{"id":428890,"date":"2025-06-05T14:19:33","date_gmt":"2025-06-05T12:19:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/2025\/06\/05\/protezione-lupo-ue-approva-cambio-status\/"},"modified":"2025-06-05T15:42:15","modified_gmt":"2025-06-05T13:42:15","slug":"wolf-protection-eu-council-approves-status-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/2025\/06\/05\/wolf-protection-eu-council-approves-status-change\/","title":{"rendered":"Wolf protection: EU Council approves status change"},"content":{"rendered":"

Brussels – With the final vote by the Council of the European Union<\/strong>, one of the most hotly debated conservation dossiers of recent years has finally\u00a0ended: the wolf will no longer be classified as “strictly protected” but simply “protected”<\/strong> under the Habitat\u00a0Directive<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The measure,\u00a0formally adopted today (June 5), updates European legislation in line with the changes introduced to the Bern Treaty<\/strong>, the international treaty\u00a0protecting biodiversity on the continent. The new classification will allow member states greater flexibility<\/strong> in managing wolf populations while maintaining the obligation to ensure their “favorable conservation status.” Individual countries can continue to apply more stringent measures at a national level, including maintaining strict protection status.<\/p>\n

The change comes against a backdrop of the demographic recovery<\/strong> of the species. According to a Commission study<\/a> published in 2023, the wolf population<\/strong> in Europe has almost doubled in ten years, from around 11,000 in 2012 to over 20,000 in 2023. However, the expansion of the species has raised growing tensions over its impact on livestock activities. The most recent data indicate around 65,500 cattle killed annually in the EU.<\/p>\n

Green light to wolf protection status revision, EU countries want more flexibility for trapping and culling<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n