Raccoons under pressure: Hesse plans to hunt pests all year round!

Raccoons under pressure: Hesse plans to hunt pests all year round!

What's going on in Hesse? The Hessian state government has decided to abolish the closed season for raccoons. This means that hunting for these animals could soon be permitted all year round. This is reported by the n-tv, which also points out that the planning is already well advanced and has a clear purpose: to get the problem cases surrounding the raccoon population under control.

To understand the scale of the problem, let's take a look at the numbers: According to estimates, there appear to be at least 120,000 raccoons living in Hesse. In Kassel in particular, the density of these animals is alarmingly high, with over 100 raccoons per hectare, which ensures Hesse is one of the top places in Europe. If the problem is not addressed as quickly as possible, the negative impact on the environment and local animal species could continue to increase. Scientists at Goethe University Frankfurt are already warning about the damage that raccoons cause, for example to breeding grounds for amphibians, reptiles and ground-nesting birds.

The background of raccoon hunting

But what is driving the state government to take this drastic measure? The Hesse State Hunting Association supports the abolition of the closed season because it sees the need for intensive hunting. It should not be lost sight of the fact that hunting raccoons is also considered controversial. According to the Wildlife Protection Germany organization, these animals pose no significant economic, health or ecological dangers in Germany. Even hunting is often seen as not conforming to animal welfare and has no demonstrable effect on the population development of the animals.

Raccoons once came to Europe from North America and have established themselves here for decades. Like the raccoon dog and the nutria, they are considered invasive species of Union-wide importance, which requires special monitoring and, if necessary, adjustments to hunting plans.

Strategies for solution

What's next? A viable solution could be the development of updated management plans. Current data shows that populations of sensitive species recover when raccoons are locally removed. In this context, the 2014 EU Action Sheet, which contains strategies to combat invasive species, plays an important role. This includes, among other things, attaching anti-climbing collars to nest and cave trees as well as fencing off areas where endangered species occur.

The need to specify and adapt the projects is seen as urgent by many experts, but hunters often face major challenges: a lack of social recognition, high costs for the necessary measures and a lack of trained personnel. Against this background, a bonus model to support hunters could be conceivable in order to both create incentives and recognize the efforts.

However, there are different opinions about hunting raccoons. Conservationists such as Nabu Hesse do not believe that a nationwide fight makes sense and emphasize that investments in habitat restoration instead of money for raccoon hunting would be better spent. The discussion about raccoon hunting remains a hot topic - there is no lack of possible solutions, but the views on the "how" could not be more different.