Although wolves have been culled in Soomaa National Park in western Estonia since last autumn, the region's largest cattle farmer, Tiit Soa, says the problem has not been resolved. Cattle, used to maintain the floodplain meadows, continue to be killed or wounded by wolves.

"In my herd, large-scale attacks began in October–November, and then the Environmental Board issued special [culling] permits. There was talk that the large Kikerpera [wolf] pack that had been carrying out attacks would be eliminated," he told Saturday's "Aktuaalne kaamera".

Tanel Türna, head of the Environmental Board's hunting and aquatic life bureau, said six wolves from the pack have been killed since September.

"According to confirmation from the Environmental Agency, this pack has ceased to function, but the problem is that individual wolves from neighboring packs are moving into the area and have also begun attacking cattle," he said.

While Soa says more wolves should be culled, Türna says a large number have already been killed. In addition to those dispatched with special permits, 165 wolves were culled during this hunting season, a record for the past century.

Türna said other solutions must also be sought.

"Culling alone will no longer produce results. In addition to culling, more investment must be made in preventive measures as part of a combined approach. The first option to work on is, for example, adjusting the timing of cattle calving, and we will certainly also take a deeper look at floodplain maintenance principles, to see whether in some areas it would be possible to rely more on mowing," he said.

While Türna says the agency is actively addressing the problem, Soa says the Environmental Board does not see the bigger picture and is not doing enough.

Soa said local livestock farmers want wolf attacks to be treated as a rural life issue rather than a nature conservation. They want the Ministry of Agriculture to lead on the issue.

"This concerns all of rural life, not only animals in the forest, but there are also social problems behind it. The Environmental Board says there are no quick decisions. But we don't have time. By June, we will run out of money, because the animals have been killed. We have nothing left to sell," the farmer said.

Among other things, Soa believes the Ministry of Agriculture should provide state aid to Soomaa livestock farmers and that the state should replace killed animals with new ones. However, the ministry does not see an opportunity to take a leading role in the situation or to implement such measures.

"We know that the predator problem in Estonia is very serious, not only in Soomaa but in several regions. We expect that food production can still go hand in hand with nature conservation," said Katrin Rannik, head of department at the Ministry of Agriculture.

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