Why wild boar shooting in the Perg district has almost tripled

Wild boar hunting has placed particular demands on the hunting grounds in the Perg district in recent weeks. Not only because winter is traditionally the season for wild boar hunting, but because an extraordinary situation arose this year after a large number of wild boars escaped from a private pen in Münzbach and then went on their nightly forays into many agricultural crops in the eastern part of the affected the district.

• Read more: District hunter day: “I don’t barge into other people’s apartments uninvited”

“This situation has once again shown that our hunters can react very quickly and flexibly to new challenges,” said district hunter master Franz Hanl at the district hunter’s day held on Saturday in the Perg gymnasium. This exceptional situation is already reflected in the 2023/24 hunting statistics with 145 wild boar -kills (compared to 52 in the 2022/23 hunting year). However, the number of roe deer, foxes, hares and predatory animals killed was in line with the long-term average. Only the pheasant gives those responsible for hunting reason to worry: the population here has been steadily declining for several years.

Be careful with animal diseases

Hunting is currently required to pay great attention to dealing with animal diseases, emphasized district captain Werner Kreisl in his speech on Saturday: “Large parts of Machland are still affected by bird flu. Unfortunately, a first positive case of rabbit plague has also been confirmed.” The latter in particular requires great attention, as this disease is considered to be one that can also be transmitted from animals to humans. Kreisl therefore appealed to hunters to be particularly careful when dealing with hunted rabbits.”

Respectful treatment of nature

The central theme of Hunter’s Day was a respectful treatment of those who live in and with nature: landowners, hunters, animals and those who spend their free time doing sporting activities in nature. Hanl said in an interview with OÖNachrichten that he has the impression that this respect is increasingly being lost: “I have complete understanding for everyone who would like to relax in nature. That is healthy and desirable. But there have to be limits : Not everything is possible always and everywhere.”

• You might also be interested in: What should and should not be allowed in the forest

In this context, the district hunter referred to the hunt’s negative attitude towards plans for a district-wide mountain bike trail: “As a hunt, we currently see no need to open the door to the recreational use of nature any further than is currently the case.”

Best practice example in the forest-hunting dialogue

The fact that the dialogue between landowners and hunting is extremely well maintained in the Perg district was confirmed by both Christian Lang, the new district chairman of the Farmers’ Chamber, and state hunting master Herbert Sieghartsleitner: “We in the State Hunting Association have consciously chosen the Perg district as a best-practice example of successful forestry. Hunting dialogue for all of Austria nominated.”

This dialogue was also used when drafting the state hunting law passed the previous week. “Landowners and hunters have by far the highest level of expertise in this area. It was therefore good to put these two groups at the center of the law-making process,” said Deputy Governor Christine Haberlander.

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