Large carnivores confirmed across Czech-Slovak borderlands
Conservationists have published the results of their traditional winter survey of large carnivores along the Czech-Slovak border. Trackers covered nearly 200 routes ranging from five to 25 kilometres, confirming the presence of wolves, lynx and bears.
In total, conservationists collected 274 confirmed records of large carnivores.
Michal Bojda, a field worker with the Hnutí DUHA Olomouc’s Large Carnivore Program, says that this year, their work was complicated by the weather, as snow was missing in many lower-lying areas, where tracks are easiest to find. Camera traps and other clues therefore provided valuable records.
“We were looking for all possible signs of their presence. Mainly tracks and trackways, but also droppings and, where possible, remains of prey,” he said.
Wolves accounted for by far the largest number of findings, with 211 records. In one case, trackers also found their prey – a killed hind – which is relatively unusual during this type of survey. They recorded 58 lynx findings, and the presence of bears was confirmed in five cases.
This does not necessarily mean there are 211 wolves or 58 lynx living in the area. A single animal can leave several tracks during the time of survey, and the aim was not to count the animals but to determine where they occur.
The presence of wolves was confirmed across virtually the entire area surveyed. Most findings came from the Moravian-Silesian and Vsetín Beskids, the Javorníky Mountains and the Kysuce Beskids. Wolves are also present in the Vizovice and Hostýn Hills and in the northern part of the White Carpathians.
In the Hostýn Hills alone, tracks confirmed the presence of at least four wolves, while camera traps in the Vizovice Hills captured a wolf pair. The largest group, six animals, was recorded by trackers on the Slovak side in the Kysuce Beskids.
There were around 50 more wolf findings than previously, but part of the increase is ascribed to the larger area covered in this year’s survey.
According to conservationists, the results primarily confirm that wolves have established permanent territories along the Czech-Slovak border.
As for lynx, camera traps captured eight different individuals during the week-long survey. Their presence was most frequently confirmed in the Moravian-Silesian Beskids, the Javorníky Mountains and Slovakia’s Kysuce region. Compared with previous years, lynx were also recorded more often in the Vsetín and Silesian Beskids. For lynx, the number of signs of presence found remained roughly the same as last year.
Bears were confirmed during the February survey only on the Slovak side, in the Kysuce Beskids and Kysuce Highlands. Later in spring, however, conservationists recorded several bears in the Javorníky Mountains and northern White Carpathians. According to Michal Bojda, their presence on the Czech side is exceptional.
The data will now also be used to help protect areas through which large carnivores migrate between individual habitats.
