fachgerechte Umsetzung von Herdenschutzmaßnahmen in breiter Fläche. Übergriffe auf Nutztiere lassen sich zwar auch dadurch nicht vollständig verhindern, sie können jedoch durch korrekt angewandte Herdenschutzmaßnahmen deutlich reduziert werden.Das Wissen, wie Schäden an Weidetieren durch Herdenschutzmaßnahmen verringert werden können, ist auch in Deutschland vorhanden. Viele Tierhaltende haben hier inzwischen ein hohes Maß an Fachkompetenz entwickelt. Die Erfahrung aus den vergangenen 20 Jahren zeigt allerdings auch, dass die Auszahlung von Fördergeldern für Herdenschutzmittel allein nicht ausreicht, um die Anzahl der Übergriffe deutlich zu senken. Es muss auch gewährleistet werden, dass die fachliche Expertise für die korrekte Anwendung und Wartung zur Verfügung steht. Vor allem in Gebieten mit Prädations-Hotspots sollte aktiv auf die Tierhaltenden zugegangen werden und sollten die Gründe für die vermehrten Übergriffe analysiert und abgestellt werden.Bisher fehlen aus Deutschland Daten zur Funktionstüchtigkeit der geförderten und im Einsatz befindlichen Schutzmaßnahmen. Solche Daten sind notwendig, um zu verstehen, warum trotz steigender Präventionsausgaben die Nutztierschäden teilweise auch in Gebieten mit jahrelanger Wolfspräsenz nicht zurückgehen. Sie sind zudem die Grundlage für wissenschaftliche Studien zu möglichen Unterschieden in der Wirksamkeit verschiedener Herdenschutzmethoden. Daten zur Funktionstüchtigkeit von geförderten Herdenschutzmaßnahmen sollten zumindest stichprobenartig gesammelt werden, unabhängig davon, ob es in dem jeweiligen Gebiet Wolfsübergriffe gibt. Neben der Untersuchung der rein technischen Aspekte des Herdenschutzes ist es ebenso wichtig herauszufinden, wie die Akzeptanz gegenüber Herdenschutzmaßnahmen bei den Tierhaltenden verbessert und deren Eigenmotivation erhöht werden kann. Hierfür sind Daten zur Umsetzbarkeit und Akzeptanz der eingesetzten Herdenschutzmaßnahmen erforderlich. Nutztierhaltende sollten schon in die Konzeption entsprechender Studien mit eingebunden werden, um sicherzustellen, dass die Fragen untersucht werden, deren Beantwortung für sie am dringendsten ist.Der Weg von einem emotionsbasierten zu einem evidenzbasierten Wolfsmanagement führt über wissenschaftlich robuste Daten und Analysen. Entsprechende Untersuchungen sind nur in enger Zusammenarbeit zwischen Weidetierhaltung und Wissenschaft möglich. Basierend auf der Fachkompetenz und den praktischen Erfahrungen der Weidetierhaltenden kann die Wissenschaft helfen, die Herdenschutzmaßnahmen zu identifizieren und weiterzuentwickeln, die Nutztierübergriffe am effektivsten reduzieren.SummaryAs the wolf population grows, the number of attacks on livestock in Germany also increases from year to year. Agriculture, nature conservation and politics agree on one point: that wolf attacks on livestock should be reduced sustainably. However, there are differing views on how this goal can best be achieved. In the public debate, calls for simplified shooting of wolves or general hunting are becoming louder and louder. The assumption is that such measures could sustainably reduce livestock damage caused by wolves.Before wildlife management measures are applied, clear objectives are needed. The first question, therefore, must be: What is the primary objective of the management measure? Based on scientific evidence, it must be evaluated in advance whether the measures under consideration are suitable for achieving the objective. This is mandatory if the measures include the killing of sentient animals, particularly if they are strictly protected. Criteria for evaluating if the objective was reached are needed in order to be able to verify how effective the selected management measures are when applied.In this chapter, we address the question of which management measures are suitable, based on current knowledge, to achieve the goal of sustainably reducing wolf attacks on livestock. We first explain why wolves kill livestock and whether there is a relationship between the number of wolves and the amount of livestock damage. To do this, we examine, among other things, data on wolf attacks on livestock in Germany. Based on an extensive literature review, we analyse whether the following management measures are suitable to sustainably reduce wolf attacks on livestock: 1) a general hunting of wolves, 2) the selective removal of individual wolves causing damage, and 3) non-lethal livestock protection methods. Finally, we present recommendations for evidence-based and solution-oriented wolf management with respect to wolf-livestock conflict.In Germany, as wolf territories increase, attacks on sheep and goats also increase. However, the magnitude of the increase differs considerably among the federal states. Individual federal states achieve very different levels of damage with the same number of wolf territories. This suggests that the extent of damage is not solely determined by the number of wolves. We suspect that the differences in damage levels are mainly due to the different implementation of livestock protection measures in the individual federal states.The results of the literature review regarding the effectiveness of lethal and non-lethal management measures to protect livestock clearly show that general hunting of wolves does not reduce livestock damage. There is no scientific evidence that hunting significantly and sustainably reduces damage, unless the wolf population is drastically reduced or completely eradicated. This is not possible in Germany and in the European Union under the current legal situation. In contrast to an undifferentiated hunting of the wolf, the targeted shooting of individual animals can be effective if they are actually individuals that have learned to overcome recommended functional livestock protection measures. However, such cases are rare and it is difficult in the field to safely identify and kill a specific individual. Non-lethal livestock protection measures are much better at achieving sustained reductions in damage compared to lethal measures. The only way to achieve a lasting reduction of damage to livestock in coexistence with wolves is the professional implementation of livestock protection measures on a broad scale. Non-lethal livestock protection measures do not completely prevent attacks on livestock. However, if correctly applied they can significantly reduce wolf caused damages on livestock.The knowledge of how to reduce livestock depredation by wolves through herd protection measures is also available in Germany. Many livestock farmers have developed a high level of expertise in this field. However, experience from the past 20 years also shows that the funding of livestock protection measures alone is not enough to significantly reduce the number of wolf attacks. It is also necessary to ensure that technical expertise is available for proper application and maintenance of the measures. Especially in areas with predation hotspots, livestock owners should be actively approached and the reasons for increased attacks analysed and remedied.To date, there is a lack of data from Germany on the functionality of funded and applied protection measures. Such data are necessary to understand why, despite increasing prevention expenditures, livestock damage has not decreased in some cases, even in areas where wolves have been present for years. Moreover, such data are the basis for scientific studies on possible differences in the effectiveness of different livestock protection methods. Data on the functionality of funded protection measures should be collected at least on a random basis, regardless of whether there are wolf attacks in the respective area. In addition to investigating the purely technical aspects of herd protection, it is equally important to find out how the acceptance towards livestock protection measures can be improved among livestock owners and how their self-motivation can be increased. This requires data on the feasibility and acceptance of the applied protection measures. Livestock keepers should be involved already in the conception of appropriate studies to ensure that the investigations will answer the most urgent questions for them.The path from emotion-based to evidence-based wolf management is through scientifically robust data and analysis. Appropriate research is only possible through close collaboration between livestock owners and science. Based on the expertise and practical experience of farmers, science can help identify and improve the livestock protection measures that most effectively reduce wolf attacks on livestock.

During routine inspection of an N5 feedwater nozzle dissimilar metal weld (DMW) of a BWR, an axial flaw was detected in the weld. The flaw was mitigated by applying a full structural weld overlay (WOL) repair consisting of Alloy 52M weld metal and using the gas tungsten arc welding process (GTAW). Because of the ductile nature and very high toughness of the Alloy 52M material, the limit load approach of ASME Code, Section XI, Appendix C was used for the sizing of the overlay. The use of limit load for the design of weld overlays for Alloy 52M material is supported by several studies documented in the industry [1]. In order to address other fracture failure modes such as failure by ductile tearing and brittle fracture, a failure assessment diagram (FAD) approach was used to evaluate the acceptability of the weld overlay design. FADs have been used for evaluating flaws in piping components, but not for acceptance of flaws in WOLs. The FAD evaluation was performed in accordance with the ASME Code, Section XI, Appendix H requirements which address brittle fracture, elastic-plastic fracture mechanics (ductile tearing), and limit load failure modes. The applicable stress combinations were used in combination with the materials JR resistance curve to determine flaw acceptability at the end of the evaluation period. The evaluation considered the presence of both a circumferential flaw (360° around the circumference and 100% through the original pipe wall; the design basis for the full structural weld overlay) and an axial flaw. For both circumferential and axial flaws, several assessment points corresponding to the JR resistance curve were determined and plotted on the FAD curve for austenitic steels in ASME Section XI, Appendix H. The FAD curve in Appendix H was derived based on strength properties of stainless steel and is considered conservative in application to Alloy 52M since Alloy 52M has higher strength. All the assessment points were found to be below the FAD curve thus indicating the acceptability of the weld overlay with consideration to all the three possible fracture regimes.