Sweden Set To Kill Nearly 500 Brown Bears In Annual Hunt

The Swedish government has approved the killing of nearly 500 European brown bears as part of its annual licensed hunt.

Hunters will be permitted to kill 486 brown bears between August 21 and October 15, around 20 percent of the country’s relatively recently recovered wild population of 2,400.

In the first few days of the annual cull, hunters killed over 150 animals. If next year’s hunt takes place at a similar rate, there are fears that the number of bears could fall to 1,400, which is considered to be the minimum amount necessary to meet conservation obligations.

Brown bears were previously hunted to near-extinction in the early 1900s in Sweden. They slowly recovered over the following century to reach a peak of 3,300 in 2008. Reducing the population to 1,400 would represent a 60 percent loss compared to this peak.

Sweden grants license to hunt protected carnivores

A mother brown bear with her cubs in a forest — Adobe Stock Last year, 648 bears were killed in the hunt

Last year, 648 bears were killed in Sweden’s record-breaking 2023 hunt, with an additional 74 killed in so-called “protective hunts.”

The Swedish government has also granted licenses to cull hundreds of wolves and lynx, which are listed as a “strictly protected species” and “protected species,” respectively, within Berne Convention appendixes on the conservation of European wildlife and their habitats.

Sweden’s continued and controversial persecution of its large carnivore populations may contravene EU law, and the European Commission has an open infringement case against the country over its licensed wolf hunting. A formal complaint was filed over lynx hunting in April.

Bears, wolves, and lynx are all considered keystone species, meaning they are essential for the survival and health of their ecosystem and all interrelated species. Brown bears, in particular, are notably also one of the most culturally significant and widely popular megafauna in the world.

The charismatic animals predominantly forage for tree bark, leaves, roots, and berries, with just 20 percent or so of their diet made up from animal protein. Brown bears are extremely intelligent, and they can form strong bonds with other bears in the wild.
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