Over 7 years, the number of moose in Ukraine has increased from 6409 to 7135 individuals. According to scientists, this was due to the inclusion of these ungulates in the Red Book of Ukraine and, accordingly, the ban on hunting them.
This was reported by specialists of the Kyiv Ecological and Cultural Center (KECC).
The struggle for the Ukrainian population of common moose, or European moose (Alces alces), between hunters and environmentalists has been going on since 2017. On December 19 of that year, by order of the Minister of Ecology, the animal was included in the Red Book of Ukraine. However, on November 27, 2018, the District Administrative Court of Kyiv overturned the ban on hunting moose and its inclusion in the protection book. Hunters argued at the time that allegedly listing the moose in the Red Book would do nothing.
The Ministry of Natural Resources filed an appeal against this court decision. Scientists also came to the animal’s defense and cited the experience of neighboring Poland: there, the ban on moose hunting has significantly increased its numbers over 20 years. The appeal trial ended in a victory for animal rights activists and the elk remained in the Red Book.
Since the ban on hunting, the population of these artiodactyls has really begun to increase.
- In 2017 (the last year when moose were killed), there were 6,409 moose in Ukraine.
- 2021 – 6504 moose
- 2022 – 6652 moose
- 2023 – 6791 moose
- 2024 – 7135 moose
That is, over 7 years, the number of moose in Ukraine has increased by 726 individuals. And this despite the fact that part of the territory of Ukraine is under occupation and animals are not counted there. It should also be noted that moose numbers began to increase in the years before the full-scale invasion. Data for 2021 and 2022 are provided as an example.
“Thus, we have experimentally proven that listing wild animals in the Red Book with the simultaneous closure of hunting for them is an effective measure for their protection. And all the fables of hunters that the Red Book is of no use for the protection of wild animals are just another hunting lies,” says the KECC.
In April, EcoPolitic reported that a record number of moose was recorded in the Chernobyl zone.
