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AUTONOMOUS PROVINCE OF TRENTO
Dedicated to the memory of Fabio Osti
BEAR REPORT2009
AUTONOMOUS PROVINCE OF TRENTO
CERTIFIED
FORESTRY AND WILDLIFE OFFICE
General coordination and supervisionRuggero Giovannini – Director of Wildlife Office
CoordinationClaudio Groff
Edited by: Davide DalpiazCarlo FrapportiClaudio GroffRenato RizzoliPaolo Zanghellini
With the contribution of:Brown Bear Research and Conservation Group, Adamello Brenta Nature ParkTrento Natural Science Museum
Layout and graphics: APT Wildlife Office / Publistampa S.N.C.
The information contained in this reportmay be quoted, citingthe "2009 Bear Report of the Forestry and Wildlife Department of the Autonomous Province of Trento”.
Cover: “Bär am Ziegenstall” (bear at goat shelters),Taken from “Das Thierleben der Alpenwelt”,Friedrich von Tschudi, Leipzig, 1858
Photos:Forestry and Wildlife Department archivesunless otherwise specified(F. Faganello - pages 13, 35, 45, 47, 52)
Printed by:Print centre of the Autonomous Province of TrentoTrento, January 2010
Translation supervised by:Dept. for the Realisation of Major Events, APT
CONTENTS
Presentation page 5
Introduction page 7
1. Monitoring page 8
2. Compensation and prevention of damage page 29
3. Management of emergencies page 35
4. Communication page 42
5. Training page 47
6. National and international links page 49
7. Research and conferences page 50
Appendix 1 – The lynx in Trentino in 2009 page 53
Appendix 2 – First signs of the presence of wolves in Trentino after more than 150 years page 57
«Every time I returned to those mountains, it seemed impossible that far from the city,the noise and the dirt, these people talked about animals, deer, trees and even bears, theSpirit of childhood mountains, as if these were still part of everyday life and an ordinary di-mension».
M. Balboni - “Il paese alto”, 1996
2009 BEAR REPORT
5
Presentation
Management of the brown bear in Trentino is carried out directly by the AutonomousProvince of Trento (APT), on the basis of its statutory responsibilities and existing regula-tions regarding the protection of wildlife, (L.P. of 9 December 1991, no. 24). Since 2002, fol-lowing the adoption of specific lines of intervention by the provincial government, theForestry and Wildlife Department has been responsible for the realisation of the relevant pro-grammes of action.
The Department's main partner at operational level is the Adamello Brenta Nature Park,(ABNP) which promoted the Life Ursus project during the latter part of the 1990s, thanksto which the continuing presence of the bear in our mountains was ensured. The park,which is an autonomous body funded by the Province, collaborates in various activities,particularly in the field of research, monitoring and communication.
Given the national and international importance of managing a species such as the bear,the Ministry for the Environment and the Safeguarding of Land and Seas (MESLS) and theIstituto Superiore per la Protezione e la Ricerca Ambientale (ISPRA) also represent indis-pensible institutional and technical-scientific partners.
Through the Autonomous Province of Trento's Bear Report, a technical documentdrawn up by the Wildlife Office, it is intended to pursue two important objectives. Firstly,to provide accurate, clear, up-to-date and detailed information on the status of the smallbear population living in western Trentino and neighbouring regions and nations. Sec-ondly, it aims to record in a precise and analytical manner a range of data illustrating themanagement techniques implemented, in order to make it possible for those in the fieldto make use of this data, by consulting a document which is as complete and exhaustiveas possible.
The first objective falls fully within the context of the information campaign “Gettingto know the brown bear”, started up by the provincial administration in 2002, with theconviction that the Bear Report represents one of the key aspects of this campaign. Thesecond objective is more specifically related to operational and management aspects.However, both respond to the need to provide the technical staff and authorities con-cerned with better knowledge, allowing them to make the right choices, guaranteeing thesuccess of the project and hence the conservation of the bear.
This issue of the report shows that management of the bear is gradually consolidatingwith the progressive acquiring of operational ability in terms of structures and staff,demonstrating both the correctness and topicality of the choices made, including the de-sire to make available the experience gained in the most transparent and complete man-ner.
At the same time there were interesting new developments in 2009 as regards both thelynx and the wolf, the latter in particular reappearing in Trentino for the first time inmore than a century. Thus the province of Trento is the first area in the Italian alps to haveobjectively recorded the presence of all three large carnivores (the bear, the lynx and thewolf), after they disappeared or became extremely rare in the 19th and 20th centuries. Isthis just a first step towards their definitive return to our mountains? At all events, thepath to be followed will be neither short nor without difficulty, above all in social terms.
In conclusion, our heartfelt thanks must also go to all those, in particular Trento Nat-ural Science Museum (TNSM), who in various ways have collaborated in order to realisethe individual initiatives in the programmes of action, above all to the forestry and tech-
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2009 BEAR REPORT
nical staff of the Forestry and Wildlife Department, the forest wardens, park wardens,gamekeepers and volunteers who have worked in the area in order to realise the projectsand to gather the data without which this report could not have been written.
DOTT. MAURIZIO ZANINManager of APT's Forestry and Wildlife Department
2009 BEAR REPORT
7
The brown bear has never completely dis-appeared from Trentino, which is thus theonly area in the Alps that can proudly affirmthe continuous presence of bears. However,protection of bears, which began in 1939, hasnot eliminated the risk of their becoming ex-tinct. Direct persecution by man and, to alesser extent, modifications to the environ-ment taking place in the last two centuries re-duced the original population, bringing it tothe threshold of extinction. At the end of the1990s there were probably no more than threeor four bears remaining, confined to thenorth-eastern Brenta area. However, just whenall seemed lost, there was turn in fortunes,originating in the action taken by ABNP, whichstarted up the Life Ursus project together withAPT and ISPRA (formerly INFS), co-funded bythe European Union. Between 1999 and 2002this led to the release of 10 bears (3 males and7 females), giving rise to the population towhich this report refers. The release of thebears was preceded by a detailed feasibilitystudy supervised by ISPRA, which ascertainedthe environmental suitability of a sufficientlylarge area to play host to a viable bear popu-lation (40-60 bears), which is the ultimate aimof the project. This area extends well beyondthe confines of the province of Trento, also in-volving neighbouring regions and nations.
Following the conclusion of the phase in-volving the release of the animals, the phasededicated to the conservation and standardmanagement of the bear population, perhapseven more demanding, began in 2002. For thispurpose the provincial government laid downthe operational guidelines on which these
management activities should be based in res-olutions no. 1428 and no. 1988 of 26 June2002 and 9 August 2002. In particular, six ac-tion programmes were identified (monitoring,damage management, management of emer-gencies, staff training, communication and na-tional and international links), which repre-sent the underlying structure followed in this report.
Introduction
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2009 BEAR REPORT
Monitoring of the bear has been carried outcontinuously by the Autonomous Province ofTrento for more than 30 years. Over time, tra-ditional survey techniques in the field havebeen supplemented by radiotelemetry (thefirst radio collars used in Eurasia, in the sec-ond half of the 1970s), automatic video con-trol by remote stations, photo-traps and fi-nally, in the last few years, by geneticmonitoring.
This last technique is based on the collec-tion of organic samples (hairs and scats) andtakes place using two methods commonly de-fined as systematic monitoring, based on theuse of traps with scent bait, designed to "cap-ture" hairs using barbed wire, and as oppor-tunistic monitoring, which is based on thecollection of organic samples found in the areaduring routine service activities. In the last fewyears, genetic monitoring has represented themost crucial technique for collecting informa-tion regarding the bear population present inthe province. Since 2006, systematic monitor-ing in the area constantly frequented by bearshas taken place in alternate years. Hence ittook place in 2008 and will be carried out
again in 2010. Thus the results of genetic mon-itoring in 2009 (carried out exclusively usingthe opportunistic system) are only partiallycomparable with the 2008 results. This com-parison will only be fully valid when it is pos-sible to make use of the data to be collected in2010 using both the methods cited.
Genetic monitoring was coordinated forthe seventh consecutive year by the Forestryand Wildlife Department of APT, with the col-laboration of ISPRA, ABNP, the AssociazioneCacciatori Trentini (ACT) and a number of vol-unteers. It is nevertheless implicit that themonitoring techniques cited do not guaranteethat all the bears present will be detected.
Genetic database 311 organic samples were collected in
the province of Trento in 2009, all using theopportunistic method, bringing the totalnumber of samples collected and subjectedto genetic testing since 2002 to more than3,000 (Graph 1).
The 311 samples were collected by the staffof the Forestry Service of the AutonomousProvince of Trento (FS) (200 - 64%), by
1. Monitoring
Graph 1
N° of organic samples for each method
* only within ABNP
N° o
f tra
ps
2009 BEAR REPORT
9
ABNP (68 - 22%) and by volunteers (43 - 14%).A further 63 samples were collected outsidethe province (in the province of Bolzano, inthe Lombardia and Veneto regions and inAustria), contributing towards determiningthe total number of bears identified.
In 2009 genetic analysis was carried outby technicians assigned the task by APT,who made use of ISPRA's laboratories andthe support of this institute and the Univer-sity of Idaho (USA). The samples collected,mostly hairs and faeces, but also tissue froma captured bear, were sent to the laboratoryfor genetic analysis. The first phase of test-ing involved the extraction of DNA. In thecase of hairs the DNA is obtained from thecells found at the root, whereas in the caseof faeces it comes from cells sloughed offduring digestion and contained there. TheDNA isolated in this way was amplifiedusing the polymerase chain reaction tech-nique (PCR) to identify the individual usingmicrosatellite markers. Gender was identi-fied using markers linked to sexual chromo-somes and bear samples were distinguished
from those of other species of mammalsusing mitochondrial DNA. Analysis of kin-ship was then carried out to identify newcubs and the respective parents and to re-construct the pedigree of the population.The tests were carried out on the basis ofstandard protocols and the data was vali-dated using population genetics software.The organic samples collected can beanalysed in the standard manner (resultsat the end of the season) or in more urgentcases, using faster procedure (results withinone week from receipt of the sample).
Status of the population at theend of 2009
Processing of the data collected has pro-vided the following information regardingthe brown bear population present inTrentino and neighbouring regions in2009. Starting from 2008, newborn ani-mals and/or bears moving into the areahave been identified with progressive num-bering preceded by the letter “F” for fe-males and “M” for males. Information re-garding the identity of the parents is knownand available in a specific database.
Definitions • “detected bears”: bears whose pres-
ence has been ascertained geneticallyor by unequivocal observation duringthe last year;
• "undetected bears": bears for which noevidence has been found in the last yearalone;
• "missing bears”: bears certainly or mostlikely no longer present within the pop-ulation, as they have been found dead,killed, taken into captivity or for whichno genetic evidence has been found inthe last two years;
• “cubs”: bears aged between 0 and 1;• “young bears”: males between the age
of 1 and 5 and females between the ageof 1 and 3
• “adults”: males over the age of 5 and fe-males over the age of 3.
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2009 BEAR REPORT
Graph 2
Structure of the population at the end of 2009
Overall 25 animals were traced geneti-cally during 2009 (Graph 2); 13 males and12 females (M-F sex ratio 1.08:1 - n=25). Forthe first time since the conclusion of the rein-troduction project (2002), a case of an immi-grating bear was recorded in the easternmostpart of the province (the young male M5,which is probably of Slovenian origin and wasestimated to be between 3 and 5 years old).Considering that this year genetic monitoringwas carried out using the opportunisticmethod alone, it is not certain that almost allthe bears making up the population were ge-netically detected. As regards this, it should be
highlighted that in the period from 2004 to2008 a number varying from a minimum ofone to a maximum of six bears were detectedeach year by the systematic monitoring systemalone. Considering the possibility of the pres-ence of other individuals not detected in thelast year alone (5), and excluding those miss-ing for two or more years (10), the estimatedpopulation in 2009 ranges from 25 to 30bears. It should be underlined that the mini-mum number (25) represents the number ofbears certainly present, whereas the maximum(30) is exclusively an evaluation on the basis of probability.
ReproductionIn 2009 there were two recorded litters,
with a total of three cubs. DJ3 gave birth totwo cubs (two males, M7 and M8) and MJ2gave birth to one cub (a female, F5). For DJ3,a female aged 6, this was the second litter,both consisting of two cubs (2007 and 2009),as it was for MJ2, aged 7 (two cubs in 2006and one in 2009); the latter represents the firstrecorded case of a gap of three years betweenlitters (rather than two) for this population.
A third unidentified female accompanied
by a cub is considered likely to be present inthe southern Brenta area (Photo 1), followingnumerous sightings apparently excluding thepossibility of this being MJ2. Finally, the pres-ence of a fourth female with a cub is consid-ered possible in the northern Brenta area.However, to date there is no genetic or objec-tive evidence of both these last two cubs and itwill only be possible to confirm their presencein the future.
There have therefore been at least 18 lit-ters recorded in Trentino in the last eight
Age (
years
)
Bears
Males
Females
Estimated age
Sexual maturity of males
Sexual maturity of females
years, while no less than 38 cubs have beenborn (21 males, 17 females - Graph 3). Theaverage number of cubs per litter is 2.11 and
the M-F sex ratio is 1.24:1 (2002-2009, n=38).Reproductive bears. There were two sex-
ually mature males present in 2009: Gasper,
2009 BEAR REPORT
11
Photo 1 (A. Caliari)
Graph 3
N° of litters and cubs 2002 – 2009
Year
N° of litters and cubs
Litters
Male cubs
Female cubs
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2009 BEAR REPORT
aged 10 and MJ4, aged 5, whereas the pres-ence of Joze was not detected. It should how-ever be noted that there are a further fourmales aged four (without considering M5 as todate he has frequented a different area, wherethere are no females), who could theoreticallyalready reproduce, given the number of adultfemales present (nine) and the information inthe bibliography regarding the sexual maturityof young males.
Gasper has reproduced in all the last fouryears; no less than ten times with six differentfemales (with a total of 19 cubs, the samenumber fathered by Joze).
To date ten females are certain to have hadcubs: the five founders (Jurka, Daniza, Maja,Brenta and Kirka) and five bears born inTrentino (KJ1, KJ2, MJ2, DJ1 and DJ3).Daniza, MJ2 and KJ2 are the only females tohave mated with both males; Kirka, Jurka,Maja and Brenta have only mated with Joze;KJ1, DJ1 and DJ3 only with Gasper.
The average age of primiparous femalesin the period 2006-2009 (n=5) has been 3.4
to date; this is relatively young if comparedwith the data available in the literature andmay represent a further sign of the environ-mental suitability of the area frequented bythe bears.
The average gap between consecutive lit-ters for the same female, recorded in the pe-riod 2002-2009 (n=8 gaps, referring to 7 fe-males), was 2.12 years.
The average number of cubs per litter todate has been essentially proportional to theage of the mother, with less than 2 cubs for fe-males aged 3-4, around 2 for females aged 5-7 and 3 for females aged 8 or over (see Graph4). The correlation between the average num-ber of cubs per litter and the age of the motheris represented with a certain degree of ap-proximation by the red polynomial regressionline in the graph, with a coefficient of deter-mination of 0.84.
As already seen, there are nine reproduc-tive females currently present. Considering thattwo of them undoubtedly gave birth in 2009and a further two may have done so, there are
Graph 4
Average number of cubs/mother's age
Avera
ge n
o. of cubs
Age of mothers (in years)
N= number of births recorded
2009 BEAR REPORT
13
five-seven females theoretically able to repro-duce in 2010, as the two-four bears who hadlitters in 2009 would not normally be expectedto give birth again before 2011.
Bears absent in 2008 but detectedonce again in 2009
During 2009, two bears which were absentin 2008 were genetically detected: the maleM6 born to DJ3 and Gasper, probably in Janu-ary 2007, and the four-year-old female DG3.The case of M6 is particularly interesting, as inthe year of his birth, this bear was only ob-served, together with his mother and sister(see the 2007 Bear Report, page 6) and notidentified genetically, not even in the followingyear (2008). This is the first case in Trentino ofa bear being identified genetically after twoyears during which no genetic traces had beenfound.
Bears not detected in 2009 Five bears present in 2008 were unde-
tected for the first year (Joze, the brotherand sister M1 and F4, born in 2008, BJ1, a female born in 2005 and MJ5, a male bornin 2005). They have not yet been classified as"missing" bears (see Definitions on page 9), asthere are concrete possibilities that they arestill present.
Missing bearsIn 2009 no deaths or killings were
recorded. Genetic monitoring highlighted the absence
of all the bears (eight) already missing in2008, in addition to a further eight bearsfound dead (5 cases), killed (2 cases) or takeninto captivity (1 case).
Two further bears (the male DJ1G1 andthe female DJ3G1, both born in 2007) wereadded to those missing, as for the second con-secutive year in 2009 no genetic traces of themwere found.
Thus there were a total of eighteen miss-ing bears at the end of 2009.
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2009 BEAR REPORT
Graph 5 shows the relationship betweenmissing bears, bears undetected in 2009 alone
and bears present. 37% of the theoreticallypossible population was missing.
Graph 5
Bears present/missing
Graph 6 shows the balance betweenbirths-immigrating/missing bears year byyear. In 2009 there was a positive balance (+2).
This was the result of three births, 1 immi-grating bear, no recorded deaths and two newbears classified as missing.
Graph 6
Balance of population
N°
of
bears
Founders Born in Trentino Total
Missing
Not detected in 2009
Present
N°
of bears
Years
Born – immigrating
Missing
Balance
2009 BEAR REPORT
15
Considering the year of their disappear-ance, the missing bears (n=18) were made upof six adults, five young bears and seven cubs(see Graph 7).
Of the missing bears, ten have not been de-tected genetically for at least two years,seven have died and one was taken into cap-tivity (Graph 8).
Graph 7 Graph 8
Missing bears: causes(2009-2009 - n°=18)
Graph 9
Dead bears: age groups(2002-2009 - n°=7)
Graph 10
The dead bears belonged to the followingage groups: cubs (3), young bears (3) andadults (1), the proportion being shown inGraph 9.
The deaths (Table 1) were the result of nat-ural causes in three cases (MJ1, DG1 andBrenta) and due to human action in the otherfour cases (Graph 10).
Dead bears: causes(2002-2009 - n°=7)
JJ1 and JJ3 were shotdown abroad as a result ofmanagement decisions (re-spectively in Bavaria andSwitzerland), KJ2G1 died inan accident during a captureoperation and F1 was killedin a road accident.
Survival ratesThe data available makes
it possible to calculate the
Missing bears: age groups(2009-2009 – n°=18)
year natural causes
road accident
shot down duringmanagement
accident duringmanagement other total deaths
2002 02003 1 12004 02005 02006 2 1 32007 02008 1 1 1 32009 0
TOTAL 3 1 2 1 7
Table 1 – Mortality-causes
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2009 BEAR REPORT
Graph 11
Survival rates by age groups
survival rate for the three different agegroups (cubs, young bears and adults, as de-scribed in the Definitions), differentiated forthe two sexes (Graph 11).
The data refers to a period of 8 years(2002-2009), during which it was possibleto record the survival or death of 42 bears,with 136 passages from one year to another(136 bear-years). The "mortality" category,considered in the broader sense, also in-
cluded bears it had not been possible to de-tect for at least the previous two years (10cases) and bears taken into captivity (1case), confirming the criteria used for thedefinition of "missing" bears”, in addition tocases of certain death (7). Thus the figuresalso included the three bears destroyed/re-moved following management decisions(JJ1, JJ3 and Jurka).
Excluding the three bears destroyed or
removed and referring thus exclusively to“natural”, causes of death, one can note anincrease in the survival rate for young males(from 80% to 90%) and of adult females(from 88.1% to 90.5%).
The graph nevertheless highlights a sig-nificant difference between the two sexes inrelation to the survival rate of young bears,with females doing better. This is perhapsdue to the effectively greater vulnerabilityof males, which usually move over a widerarea, thus being exposed to greater risks,and to the fact they have a longer phase ofyouth before reaching reproductive age.
% s
urv
ival
Age groups
General
Females
Males
cubs young bears adults
2009 BEAR REPORT
17
Structure of the populationAt the end of 2009 the recorded population
was made up of eleven adults (nine femalesand two males), eleven young bears (two fe-males and nine males) and three cubs (onefemale and two males). Graph 12 shows the
trend for the 2002-2009 period. The largernumber of young males (78%) as compared tofemales (22%) can also be explained by thepreviously mentioned different duration ofyouth for the two sexes.
The trend for the small population thus ap-Graph 12
Age groups
pears to be essentially stable for the last year.The minimum certain number indeed in-creased by one, considering however the im-migrating bear frequenting eastern Trentino.
As the numbers are still very small, the fu-ture of the population remains uncertain andeven casual individual episodes (losses) couldcompromise development; at all events, itshould be recalled, as highlighted at the be-ginning of the chapter, that the results of ge-netic monitoring in 2009 (exclusively oppor-tunistic) are only partly comparable with the2008 results.
The percentage of bears in the three agegroups (adults, young bears and cubs) in the
N°
of
bears
Year
Adults
Young bears
Cubs
Total
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2009 BEAR REPORT
period 2002-2009 is shown inGraph 13. For the third year ina row there was substantialstability in terms of the num-ber of adults, around 40% ofthe population, whereas therecontinued to be fluctuation interms of the number of cubsand young bears, the latterbeing closely linked to the for-mer (and succeeding themchronologically).
It is also interesting to notethe evolution in the averageage of the bear population
over the eight years examined (Graph 14); in2009, for the third consecutive year, there wasa slight increase in average age (now 4.48).
Considering that the survival rates found todate have increased proportionally with theage of the bears, the increase in the average age
of the animals can, at this stage, be consideredto be a positive sign for the future of the smallpopulation.
Use of the territory22 out of the 25 bears traced in 2009 were
Graph 14
Average age of bears
Graph 13
% of bears in different age groups
Year
Adults
Young bears
Cubs
Avera
ge a
ge
Years
General
Females
Males
2009 BEAR REPORT
19
detected in the Trentino area. In 2009 thepresence of 5 animals was detected with cer-tainty outside the borders of the province (2of these also in Trentino), all young males agethree or four: DG2 and MJ2G1 in the provinceof Bolzano, JJ5 in Lombardia (and from Juneonce again in Trentino), KJ2G2 in Veneto andAustria, M5 in Veneto and Trentino.
The 493 overall signs of presence collectedwithin the province during 2009 (indicators ofpresence shown in the weekly reports, geneticmonitoring data, other) are shown in Figure 1.
The Brenta mountains and the neighbour-ing Paganella-Gazza mountains still representthe core area for the small population, whereasthe neighbouring areas on the left hand side of
the Val di Non, the left hand side and upperVal di Sole, the Presanella and Adamellomountains, the Ledro Alps and the Bondone-Stivo mountain chains, still saw relatively spo-radic frequentation. It is worth mentioning thereturn of the four-year-old male JJ5, born toJurka and Joze, who having spent around 25months in Lombardia (from May 2007 to June2009) was detected from June to October inthe area around Val Rendena and San Lorenzoin Banale.
The reports relating to eastern Trentinorefer almost entirely to the young male identi-fied genetically as “M5”, the second certaincase of immigration to Trentino from the east,following the appearance of the bear knownas “Friz”, detected in eastern Trentino and theBelluno area in the 1999-2001 period. Con-sidering the route taken by M5 to reach east-ern Trentino, documented genetically at leastin the final stages, it is believed that the bearwas born in Slovenia (no births have ever been
Figure 1Reports of the presence of bears in the province of Trento in 2009
20
2009 BEAR REPORT
detected in the Carinthiaarea in Austria or in FriuliVenezia Giulia) and that hissubsequent roaming ledhim to our province, pass-ing through the Bellunoarea.
Another bear which hadalso frequented westernTrentino during 2008(KJ2G2, coming from thepopulation originating withthe Life Ursus project)moved suddenly and deci-sively towards the north inthe spring, leaving the Asi-ago tableland, crossing firstthe Valsugana and then theprovince of Belluno, until heentered eastern Tyrol (Aus-tria). Here at the beginningof June (on the 4th to beprecise), the last certain ge-netic data relating to himwas collected, following anepisode in which he wasrecorded as having preyedon sheep.
In the spring of 2009 inthe province of Belluno, thehome-ranges of a bear orig-inating in the Balkans and a bear comingfrom the population in the central Alps werethus overlapping, albeit in a temporary man-ner and in relation to two roaming males (fig-ure 2). This is the first time that this has beendocumented following the separation of thetwo populations, which took place during the19th century.
As regards the eastern part of the province,it is worth recalling the finding of a bear'stracks in the Val dei Mocheni, on the slopes ofMount Gronlait on 2 May 2009 (photo 2).These belonged to an unidentified small-medium sized bear and are hence unlikely tobelong to the two bears mentioned above. Thesighting reported along the old provincial roadbetween Levico and Pergine in the same pe-riod probably refers to the same animal.
Figure 2Indicators of the presence of the bears M5 and KJ2G2 in the province of Belluno (source:Province of Belluno)
Photo 2Bear tracks in the Val dei Mocheni (V. Cristofori)
2009 BEAR REPORT
21
RoamingIt has been possible to document the
roaming of nine bears (young males) inthe period 2005-2009. Five of these werestill alive in 2009 (three outside theprovince and two returning after aroundtwo years spent outside the province), twowere killed following management deci-sions, one disappeared in 2005 in the areabordering on the Engadin (Switzerland)and the province of Bolzano, whereas thelast has not been detected in the last year(last certain reports of presence in 2008 inthe upper Val di Non on the border with theprovince of Bolzano).
It should be highlighted that the fate ofa further five males disappearing betweenthe ages of one and three and which couldhave begun roaming is unknown.
Area occupied by the populationConsidering also the longest journeys
made by young males during 2009, thepopulation of brown bears present in thecentral Alps, which is mainly centredaround western Trentino, currentlystretches over a theoretical area of around18,000 Km². The area occupied by the fe-males in a stable manner is decidedlysmaller (955 Km²) and situated within the
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2009 BEAR REPORT
Figure 3Area occupied by the bears in the central Alps in 20098 (in blue), highlighting the area within this occupied by females in a stablemanner (in pink)
province (see Figures 3 and 4). The areasoccupied have been estimated using the min-imum convex polygon method, applied to100% of the fixes available. This also led tothe inclusion of vast areas which are not suit-able and/or not actually used, especiallywithin the macro-area including the move-ments of young males.
The relative density of the area fre-quented by the bears in a more stable man-
ner (c. 20-22 bears over an area of 955²,namely 2.1 bears/100 Km²) is in line withthe data available in the bibliography in rela-tion to the alpine environment and the fore-casts of the feasibility study which precededthe Life Ursus project.
Other monitoring activities in2009
As will be explained in more detail in the
2009 BEAR REPORT
23
Figure 4Detail of the area occupied by females in 2009 (955 km2)
chapter relating to the management of emer-gencies, during 2009 the male bear M5 wascaptured and fitted with a radio collar, his be-haviour making more intense monitoring ofhis movements necessary. Radiotelemetricmonitoring was also used for the females DJ3
(for the whole year) and KJ1G1 (only up to21 April, when the collar came off at Diòn,above Lake Molveno).
The 2009 home-ranges of DJ3 and M5,calculated using the Minimum Convex Poly-gon method (MCP), stretched respectively
24
2009 BEAR REPORT
Figure 5Home-range of DJ3 in 2009 (MCP)
Figure 6Home-range of DJ3 in 2009 (LoCoh)
over 267 km² and 150km² (respectively 1,433and 288 GPS fixes in theperiods 1 January - 30November and 15 Octo-ber – 27 November) andare shown in figures 5and 7. In figures 6 and 8the same home-rangeswere calculated using theLoCoh method, to high-light the use of aggregateand non uniform spacesrecorded in both cases.
2009 BEAR REPORT
25
Figure 7Home-range of M5 in 2009 (MPC)
26
2009 BEAR REPORT
Figure 8Home-range of M5 nel 2009 (LoCoh)
2009 BEAR REPORT
27
The genetic monitoring conducted withoutinterruption since 2002 has made it possibleto follow most of the bears in a continuingmanner, confirming their presence over time
and, at least partially, the home-ranges used.As an example, below we give the home-ranges(MCP) of the male Gasper and the femaleDaniza from 2004 to 2009 (figures 9 and 10).
Figure 9Home-range of Gasper in the 2004-2009 period
Figure 10Home-range of Daniza in the 2004-2009 period
Monitoring of densThe “Bear Project - monitoring of dens”,
promoted and realised by the AdamelloBrenta Nature Park starting from 2005 withthe scope of understanding the characteristicsand locations of sites used by bears for hiber-nation, currently centres on analysis of the mi-croclimatic conditions inside dens actuallyused or potentially exploitable. In the convic-tion that temperature and humidity orient theecological winter choices of the species, start-ing from 2008 surveying of these parameterswas started up using special microclimaticsensors. In the summer of 2009, the 59 sen-sors installed in 2008 were collected: 27 fromdens actually used by bears (with the presenceof bedding material) and 32 in potential caves.In addition to this, activities in the field led to
Photo 3Bears' dens often have a very small entrance (A. Caliari)
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2009 BEAR REPORT
the positioning of a further 47 sensors insidefurther caves: 23 dens and 24 potential caves.The ultimate scope of this phase of the inves-tigation is to monitor all known hibernationsites by 2010, together with a significant num-ber of potential caves, in order to gain moreinformation about the climatic characteristicsof the caves in the months during which thebears hibernate. At the same time the search
for and monitoring of new hibernation sitesand potential caves continued. During ex-ploratory activities in 2009, new caves werediscovered and described and were added tothose discovered during exploration of the ter-ritory (1988-2009) over a period of 22 years,bringing the total number of known hiberna-tion sites in Trentino to 65 (and potentialcaves to 77).
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By now APT has gained more than thirtyyears’ experience as regards compensation andprevention of damage caused by brown bears.Indeed, since 1976 100% of all damage hasbeen reimbursed and it is possible to acquirepreventive works (mostly electric fencing), ei-ther with funding covering up to 90% of costsor through a system of gratuitous loans. Therelative regulations, dealt with in article 22 ofprovincial law no.24/91, have been revised sev-eral times and updated over the years, most re-cently with Provincial Government resolutionno. 2296 of 3 November 2006, also on the basisof the directives imposed by the Provincial Gov-ernment in the previously mentioned resolu-tion no. 1988 of 9 August 2002. The regula-tions regarding works for the prevention ofdamage were instead last updated with resolu-tion no. 232 of 5 May 2006 of the manager ofthe Forestry and Wildlife Department
Compensation for damage causedby bears
In 2009, 121 notifications of damage forwhich it was possible to establish that bearswere responsible were forwarded to the de-partment; 108 claims for compensation were
received, of which 102 have been processedand 6 are currently being examined, whereas13 notifications were not followed by the pres-entation of formal claims for compensation.100 claims were accepted, 1 partially acceptedand 1 refused (in both cases the preventionworks provided by APT had not been mountedby the claimer). In 80% of cases in which dam-age by wild predators was notified, inspectionswere carried out to check on the damage re-ported, followed up by specific reports ascer-taining the damage.
Overall, € 48,060.59 compensation fordamage caused by brown bears was paid.
In the western part of the province (the areahistorically frequented by the bears) there wasa fall of 37% in cases of damage caused bybears, falling from 139 in 2008 to 88 in 2009(this however is without considering the dam-age in eastern Trentino, which was a new fac-tor linked to the presence of the male M5 inthe area).
This fall in the number of cases of damageas compared to 2008 may be motivated by thesubstantial availability of wild ungulate car-cases in spring 2009, following a winter with alarge amount of snow, and by the fact that two
2. Damage compensation and prevention
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2009 BEAR REPORT
bears which caused a particularly large amountof damage during 2008 were subjected to dis-suasion activities last year when captured inorder to fit them with radio collars; finally thenumber of works for damage prevention in thearea is now significant and may have con-tributed partly to lowering the number of casesof damage reported.
In 77 cases, namely 63% of all cases of dam-age recorded, genetic monitoring made it pos-sible to determine the identity of the bears in-volved with certainty. The 77 cases of damagewere attributed to 19 different bears and theanimals causing most damage were M5, linkedto 20 cases of damage (26%), KJ2 with 9 casesof damage (12%), MJ4 with 6 cases (8%),
Daniza, JJ5 and M4 with 5 cases each (6%).Thus the six bears mentioned above were re-sponsible for 64% of the damage for which theauthor was identified, reinforcing the idea thatthere are a few bears which tend to cause dam-age habitually and many bears that rarely causedamage.
Graph 15 shows the trend in the damagecaused by brown bears and for which compen-sation has been paid over the years, whereasgraphs 16 and 17 show the chronological dis-tribution of this damage in 2009 and in the pe-riod 2002-2009.
The geographical distribution of recordeddamage caused by bears can be seen in Figure 11.
Graph 16
No. of incidents ascertained by type in 2009
Graph 15
Damage for which compensation was paid from 1990 to 2009(applications for December are currently being processed).
Euro
Years
Euro
N° of incidents
N°
of
incid
ents
N°
of in
cid
ents
Month
LIVESTOCKBEE-KEEPINGCROPSOTHER
2009 BEAR REPORT
31
Graph 17
No. of incidents ascertained by type in 2002-2009
Figure 11Geographical distribution of damage recorded in 2009 caused by bears
Prevention of damage by bearsIn 2009, 56 applications for funding werepresented for prevention works designed toprotect assets from damage by brown bears;
1 application was withdrawn by the appli-cant, 2 were rejected and 53 have beenprocessed. Overall 62 works were distributed(of which 32 designed to protect beekeeping
N°
of
incid
en
ts
Year
LIVESTOCKBEE-KEEPINGCROPSOTHER
32
2009 BEAR REPORT
and 30 to protect livestock), with an overallexpenditure of € 23,038; almost all of theseinvolved the stipulation of gratuitous loans.One specific case of prevention work de-signed to protect a farm inside the wildlifearea of Spormaggiore, due to the large sizeinvolved, led to expenditure of € 3,241. Itshould be highlighted that a further 13works were distributed in the Primiero area,considering the presence of the bear M5. Inthis case the works were all lent temporar-
ily by the provincial administration (ratherthan in the form of long-term gratuitousloan of use), considering that the presenceof a young roaming bear may be only tem-porary and occasional.Below it is possible to see the trend in thedistribution of prevention works over a num-ber of years (Graph 18) and the differenttypes of work in the period 2002-2009(Graph 19), with reference to livestock andbeekeeping.
Graph 18
Prevention works funded from 1989 to 2009
Graph 19
Prevention works funded from 2002 to 2009 by type
Euro
Year
Euro
Total n° of works
N°
of w
ork
s funded
N°
of w
ork
s funded
Year
Bee-keeping
Livestock
2009 BEAR REPORT
33
Figure 12Location of prevention works over 2009
The geographical distribution of the worksset up in 2008 can be seen in Figure 12.
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2009 BEAR REPORT
Support for farming activitiesOn 3 June 2009 and 18 June 2009, two
prefabricated structures were transported byhelicopter to the mountains in order to allowshepherds to remain close to two large flocksthroughout the mountain grazing season (atPrada and Valandro, respectively in the munic-
ipalities of Dorsino and Stenico); on 28 Sep-tember and 15 October respectively, these wereonce again taken back down to the valley. Onceagain in 2009 the number of animals lost inthese two large flocks (which included morethan 2,000 animals in total) due to the actionof bears was extremely limited (5 animals).
2009 BEAR REPORT
35
The law of 11 February 1992 no. 157 in-cludes the brown bear among the speciesgranted special protection (art. 2, paragraph 1).
The D.P.R. of 8 September 1997 no. 357(subsequently amended and supplementedby D.P.R. 120/03), implementing the92/43/EEC directive regarding the conser-vation of natural and semi-natural habitatsand wild flora and fauna, includes thisspecies in enclosure B (species of commu-nity interest, whose conservation requiresthe designation of special areas of conser-vation) and D (species of community inter-est which require strict protection), thusconsidering the brown bear as a priorityspecies.
The current national legal frameworktherefore forbids the disturbing, capture andkilling of large predators (D.P.R. 357/97, art. 8).
However, action may be taken to controlproblem bears in critical situations, in ac-cordance with the provisions of national,regional and provincial regulations (D.P.R.357/97, art. 11, paragraph 1; L. 157/92,
art. 19, paragraph 2; L. 394/91, art. 11,paragraph 4 and art. 22, paragraph 6).
Indeed, in order to avoid conflict withhuman activities and for reasons of publicsafety or for other compelling reasons of rel-evant public interest, the possibility of an ex-ception to the ban on the capturing orkilling of animals is provided for, subject tothe authorisation of the Ministry for the En-vironment, Land and Seas, having consultedISPRA, on condition that there are no otherpracticable solutions and that departurefrom the rules does not prejudice the satis-factory conservation of the populations ofthe protected species, (D.P.R. 357/97, art. 11paragraph 1).
In the province of Trento the manage-ment of emergencies represents a field of ac-tion in which it has only been necessary to op-erate in the last few years, given theconsiderable expansion in the bear populationand more specifically as a result of the pres-ence of a few individuals considered to be“problematic”.
3. Management of emergencies
In July 2003 the Ministry for the Environ-ment, Land and Seas authorised the Au-tonomous Province of Trento, according toD.P.R. 357/97 and subsequent amendments,to intervene as provided for in the special“protocol for action regarding problem bearsand intervention in critical situations”.
This protocol provides the technicalguidelines on the basis of which the Forestryand Wildlife Department, which representsthe provincial organisation of reference, hasidentified, trained and equipped the staff incharge of intervening in these situations. Op-erational management in Trentino is basedon the use of staff from the provincialforestry service (PFS), to which the Forestryand Wildlife Department makes recourse,through the setting up of a special unitwhich is on call.
This has been operational since 2004 andis active each year from March to November.
In 2009 it was made up of 9 coordinators,who have the support of an emergency teammade up of two people, also on call in turnwithin a group of specially chosen andtrained staff made up of 14 members. Whennecessary the team is joined by veterinarystaff from the provincial health services(given special training since 2008) or fromoutside the administration.
Activities of the emergencyteam
During 2009 there were no cases of criticalsituations, understood as situations in whichbears were involved in situations justifying theputting into effect of dissuasive measures orremoval. Indeed, in all 24 cases when theemergency team was called on, following thereporting of damage or sightings close to in-habited areas, their action was limited to pro-tecting and informing the population, without
any direct intervention as regards the animals(Graph 20).
In general, it is believed that the drastic fallin emergencies as compared to 2008 was at
least partly attributable to the reduction in theactivities of three individuals (KJ1G1, DJ3 andDaniza) who had created the biggest problemsduring the 2008 season. This would seem to
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2009 BEAR REPORT
Graph 20
Emergency team call-outs in the period 2002-2009
N°
of cases o
f in
terv
ention
Year
In brackets the number of cases of direct
intervention on bears
2009 BEAR REPORT
37
Figure 13Location of intervention by the emergency team
significantly influence the overall picture,given the limited number of bears present(even lower if reference is made to the fewproblem bears). In particular the two bears fit-ted with radio collars last year precisely inorder to allow better control, also in terms ofdissuasion (DJ3 and KJ1G1) have behaved ina more reserved manner, approaching inhab-ited areas considerably less and causing less damage (as it was possible to ascertain
through radiotelemetry). It is believed that asignificant contribution to this change was the"traumatic release" following their capture(with the firing of rubber bullets and pursuit bybear dogs). In this context it is possible to drawinitial positive conclusions as regards the actiontaken, although its efficacy also in the medium-long term will still need to be evaluated. Thelocation of intervention by the emergency bearteam in 2009 is shown in Figure 13.
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2009 BEAR REPORT
A separate case concerns the young maleM5, probably of Slovenian origin, which fre-quented the area around Primiero from themonth of June, causing a certain amount ofalarm due to the damage caused, mainly tosheep/goat farms and bee-keeping. However,his behaviour never required the interventionof the emergency bear team. Indeed thepredatory episodes, although frequent, tookplace in the mountains, almost always atnight and were directed above all at un-guarded flocks. This behaviour, althoughdamaging and socially not without problems,should not be considered an indication of aparticularly problematical bear, above allwhen this is facilitated by local socioeco-nomic conditions (the pasture for small flocksis mostly wild in the case of Primiero), as inthe case in question. The social alarm causedby numerous incidents involving damage andthus the need to better monitor the animal'smovements, along with the considerable sci-entific interest linked to the possibility ofstudying the behaviour of a roaming bearwhich did not belong to the population ofwestern Trentino, led to the decision to nev-ertheless proceed with capture of the bear in
order to fit him with a radio collar. In the fol-lowing paragraph the main phases in the cap-ture are briefly
CaptureTo deal with the management of emer-
gencies there is a "capture team” made up ofstaff specially trained for these activities, sup-ported by veterinary staff.
In 2009 it was considered opportune tocapture only one bear, the young male M5,displaying the problematical behaviour de-scribed in the previous paragraph, in order tofit him with a radio-collar.
On the evening of 14 October in Primiero(Val Canali), inside the Paneveggio-Pale diSan Martino Nature Park, the bear, a maleweighing 175 kg and estimated to be between3 and 5 years old, was captured using anAldrich snare, positioned close to the carcassof a sheep previously preyed on by the samebear (Photo 4) and fitted with a radio-collaroperating using the VHF and satellite system.Rapid genetic tests established that the beardid not belong to the population present inwestern Trentino.
The capture was also intended as an op-
Photo 4
2009 BEAR REPORT
39
portunity to carry out dissuasive action to dis-courage the bear. His liberation (Photo 5) thustook place, as tried out in the past with otherbears, at the place of capture, which in this
case was pasture used by the sheep preyed on,the bear being chased by Laika dogs used bythe Forestry and Wildlife Department and fir-ing a number of rubber bullets.
Photo 5
Table 2 – Captures carried out in the period 2006-2009
The capture procedure took a total of sixdays in order to prepare the sites and fourdays for the capture. The baiting and equip-ping of the two sites with snares and tube
traps involved around eleven days’ work over-all, carried out by the forestry staff in the area.
The following table summarises the cap-tures carried out in the period 2006-2009.
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2009 BEAR REPORT
Table 3 – Road accidents reported in the period 2002-2009
Investimenti stradali During 2009 one road accident involv-
ing a bear was reported within the province.On the evening of 9 December a bear washit by a car on the northern outskirts ofTione. The checks carried out on site madeit possible to ascertain that the animal im-mediately moved away from the place of theaccident. The collision actually involved twovehicles, although not in a serious manner,travelling in opposite directions. During theinspection of the site fresh excrement wasfound and this was subjected to genetic test-
ing which may make it possible to identifythe bear.
Another accident occurred in theprovince of Bolzano on 9 April, near PassoPalade, not far from the border with theprovince of Trento; the bear does not appearto have suffered any major trauma andmoved away from the place of impact im-mediately, as it was possible to ascertain byfollowing its tracks in the snow (data fromthe Autonomous Province of Bolzano).
Table 3 summarises the cases of road ac-cidents reported to date.
Waste management At the beginning of 2009, the first 100
bear-proof waste bins were distributed to theareas which had been shown to be most vul-nerable to date (Paganella tableland, upperValle dei Laghi – see Figure 14), in a jointinitiative with the Waste Management Pol-icy Department and with the collaborationwith A.S.I.A.
Different types of bins were tried out,
eventually choosing to modify the closingmechanism of existing organic waste bins(Photo 6) to make them inaccessible to bears,with a handle that requires turning in orderto open the lid.
In the latter months of the year produc-tion of a further 100 bins was started up,partly for distribution in the province andpartly to be held in reserve so that they canused when required in specific locations.
* the identity of the bear was ascertained through genetic testing** an immediate inspection took place with dogs or following tracks in the snow, suggesting that the animal hit moved off autonomously
2009 BEAR REPORT
41
Training of bear dogsDuring 2009 the training of the two
Russo-European Laika bear dogs and theirhandlers continued, based on a special train-ing programme making reference to the dataavailable and to the experience of trainersand colleagues operating in similar situationsabroad, particularly in France (see the chap-ter on training on page 47). During thespring training course the “Criteria for useof dissuasion” using bear dogs were alsodrawn up, representing the reference docu-ment for coordinators and handlers in allpossible operating situations (woundedbears, road accidents, overconfident bears,dissuasion during post-capture release). Themost important occasions on which the dogswere used during 2009 were the release ofM5 in Primiero (Photo 7) and the checks fol-lowing the accident taking place near Tione.
Figure 14Area involved in the first tests of bear-proof bins
Photo 6Bear-proof bin
Photo 7The bear M5 chased by the bear dogs during his release followingcapture
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2009 BEAR REPORT
Communication is considered by theprovincial administration to be an aspect offundamental importance in the manage-ment of bears and represents one of the sixaction programmes referred to in the previ-ously mentioned resolution of the provincialgovernment no. 1988 of 9 August 2002.
Considering this, in 2003 a specific in-formation campaign was started up called
“Getting to know the brown bear”, whichhas seen numerous initiatives and continuesto do so. This report, which among otherthings also has an informative role, is one ofthe initiatives designed to allow the widerpublic to better understand this animal, withthe conviction that only knowledge can leadto harmonious coexistence with the bear inthe medium to long-term.
With regard to communication activities,the Forestry and Wildlife Department has al-ways been supported by the AdamelloBrenta Nature Park, which has been activein this field for many years in its own area
and by the Trento Natural Science Museum,which has offered educational activities re-lated to bears for schools from the very be-ginning.
The main activities undertaken during2009 are summarised below.
Evening sessions and meetingsTable 4 lists the seven meetings/evenings
organised within the context of the infor-mation campaign “Getting to know thebrown bear” (some of which promoted bythe Adamello Brenta Nature Park if relevantto its area, with around 500 participantsoverall). Several of the meetings were specif-ically organised in response to local situa-tions and requests for information linked tocertain bears causing concern.
A further 5 evenings were held within thecontext of the Adamello Brenta Nature Park2009 summer programme. A detailed list isgiven in Table 5.
4. Communication
Table 4 Table 5
* In collaborazione con il PNAB
Informative material producedand distributed
The second “Bear Report” (2008 Bear re-port) was issued, an instrument represent-ing both a valid means of communicationand knowledge for the public and a usefulworking tool for the department.
A new updated version of the brochure“In the land of the bear” (6,000 copies) was
produced and 1,000 copies were distrib-uted. Furthermore 500 new posters entitled"The bear: part of our history" were printed.The brochure entitled "Experiencing theAdamello Brenta Nature Park: Safeguardingthe Bear” was updated and 20,000 copiesprinted. The park also saw to the updatingof the test accompanying the T-shirt "Wel-come back, bear".
2009 BEAR REPORT
43
Communication project forschools: “Getting to know thebrown bear”, in collaborationwith Trento Natural Science Mu-seum
For the sixth consecutive year the TNSMcontinued to offer a programme of tried andtested educational activities on the subject ofbrown bears in Trentino. The activities are keptup-to-date thanks to coordination with theWildlife Office of APT, which also guaranteesconsultancy on the content. The 2009-2010edition of the guide to the educational activi-ties of the museum also published all the edu-cational initiatives realised in collaborationwith the Forestry and Wildlife Department, ashas taken place since the 2003-2004 edition.Once again in 2009 the guide was subdividedinto three volumes, dedicated to three differ-ent stages in schooling (nursery schools, pri-mary and middle schools, secondary schoolsand “over 14s”). There were five types of ac-tivity offered:• “Hands-on museum” a 90' guided visit to
the mammals room, with particular em-phasis on the bear and other large alpinecarnivores, with the opportunity to see andtouch particular types of materials (skulls,casts of footprints, hairs etc.);
• “Laboratory”, 3 hours of interactive activi-ties, partly providing information on thebear and other large carnivores (power-point, various materials) and partly practi-cal (simulation of radio-tracking, realisationof plaster cast of footprints, recognition ofdifferent mammal hairs through the use ofeducational worksheets);
• “Travelling Museum”, an activity dividedinto three sessions, two in the classroomand one (the middle session) involving atrip to an area frequented by bears to lookfor any signs of their presence;
• “From the Museum to nature”, a guided triplasting a morning to an area frequented bybears to look for any signs of their pres-ence;
• “Meeting the expert”, a seminar taking amore detailed look at the subject, in the
form of a 2.5 hour session reserved for sec-ondary school pupils.
• In the context of the existing agreement be-tween the Forestry and Wildlife Departmentand the Trento Natural Science Museum,the museum organised the following edu-cational activities in the period 1 January2009 - 31 December 2009:
• Interactive laboratories on the subject "Thebear and other large carnivores in the Alps,with 198 pupils participating;
• "travelling museum", with sessions in theclassroom and excursions in the provincefor 90 participants;
• excursions "On the trail of the brown bear”,with 57 participants.
A course for students aimed at illustratingbear management methods in the province ofTrento was held on 8 May 2009 at the IstitutoAgrario in S. Michele all’Adige.
In the context of activities for schools, theAdamello Brenta Nature Park realised the ini-tiatives listed below (the data on participationwill be available in the first few months of2010):• The Bear Project, encouraging the return of
the bear to the Alps and peaceful coexis-tence with man (educational project: 2classroom sessions and 1 trip to the BearVisitors Centre in Spormaggiore);
• Large carnivores project (educational proj-ect: 2 classroom sessions and 1 trip);
• A day with the bears (1 day visit to the BearVisitors Centre in Spormaggiore).
Furthermore, educational worksheets onthe brown bear were prepared to support theenvironmental education projects undertakenwith classes in primary middle schools.
Web sitesThe site www.orso.provincia.tn.it, also
available in English, was further updated andall sections completed; monthly updating wasalso guaranteed. It is currently organised into210 pages and received 23,626 visitors in2009. The site also contains this report and thedocuments mentioned it.
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2009 BEAR REPORT
2009 saw continuing implementation andupdating of the content in the section of the Adamello Brenta Nature Park web site(www.pnab.it) dedicated to the bear (20pages overall).
Questions and motionsThe following questions were presented re-
garding bears:
• no. 648 of 23 July 2009, Reintroduction of the bear to Trentino andrelated costs;
• no. 733 of 3 September 2009,The Life Ursus project and damage causedas a result of the bears present in Trentino;
• no. 818 of 23 September 2009, Presence of the bear and related damagein the Primiero area;
• no. 888 of 14 October 2009,Presence of the bear in Val Canali and re-lated effects on the area.
Press releases6 press releases regarding the bear were is-
sued:
• No. 55 of 14 Jan. 2009, The results of genetic monitoring in 2008:THERE ARE 24 BEARS IN TRENTINO;
• No. 215 of 3 Feb. 2009,Presentation of the 2008 report tomorrowevening at the Natural Science Museum:THE BEAR IN TRENTINO, THE CURRENTSITUATION;
• No. 229 of 5 Feb. 2009, 140 cases of damage reported, with com-pensation for 62 thousand euro. 77 preven-tion works funded: A YEAR WITH 24 BEARS:PRESENTATION OF THE 2008 REPORT;
• No. 297 of 12 Feb. 2009, THE 2008 BEAR REPORT IN THE NEW“PAT-INFORMA”;
• No. 2323 of 16 July 2009, Tomorrow at 20.30 at the district centre inSala Negrelli: INFORMATION EVENINGON THE BEAR AT FIERA DI PRIMIERO;
• No. 3374 of 15 Oct. 2009, The action of the provincial Forestry andWildlife Department reaches a successfulconclusion over two nights: PRIMIEROBEAR CAPTURED AND FITTED WITHRADIO-COLLAR.
Other communication initiativesInformative articles were prepared by the
Forestry and Wildlife Department of APTand published in the following magazines:• “A la conquete des Alpes” su “Salaman-
dre” (CH), no. 194 of October and No-vember 2009;
• Article in “Lo scarpone”, the magazine ofClub Alpino Italiano – May-June 2009;
• “Key results of 2008 genetic monitoringof bears in Trentino, Italy” in “Interna-tional Bear Association - news”, vol. 18no. 1 – February 2009.
The ABNP also produced the followingarticles on the subject of bears (publishedin periodicals, magazines web sites etc.):• “The brown bear – 2009 animal of the
year”, at the site www.pronatura.ch,January 2009;
• Detective della natura”, in “La rivista deTrekking”, January 2009;
• L’orso”, in the magazine “Focus”, Febru-ary 2009;
• “L’orso”, at the site www.dolomitidi-brentain.it, 10 March 2009;
• “Le fantome d’Engadine”, at the sitewww.lqui.ch, 10 June 2009;
• “Au Trentin, le royaume de l’ours”, in “LeQuotidien Jurassien”, 12 June 2009;
• “Fauna delle Dolomiti” - Casa EditricePanorama, June 2009;
• “L’orso bruno sulle Alpi. Status eprospettive future”, in the online maga-zine of www.agraria.org, no. 84 - July2009;
• “26 maggio 1999 - 10 anni fa Masun”, in“Adamello Brenta Parco”, Anno XIII, no.2 - July 2009;
• “Bears on the Alps”, in the Swiss news-paper “Tages-Anzeiger, 11 August 2009;
• “Il Parco Adamello Brenta ringrazia il ri-
2009 BEAR REPORT
45
torno dell’orso”, in “Il Sole 24 Ore”, 26September 2009;
• “A la conquete des Alpes”, in “Salaman-dre”, October-November 2009;
• “The brown bear in Italy”, at the sitewww.medveke.sk, 24 November 2009;
• “Le tane degli orsi: uno studio pluriennaledel Parco”, in “Adamello Brenta Parco”,Anno XIII, no. 3 - December 2009.
Following direct requests from TV andradio channels, the ABNP also participated (orprovided information for the realisation) of theradio and television programmes listed below:• filming and interview regarding bears in
Trentino for the Swiss TV station “Televi-sun Rumantscha”, 21 April 2009;
• interview on the Life Ursus project for theprogramme “Girovagando in Trentino”, 15May 2009. As part of the exhibition “The alpine hunter
– from predator to manager”, realised by the
Luserna Documentation Centre and open tothe public from 13 April 2009 al 6 January2010, the Forestry and Wildlife Departmentcollaborated by loaning two stuffed brownbears, on display with an information panel onthe subject prepared by the Forestry andWildlife Department. The two bears, a youngfemale and a cub, were among bears whichhad died in Trentino and were prepared by ex-perts, adopting an ethological approach.
• During 2009, production of the bulletin/newsletter “I Fogli dell’Orso” continued(this can be requested free of charge atthe address [email protected]), with thedrawing up of 34 articles and statements.In addition to issue no. 19, sent at the be-ginning of the year, nos. 19 (an extraor-dinary edition coming out in May) and 20(October) were also published. There arecurrently 1,145 registered members.
• In 2009, the Bear entre in Spormaggiore,
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2009 BEAR REPORT
a museum entirely dedicated to the his-tory and biology of the bear, was visitedby a total of 10,425 people (period con-sidered: 12.06-27.09.2009).
• In the context of the Adamello Brenta Na-ture Park 2009 summer programme, the"Bear trails" initiative was realised in twodifferent valleys in the park (Val Brentaand Val di Tovel, with 6 meetings involv-ing 117 participants and 13 meetings in-volving 212 participants respectively).
• Bear live: a single act play on the brownbear in the Alps. Theatrical monologuefrom a text by Roberta Bonazza, directedby R. Bonazza and Alessio Cogoj. ActorA. Cogoj. Staged in Spormaggiore on 24October 2009, during the Open Parkevent.
• The stand “A park for the bear” was usedin 2009 on the following occasions: - Tro-phy Exhibition 2009, Pinzolo, 26-26 April2009;- Visitors Centre, Orobie Valtellinesi Park,
Alberedo per San Marco (SO), 1-31 Au-gust 2009;
- XIX regional fair of mountain productsfrom Lombardia, 16-18 October 2009.
2009 BEAR REPORT
47
Correct management of the bear popula-tion is inextricably linked to the availabilityof specially trained staff, prepared to dealwith any problems of a technical and non-technical nature that may arise during activ-ities in the field, above all as regards themanagement of emergencies, dealing withdamage and, to a lesser extent, monitoring.Training represents one of the six pro-grammes of action referred to in the previ-ously mentioned resolution of the provincialgovernment no. 1988 of 9 August 2002.
APT’s staff are given specific trainingwhich is constantly updated. The traininginitiatives realised during 2008 are illus-trated below.
Main training initiatives for APTstaff• Refresher training session for the staff of the
province, the Adamello Brenta Nature Parkand the Associazione Cacciatori Trentini onthe status of the population at the end of2008 and organisation of activities in 2009,held in Casteler on 13 January 2009.
• Meeting to coordinate, update and trainthose working in the field of livestockfarming (Mattarello, 24 April 2009),during which it was also possible to ob-tain technical information about electricfencing, provided by experts in the sec-tor (Photo 8). The meeting was alsoopened up to supervisory staff fromVeneto.
5. Training
Photo 8
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2009 BEAR REPORT
• Training session for staff from Primiero,Casteler, 8 July 2009. A theoretical/prac-tical training day was held on the crite-ria to be exercised for the dissuasion ofproblem bears, linked to the presence ofthe bear known as “M5”.
• Exchange of experience on the trainingof bear dogs (Casteler, 13-16 October2009). The Trentino team is the onlydog unit specialising in bears in thewhole of the alpine area. There is an-other in the French Pyrenees, which hassuccessfully used this type of dog for sev-eral years. Hence an important exchangeof experience between French andTrentino colleagues has developed,through the scheduling of reciprocal vis-its. Four dogs and their handlers visited the
Forestry and Wildlife Department last Octo-ber. After their arrival, there was an initialwelcoming session, followed by four days ofintense activities in the area; the Trentino andFrench handlers and their dogs followed nu-merous trails in the most beautiful and spec-tacular areas of the Brenta mountains, the
heart of the area most frequented by bears.They looked for traces, developed friendshipsand exchanged experience on the characterand training of dogs, methods for their useand the results obtained. The visit ended witha round table at the Casteler centre, with theexchanging of images, movie clips and data onthe management of bears (and dogs) in theirrespective countries of origin.• Meeting in Bergamo, 23 March 2009. In the
context of collaborative initiatives providedfor by the “Plan of Action for the Conserva-tion of the Brown Bear in the Central-East-ern Alps (PACOBACE)”, a training day di-rected at supervisory personnel from theProvince of Bergamo, Sondrio and the Oro-bie Valtellinesi Park was held in Bergamoon 21 March 2009, entitled: “The organisation of emergencyteams and methods of dissuasion for prob-lem bears”.
• Meeting with staff from Abruzzo dealingwith the capture of bears, during the work-shop “Techniques for the capture of cham-ois; comparing experiences” (Pescasseroli,14-16 July 2009).
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Links with neighbouring regions and coun-tries take on a strategic importance in themanagement of such a highly mobile speciesas the brown bear. Bearing this in mind, evenbefore the start of the Life Ursus project, offi-cial contact was made with neighbouring re-gions, it being clear that the area of westernTrentino was not sufficiently large to house aviable population of bears. Over time these re-lationships have been strengthened and con-solidated, with regard both to the territorialexpansion of the small population, which haseffectively concerned neighbouring regionsand states and the effective policy coordina-tion implemented by the Provincial Govern-ment with the previously mentioned resolu-tion no. 1988 of 9 August 2002.
Following this, links transcending provin-cial boundaries were institutionalised andwith the input of the Ministry for the Envi-ronment, Land and Seas and the coordinationof APT the Action Plan for the Conservationof the Brown Bear in the Central-EasternAlps (PACOBACE)” was approved by all thepartners (lastly by Lombardia and Veneto). Inaddition to the Autonomous Province ofTrento, this has also involved the AutonomousProvince of Bolzano and the Lombardia,Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia Regions.
Activities designed to guarantee transna-tional coordination also continued, in thelight of the numerous cases of young bearsmoving into neighbouring areas over the lastfew years.
In the context of international collabora-tion, the following meetings with colleaguesfrom other regions or nations took place:
• Bolzano, 6 April 2009. Joint meetingwith the Autonomous Province ofBolzano and the Tyrol to prepare anagreement for cooperation regardingbear management. This agreement thenbecame part of a wider agreement be-tween the Autonomous Province ofTrento, the Autonomous Province ofBolzano and Land Tyrol in the context ofthe transfrontier collaboration initiativeknown as “Euregio”.
• Zernez (Switzerland), 4 - 5 June 2009.Workshop on management of the brownbear in the Alps organised within thecontext of the Arge Alp "Large Carnivo-rous Mammals in the Alps Project", at-tended by representatives of the relevantdepartments for the management oflarge carnivores in the Arge Alp memberregions. The next meeting, in 2010, isscheduled to take place in Trentino.
• Stubaital (Austria), 5 June 2009. In-formative meeting on the bear, organisedby Land Tyrol and directed at local rep-resentatives, at which the Forestry andWildlife Department gave a presentation.
On 12 March 2009 the Adamello BrentaNature Park was nominated to represent AL-PARC (Alpine Network of ProtectedAreas) at the “Large Predators” Alpine Con-vention. This platform was set up during the10th Conference of the Alps, which tookplace in Evian (France), and has the scopeof encouraging international collaboration,the exchange of experience and knowledgeand standardisation of management meth-ods and plans.
6. National and international links
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Research and experimentationDuring winter 2008-09 two new types of
bear traps (a tube trap and a M-15 footsnare trap) reflecting models used inCanada to capture bears were prepared bythe Wildlife Office. In order to test their ef-ficacy, in view of possible future use, thesewere set up in the area (Val Algone andNembia - S. Lorenzo in Banale) from 17 Mayto 16 June and furnished with bait, mainlyby the staff involved in the capture team.
Checks on frequentation of the capture sitesby bears were carried out using digital phototraps and by positioning barbed wire for thecollection of samples of hair to be used forgenetic testing. The tube trap was visited bythree different bears in the Val Algone(Gasper, KJ1 and DG3) and by one at Nem-bia (JJ5); all the animals were pho-tographed and identified genetically. Thebears entered the trap completely and insome cases repeatedly (Photo 9).
7. Research and conferences
Photo 9
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Photo 10
tially suitable for the capture of bears, sim-plifying capture procedures and reducing thecommitment in terms of personnel.
Survey into man-bear encountersOn the basis of the 256 encounters be-
tween bears and men analysed, the surveycarried out since 2007 by the Wildlife Officeof ABNP (see also the 2008 Bear Report) hasshown:• that the predominant reaction of the bear
(in around 60% of encounters) was tomove away from the person sighted;
• that no cases of attacks have been re-ported;
• that only one case has been reported of abear reacting actively, albeit not in a men-
acing way and thus not correspondingwith a "false attack" in the genuine senseof the term;
• in a third of encounters (36% of the over-all samples) the bear did not move away:this behaviour would seem to be linkedboth to the presence of cubs (a resourceto be supervised and protected by fe-males) and to the bear's failure to per-ceive the presence of humans. At allevents, the subsequent reaction of thebears to the encounter with man (afterhaving remained at the site) is mainly (in78% of cases) to move off;
• females with cubs tended to manifest lessprecipitous behaviour and greater vigi-lance as compared to bears without cubs.
The M-15 foot snare trap was positionedin the Val Algone and was frequented by twobears (Daniza and KJ1), who consumed thebait inside the tube, gaining access in anerect position and using their front paws,
with the method provided for to ensure thecorrect functioning of the trap (Photo 10).Once again both bears were photographedand identified genetically. The experimentsshowed clearly that both traps were poten-
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• the bear's reactions to the encounter withman would not seem to be influenced bythe distance from the observer, at leastuntil a "security distance" is reached: atgreater distances (over 100 metres), thebears did not consider the encounter asan immediate danger, reacting with rela-tive tranquillity;
• the behaviour of the bear at the time ofthe encounter would not seem to be con-ditioned by the greater or lesser degree ofsilence adopted by the observer beforethe encounter;
• in the presence of dogs, the bears tendedto act less precipitously, both due to agreater perception of the visitors (whowere thus "avoided" in advance) and dueto the inadequacy of the reaction to fleein a similar situation;
• in the dark the bears were more likely toreact to encounters with man by fleeingas compared to encounters during theday or at dusk.
ConferencesThe Department participated at the fol-
lowing conferences, using its own funds:• “Second international workshop on ge-
netic research into brown bear (Ursus arc-
tos) populations in the Alps, Dinaric Alps,Pindus and Carpathian mountains” - Za-greb (Croatia), 9-10 May 2009;
• International conference “Integratingpopulation genetics and the biology ofconservation” - Trondheim (Norway),23- 26 May 2009;
• Workshop “Biology and the Conservationof Large Carnivores” – Casentino ForestsNational Park – S. Sofia (FO), 30 Sep-tember-1 October 2009.
The ABNP participated at the followingconferences, using its own funds:• Conference on bears, wolves and lynxes
in the Alps and Carpathian mountains -Mittersill (Austria), 13 March 2009 -Presentations: “The Adamello Brenta Na-ture Park's Bear Project” and “The brownbear in the Alps: situation and futureprospects”;
• Alpine-Carpathian International Collo-quium “Large carnivores: management,research and public relation strategies forprotected areas” - Nizke Tatry (Slovenia)- Presentation: “Bears, wolves and lynxesin the Alps: current situation and futureperspectives. The role of the ALPARClarge carnivores working group”.
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The young male Eurasian lynx weighing24 kg and known as B132, entering the ter-ritory of Trentino on 23 March 2008 (see the
2008 Bear Report), remained essentiallywithin the home-range used in the previousyear (Figure 1).
Figure 1Home-range of lynx B132 in the Brenta mountains from 1/1/2009 to 9/10/2009, calculatedusing the Minimum Convex Polygon method (MCP)
Appendix 1 – The lynx in Trentino in 2009
After this date it wasnevertheless possible toconfirm the presence of theanimal, both thanks totracks left in the snow(Photo 1) and throughphotos taken in the field(10 July 2009 at Casinati inVal delle Seghe, Molveno -Photo 2 and 14 November2009 above Lake Molveno –Photo 3).
Currently, (December2009) B132 is still in thewoods in the easternBrenta mountains, around200 km away from its placeof birth.
The fact that the radio-collar ceased to functionlast October makes it moredifficult to follow the ani-mal's movements: for thisreason the Forestry andWildlife Department in-tends to recapture the lynxto fit it with a new collar tomake monitoring possible.
With this scope activi-ties directed at recapturingthe animal in questionwere started up in Augustby the Forestry and WildlifeDepartment, using two boxtraps realised by them, sim-
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2009 BEAR REPORT
Figure 2Monitoring techniques for lynx B132 in 2009
In the early months of the year monitor-ing continued thanks to the satellite fixes sup-plied by colleagues in the Swiss National Park.On 10 April 2009 the battery of the GPS trans-mitter ran out and monitoring was therefore
continued by the staff of the Forestry andWildlife Department using traditional ra-diotelemetry (VHF) (Figure 2). This secondform of transmission was also exhausted on 9October 2009.
Photo 1
Photo 2
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ilar to the one illustrated inPhoto 3.
In December a thirdtrap, similar to the others,was positioned in the field,in order to increase thechances of capture duringthe winter months, consid-ered to be most suitable forthe purpose.
The additional phase ofintensive monitoring whichwould be made possible bycapture would provide ex-tremely interesting infor-mation about recolonisa-tion of new areas by thespecies (a phenomenonwhich has been only par-tially investigated), also inrelation to the possiblepresence of other animals.
As regards this, the ideathat there may be a secondlynx in the area frequentedby B132 was borne out byfurther elements during2009.
In particular, in the lateafternoon of 25 July, therewas a presumed sighting ofa lynx by a hunter in Valdelle Seghe (Molveno),precisely at a time whenthe male B132 was locatedby the staff of the Forestryand Wildlife Department inVal di Tovel, through radiotracking.
On 27 November a parkwarden of the AdamelloBrenta Nature Park insteadfollowed lynx tracks in thesnow in Val di Tovel, forsome considerable distance(Photo 4). These wouldseem to belong to two decid-edly different animals (frontpaws with a diameter re-
Photo 3
Photo 4 (E. Dorigatti)
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spectively of 7-8 and 10-11 cm – survey datain Figure 3), thus providing further supportfor the theory that a second lynx is present.
Finally, as highlighted in Figure 4, onceagain in 2009 the home-range of the lynx isincluded within the area occupied by thebrown bear population in a stable manner.
Figure 3 (M. Zeni)
Figure 4Comparison of the home-range of lynx B132 (in blue) and the core-area of the brown bear population in 2009
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During the summer,hunters from Varena in-formed the Cavalese districtforestry office of the Au-tonomous Province ofTrento that they had foundthe remains of a canine notfar from the Oclini pass inVal di Fiemme in Autumn2008. This was subse-quently shown to be a wolf(Canis lupus) (Photo 2) andis the first confirmation ofthe presence of the speciesin the province of Trento,more than 150 years afterits disappearance.
Appendix 2 – First signs of the presence of wolves in Trentino after morethan 150 years
Photo 1Wolf photographed in controlled conditions (wildlife area)
Photo 2The site where the remains of the wolf were found.
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Figure 1
The finding would appear to confirm anumber of reports made in the area in the lastfew years which had not previously been cor-
roborated, such as possible sightings (Autumn2006 and January 2007) and probable prey-ing on goats (summer 2007) - Figure 1.
The death of the wolf, dueto unknown causes, is thoughtto date back to Autumn 2007.Although coming to an unfor-tunate end, the animal re-minds us that wolves are notfar away (in a biogeographicalsense) and their return to theTrentino mountains is only aquestion of time. The confir-mation that the remains actu-ally belonged to a wolf, as thebones recovered appeared tosuggest (Photo 3), only camefollowing genetic testing car-ried out by ISPRA.
Photo 3The wolf skull found
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The report from the genetics laboratoryconfirmed that the wolf was not of Italian ori-gin (not Canis lupus italicus) and that the«sequence of the mitochondrial DNA controlregion coincided with the W3 haplotype pres-ent in the Croatian population». It is there-fore considered likely that the animal origi-nated in the Balkans, although at the momentthere is no certainty as regards this, nor is it
certain that it will be possible to ascertain thisin the future.
At all events, principal components analy-sis (PCA) realised by ISPRA (Graph 1) showsclear attribution of sample TN2C (relative tothe animal in question) to a group of wolvescoming from Croatia, therefore excluding thepossibility that it was of Italian origin or thatit could be attributed to a dog.
Graph 1Principal components analysis carried out using GenAlex v6.1software The two axes (coord. 1 and coord. 2) represent 64.56% of the genetic variability observed between individuals. The blue points repre-sent wolves in the Italian population, the red points wolves from the Croatian population, the yellow triangles domestic dogs and thegreen square is the TN2C sample, whose genotype was genetically similar to the Croatian samples (source: ISPRA).
Graph of the main coordinates
Thus the wolf, capable of travelling evenhundreds of kilometres, is likely to have arrivedin Trentino from a population present in Slove-nia (around 50 wolves, linked to a Croatian pop-ulation of 200-250). Although this cannot beexcluded altogether, it is very unlikely that theanimal originated in captivity.
2009: the year of contact betweenthe Italian and Balkan wolf popula-tions
As is known, recolonisation of the alpinearea by the wolf began from the west, in the1990s, starting from the northern Apen-nines, where it probably never disappearedaltogether. Its natural expansion into theAlps (where the wolf has always been pres-ent as an autochthonous species belonging
to the alpine ecosystem) led to establish-ment of a population in the area straddlingthe Piemonte region and France, currentlynumbering around 150 animals. Somewolves have also reached the Valle d’Aosta,Lombardia, Switzerland and, most recently,Austria and it can be surmised that this ex-pansion towards the east will continue. Theeastern part of the alpine area has seen theappearance of the first animals from popu-lations found in Croatia and southern Slove-nia, as well as in Poland (Carpathian moun-tains).
Recent data from Austria (genetic analy-sis of samples collected at places where an-imals had been preyed on or wolves sighted)highlighted contact between the twometapopulations of Italian and Balkan
Italian wolvesDomestic dogs
TN
Croatian wolves
Coord. 1
Coo
rd. 2
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2009 BEAR REPORT
wolves for the first time. In particular, sur-veys carried out in Austria (A. Kranz, pers.com.) show how during 2009 it was possi-ble to ascertain the overlapping of the ter-ritories of "Italian" and "Balkan" wolves onat least two occasions.
In the first case in August 2009, a wolf ofItalian origin was reported in the area ofSpittal, on the River Drava in Carinthia; an-other wolf, this time of Croatian/Slovenianorigin, was reported in the same area,specifically at St. Veit (Carinthia), from Feb-ruary to September 2009 and perhaps evensubsequently (Figure 2, point A). Checks ofbiological samples from the animal of Ital-ian origin are still underway, according toinformation from our Austrian colleagues.
In the second case there was a overlap-ping of territories even further east, in theWeiz district of Styria, where in September
2009 a second wolf of Italian origin wasidentified; in April 2009 the presence of ananimal of Carpathian origin was reported inthe same area (point C). A fifth wolf, ofCroatian/Slovenian origin and observed inApril 2009 at Knittelfeld in Styria (point B),can be added to these four wolves.
What is more, at the end of October awolf of Italian origin was identified in thePitztal area, near Innsbruck (Tyrol – pointD); it is not known whether this was one ofthe two previously mentioned animals, or athird wolf (M. Janowsky, pers. com.).
All this paints a relatively lively picture,which together with the Trentino data, al-beit referring to the presence of a wolf in2007 (point E), highlights a rapid accelera-tion in the process of recolonisation of theAlps by the wolf (it is not possible to pre-dict whether this will also be long-lasting).
Figure 2Reports of wolves recorded in Austria and Trentino in 2009 (A. Kranz, amended and supplemented)
NOTES
AUTONOMOUS PROVINCE OF TRENTO
FORESTRY AND WILDLIFE OFFICE
v. G. B. Trener, 338121 TRENTO
CERTIFIED
