The mayor of Warsaw says that he has reluctantly authorised the culling of wild boars in the Polish capital. He says his decision has been made to ensure safety, amid a record number of sightings of the animals in the city this year.
“It is with a very heavy heart that I have taken the decision to carry out a very limited shooting and catching of wild boars,” said Rafał Trzaskowski.
He noted that, while there were 2,500 reports of wild boars in Warsaw in the whole of last year, the first six months of this year alone saw 3,000 such reports.
Przed moim domem 🐗 #Warszawa #Wawer #dzik pic.twitter.com/cvxUxLn65e
— maciej (@maciej_warsaw) June 13, 2023
“I put this decision on hold last year,” said the mayor, who noted that municipalities around Warsaw have already authorised the shooting of wild boar.
“We were an exception, but I also made it clear that I would rely on the opinions of experts, who have made it clear that simply if we want to take care of the safety of the people of Warsaw, such a decision must be made, and I have made that decision,” added Trzaskowski,
The deputy spokesman for Warsaw town hall, Jakub Leduchowski, told broadcaster TVN that up to 200 boars would be culled. In cases where it is not possible to kill them on the spot – for example, when a boar appears in a housing estate – the animals would be captured and later euthanised.
“The culling will take place in areas where dangerous situations caused by the presence of wild boar are most common,” said Leduchowski. “It will be implemented until the end of the year.”
A new high-tech pen, which is intended to provide a humane solution to the increasing problem of wild boars venturing into urban areas in Poland, has succeeded in catching a herd of 20 of the animals on its very first night https://t.co/Q0SQmlDuUn
— Notes from Poland 🇵🇱 (@notesfrompoland) June 26, 2021
Trzaskowski thanked wildlife wardens and city officials who have been trying to deter wild boars from entering the city through methods such as increasing feeding sources in the animal’s native forests.
He also appealed for residents to continue assisting such efforts by not feeding wild boars in the city and by securing their rubbish properly.
In recent years, a number of other cities around Poland – including Gdańsk, Poznań and Lublin – have also seen an increase in the presence of wild boars.
A policeman was required to intervene after a wild boar entered a backyard where children were playing and ate their pierogi.
The police reassure that the offender is well known to them and is not aggressive, having become used to being fed by humans https://t.co/yShFzj84fV
— Notes from Poland 🇵🇱 (@notesfrompoland) June 5, 2020
Main image credit: Jacek Marczewski / Agencja Wyborcza.pl
Anna Hackett is an assistant editor at Notes from Poland. She is a recent graduate of European Studies from Trinity College Dublin and has had previous journalistic experience with the Irish Independent News & Media group.
