engleski

Bear emergency team in Croatia

The management plan for brown bears (Ursus arctos) in Croatia is operational since 2006, and was the base for establishment of the Bear emergency team. The bears in Croatia are game animals and are managed by the Hunting department of the Ministry of agriculture, forestry and water management. This Ministry appointed nine members of the team and it acts as a mediator for the information transfer between the team and the public. The members of the team, in cooperation with the hunting unit leaseholders or other local authorities, evaluate the situation and make a decision about the intervention. It is important to show to the local inhabitants that, in cases of dangerous situations with bears, they are not left alone. The emergency team operates according to a protocol. In general it tries to ; a) prevent the appearance of all bear related problems, b) react in any unusual situation connected to bears, and c) help monitor all bear related issues. For that purpose the team members visit unusual bear damage sites (big and/or repeated damage, close to homes), unusual bear death (traffic and other non-hunting) and cases of problem bear appearance Especially important is preventing of habituation of bears to human food sources by a) prevention of access, b) “ negative conditioning” , and c) removal of a bear for which the applied measures did not work. Orphan cubs often become problem bears, and the preventing the appearance of orphan cubs is targeted by a) special care in hunting operations (not to shoot a mother accompanied by dependent offspring), b) prevention of poaching, c) avoidance of disturbance in habitats during winter months. Other team activities include: a) work on prevention of damages, b) reporting bear losses and taking samples, and c) helping bears in trouble. Considering the later, the team members rescued 3 bears from poachers snares and one from a plastic container over his head (including the actions before the team has been established). In 2007 in Croatia was also established the Wolf and lynx emergency team, by the Ministry of culture, Nature protection directorate. If the two ministries will once agree there might be one Large carnivore emergency team. The teams already had a common training, as most persons are the members of both teams.

brown bear; emergency team

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