Across Europe, wild boar numbers increased in the 1960s-1970s but stabilised in the 1980s; recent evidence suggests that the numbers and impact of wild boar has grown steadily since the 1980s. As hunting is the main cause of mortality for this species, we reviewed wild boar hunting bags and hunter population trends in 18 European countries from 1982 to 2012. Hunting statistics and numbers of hunters were used as indicators of animal numbers and hunting pressure. The results confirmed that wild boar increased consistently throughout Europe, while the number of hunters remained relatively stable or declined in most countries. We conclude that recreational hunting is insufficient to limit wild boar population growth and that the relative impact of hunting on wild boar mortality had decreased. Other factors, such as mild winters, reforestation, intensification of crop production, supplementary feeding and compensatory population responses of wild boar to hunting pressure might also explain population growth. As populations continue to grow, more human-wild boar conflicts are expected unless this trend is reversed. New interdisciplinary approaches are urgently required to mitigate human-wild boar conflicts, which are otherwise destined to grow further.

The chamois Rupicapra spp. is the most abundant mountain ungulate of Europe and the Near East, where it occurs as two species, the northern chamois R. rupicapra and the southern chamois R. pyrenaica. Here, we provide a state-of-the-art overview of research trends and the most challenging issues in chamois research and conservation, focusing on taxonomy and systematics, genetics, life history, ecology and behavior, physiology and disease, management and conservation. Research on Rupicapra has a longstanding history and has contributed substantially to the biological and ecological knowledge of mountain ungulates. Although the number of publications on this genus has markedly increased over the past two decades, major differences persist with respect to knowledge of species and subspecies, with research mostly focusing on the Alpine chamois R. r. rupicapra and, to a lesser extent, the Pyrenean chamois R. p. pyrenaica. In addition, a scarcity of replicate studies of populations of different subspecies and/or geographic areas limits the advancement of chamois science. Since environmental heterogeneity impacts behavioral, physiological and life history traits, understanding the underlying processes would be of great value from both an evolutionary and conservation/management standpoint, especially in the light of ongoing climatic change. Substantial contributions to this challenge may derive from a quantitative assessment of reproductive success, investigation of fine-scale foraging patterns, and a mechanistic understanding of disease outbreak and resilience. For improving conservation status, resolving taxonomic disputes, identifying subspecies hybridization, assessing the impact of hunting and establishing reliable methods of abundance estimation are of primary concern. Despite being one of the most well-known mountain ungulates, substantial field efforts to collect paleontological, behavioral, ecological, morphological, physiological and genetic data on different populations and subspecies are still needed to ensure a successful future for chamois research and conservation.

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The floristic composition of meadow associations within the fenced areas of forest hunting grounds was investigated in the spring of 2008 at three sites: Karakuša (Srem), Miloševa voda (Mt. Sokolovica) and Lomnička reka (Mt. Veliki Jastrebac), Serbia. At the first location three associations were determined (Agrostio-Juncetum effusi Cinc.1959., Trifolio-Agrostietum stoloniferae L. Mark.1973., and Agrostietum vulgaris. Z. Pavl. 1955 sensu lato.); at the second location Festuco-Agrostietum Horv. (1952) 1982. em Trinajest. 1972., and at the third location Agrostio-Festucetum valesiacae Gajić 1961. Hemicryptophytes were the dominant life form in all the sites (ranging from 61.1 to 72.9%). Also, the presence of 24 floral elements was recorded. The largest number of floral elements was determined at the site of Mt. Sokolovica (17), and the lowest at the third site, Mt. Veliki Jastrebac (9)

Knowledge of age structure is a necessity in understanding the population dynamics (Ludwig and Dapson 1977) and the main portion of hunting management. Age determination is a key component of ecological studies of wild animals and an important prerequisite for comparing the growth, breeding performance and survival of different deer populations (Mitchell 1967, Lundervold et al. 2003. This is simple with laboratory-reared animals, but accurate determining the age of free-living animals can [419] Acta Theriologica 52 (4): 419-426, 2007.