Sweden begins brown bear hunting season with conservationists warning of a 20% drop in number

Associated Press

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Brown bear hunting in Sweden has started with 486 licenses to kill them, but conservationists warned that the move would result in a 20% drop in the country’s predator population. Magnus Orrebrant of the Swedish Carnivore Association — a non-profit and independent advocacy group — told The Associated Press that wildlife management in Sweden is about killing animals instead of preserving them. When the figure for this year’s bear hunting was released in June, Jonas Kindberg of a Swedish-Norwegian bear preservation research program said the decision could have major consequences for the bear population. In Sweden, the number of bears has dropped in recent years chiefly due to the expected effect of licensed hunting in recent years.