How Does the Price of Cheese Influence Perceptions of Wolves?

Mar. 20, 2013 — Relationships between humans and wolves are often linked to conflicts with livestock breeding activities. Contrary to a widespread belief among western environmentalists, these conflicts don't only occur only in western countries, even though their intensity often appears lower in other places. Indeed, in many countries, livestock breeding activities have been dealing with wolves for centuries and rural societies have developed paths to coexistence through protection of livestock and control of wolf populations.

However, the world is changing, and rural societies are facing changes that can affect the way they relate to large carnivores like wolves. It is particularly obvious in countries which went through dramatic and rapid transition processes after the fall of USSR and Yugoslavia.

Researchers from the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research conducted ethnological investigations based on participant observation and semi-structured interviews on human-wolf relationships in Kyrgyzstan (2003-2007) and Republic of Macedonia (2007-2008) which both have been subjected to rapid social changes.

The investigations highlighted that the institutional and economic crisis following the collapse of the USSR and Yugoslavia had a strong impact on livestock breeding and hunting activities which were highly dependent on State support. Wolf hunting was also affected in Kyrgyzstan as economic and logistical means supporting intensive wolf hunting were no longer available after the collapse of the USSR.

The studies revealed that these changes in hunting and husbandry practices have led to modifications of the human -- wolf interactions as well as of the social and environmental contexts of human-wolf relationships.

Continued:  http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/03/130320095113.htm