Human–wildlife conflicts at pond fisheries in eastern Poland: perceptions and management of wildlife damage

Abstract

Wildlife occurring at aquacultural sites can ignite conflicts over resources managed by humans. A telephone survey concerning nuisance wildlife occurrence, perceptions of inflicted damage, and use of preventive measures at pond fisheries was conducted in 2003-2004 in eastern Poland. Significant economic losses to wildlife were reported by 80% of the respondents, with 41% claiming severe losses to more than one species. Serious damage was attributed primarily to otters Lutra lutra (56% of farms), cormorants Phalacrocorax carbo (26%), grey herons Ardea cinerea (23%), and beavers Castor fiber (21%). Two alien species, mink Neovison vison and muskrat Ondatra zibethicus, were widespread, but rarely blamed for causing substantial harm. Lethal controls were the most popular means of damage reduction and were more likely to be deployed at fish farms reporting significant losses. Cormorants, shot at half of the farms visited, were the most widely persecuted. Both otters and beavers were culled, notwithstanding their protection status and compensation payments available for beaver damage to ponds. The survey indicated poor cooperation between conservation authorities and fish farmers in managing wildlife concerns. Monitoring conflict interactions, i.e., wildlife occurrence and alleged damage at fish farms vs damage management processes, is an essential step toward conflict alleviation. Considering the wide range of species interacting with fisheries, adoption of more flexible policies to address the conflicts than a singlespecies conservation approach is recommended.

Importance of small fishes and invasive crayfish in otter Lutra lutra diet in an English chalk stream

“…At freshwater aquaculture sites across Europe, conflicts with piscivorous fauna, such as otter Lutra lutra have been widely reported (e.g., Kloskowski, 2005Kloskowski, , 2011. In freshwaters with less intensive management, such as ponds and rivers used for catch and release recreational angling, anglers frequently report fish losses to otter predation as a major concern, specifically for the loss of larger bodied fishes Almeida et al, 2012).…”

Chemical composition, amino acid and fatty acid contents, and mineral concentrations of European beaver (Castor fiber L.) meat

“…As a result of damages include tree girdles, grassland flooding, arable crop damages [10], as well as production losses in fisheries, physical destruction at aquaculture facilities and costs of implementing damage prevention methods, the growing beaver population needs to be controlled [11]. In addition to the human factor (poaching, car collisions), the size of local population of beaver in Poland may be limited only by the pressure of large predators such as wolf and lynx [3].…”

Determinants of the re‐occupation and size of Grey HeronArdea cinereabreeding colonies in northern Poland

“…Nesting in close proximity to human activity not always negatively affects waterbirds. It might provide suitable foraging opportunities in human-altered portions of the landscape, such as rice fields (the most significant manmade foraging habitat for breeding herons in the Mediterranean, due to the variety, density and size of prey organisms, as well as the suitability of water depth and substrate; Fasola et al1993;Fasola and Ruiz 1996;Maeda 2001;Czech and Parsons 2002;Kazantzidis and Goutner 2008;Longoni 2010), fish ponds (Kushlan et al 2005;Kloskowski 2011;Manikowska-S´lepowron´ska et al in preparation). In our study, the colony at Jawory with 119 % increase in number of nests between 2004 and 2013 is situated in close proximity (110 m) to the fish farm ponds.…”

“…habitat transformation or modification) and wildlife management (persecution, protection) are directly or indirectly related to population trends, often becoming an issue of conservation concern (e.g. McCulloch et al 1992;Tucker and Heath 1994;Marion 1997;Newton 1998;Donald et al 2001;Stenseth et al 2002;Gaston et al 2003;Duhem et al 2008;Kloskowski 2011;Jakubas and Manikowska-S´lepowron´ska 2013;Manikowska-S´lepowron´ska et al in preparation). Over recent decades, environmental changes have been observed in the agricultural landscape of Poland.…”