Switzerland relaxes conditions for hunting wolves

Faced with the constant increase in the number of wolves and their attacks on herds, the Swiss authorities will enable the hunting of these predators under certain conditions, it was announced today in Bern. The wolf will remain a protected animal species, but from June 2015 hunters will be able to kill young wolves in the areas where there are the most packs of this predator, the Ministry of the Environment announced in response to the request of farmers, hunters and villagers in the mountains. "It will be possible to hunt wolves in urban areas and where these animals frighten the population with their immediate presence," the announcement states. The authorities will also launch a project to research the behavior of wolves. Gray wolves, the second largest carnivore in Europe, have inhabited areas in 28 countries and there are about 12.000 of them. The gray wolf can reach a weight of up to 80 kilograms. There are twice as many wolves in Europe as in the USA, even though the country is twice the size of the old continent.