Styria permits 84 beaver killings each year

Styria permits the killing of 84 strictly protected beavers each year, according to a review by ORF of regulations in six Austrian states. The quotas together allow more than 1,000 beavers to be killed annually, the conservation organisation WWF said.

The largest quota is in Lower Austria, where about 390 beavers may be killed each year. WWF said an increase to as many as 600 animals is planned. Upper Austria follows with 158 permitted killings, Carinthia with 148 and Styria with 84. Vorarlberg allows 32 killings in total, while Salzburg permits 15 per year.

WWF criticises aggressive persecution

WWF said additional killings beyond the quotas are already possible in Carinthia when there is imminent danger and are also provided for in Lower Austria.

“The beaver builds exactly what we need to combat heat and drought,” said Sarah Stöger, WWF species protection expert. Its natural dams retain water and create valuable wetlands, she said. Stöger called the persecution of beavers “extremely short-sighted” and urged an end to unlawful killing rules, with priority given to natural prevention measures.

Prevention measures criticised

WWF found both strengths and weaknesses in Styria’s regulations. In explanatory notes on the beaver regulation, the state describes buffer zones and strips along waterways as “particularly sustainable and effective conflict prevention”. The state also plans to evaluate the measure again and adjust it based on initial experience.

Such areas create distance between beaver habitats and agricultural land. However, WWF said on Tuesday that the draft did not adequately ensure that these solutions would take priority. Experts are required to determine whether prevention measures have failed, but WWF said the criteria were too vague.

Young beavers may also be affected

Killings can affect two generations of young beavers. The regular intervention period usually runs from the beginning of September to the end of March, avoiding the breeding and rearing season. Young beavers, however, remain with their parents for up to two years and learn vital survival skills during that time.

If parent animals are killed in autumn, two generations of their offspring may therefore be affected. “Killing the parents can also become a death sentence for many young animals,” Stöger warned, criticising what she described as excessive measures in several states.