Wildlife ecology

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Wild ecology , like wild biology , deals with wild animals living in the wild , which are subject to a specific interaction with humans. Wildlife biology goes far beyond a special zoology of vertebrates. It deals primarily with species that are either subject to human use or that humans feel connected to in some other way, for example through their special responsibility in the context of species protection . For this reason, wildlife ecology deals primarily, but not exclusively, with vertebrates. As a scientific discipline, it is not limited to the narrow selection of species, which in Germany, for example, the Federal Hunting Act is defined as " game ". However, the term “wild” is usually more narrowly defined in the German-speaking world than in Anglo-Saxon, where “wildlife” often also includes wild plants. Wildlife biology and wildlife ecology make use of scientific, more precisely biological and ecological methods.

In contrast, the object of wildlife management (including the hunting-related sub-disciplines) is the human being who interacts with the wild animal. In addition to scientific (in this case human-scientific, e.g. anthropological and psychological) methodology, the discipline also uses sociological, economic and legal methods. In addition, wildlife management and hunting have diverse ethical implications.

The term wildlife ecology was z. B. used by H. Gossow as the title for his introductory book. At that time it represented an attempt to convey findings, methods and terms in the more recent - predominantly Anglo-American - research on wild animals as well as the resulting practical consequences to German readers: these were mainly forest students who had more wild biological and ecological know-how. how they needed as part of their hunting training and that was relevant to practice. Similar attempts with a broader target group were books by P.Baumann, F. Kurt H. Kalchreuther. All four authors focused on "wild"; H. on huntable wild animals (English "game"), as they are listed in state hunting laws, on "game damage" by hunted game (for which there are often compensation regulations) or on land use practices and their influence on wild species living in the affected biotopes (and what kind of "biotope reserve" or "habitat management" can be derived from this, e.g. for the relationship between capercaillie and forestry).

These approaches expanded over time to other, non-huntable wild animal species (English "non-game"), which z. B. as prey species or in other respects are in interrelationships with wild species, which significantly expand the wild species diversity often required by hunting law as "biodiversity" or "ecosystem" or which play an important role in the transmission of pathogens. Even more essential, however, were the expansions in methodological terms (such as more physiological and genetic research approaches, more experimental than predominantly descriptive access, and more technology such as radio telemetry and geographic information systems in habitat use). This also resulted in an adaptation of the terminology to the relevant English terms: "Wildlife Ecology" - "Wildlife Biology" - "Wildlife Management" (cf. for example "Wildlife Ecology & Management").

And finally, this subject also led to a relevant university master's and doctoral degree in "Wildlife Ecology and Wildlife Management" at the Vienna University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (2003/04), where a university course "Hunting Manager" has also been offered since 2008 now the "game" is emphasized again.

At the Technical University of Dresden , the Institute for Silviculture and Forest Protection has a lectureship in wildlife ecology and hunting management.

literature

  • H. Gossow: Wild ecology - terms, methods, results, consequences. Reprint of the last edition published in the BLV, Verlag Kessel, Remagen 1999, 2012; ISBN 3935638035 , www.forstbuch.de
  • Sven Herzog: In the spirit of Aldo Leopold: Wild ecology in Tharandt. In: Stephan Bonn, Jörn Erler, Sven Herzog (editor): Tharandt 2011 - 200 years of ideas for the future. Technical University of Dresden, 96-116, 2011.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Hartmut Gossow: Wild Ecology: Terms, Methods, Results, Consequences, 1976.
  2. ↑ P. Baumann "Animals in the planned wilderness" (1972)
  3. ^ F. Kurt "Wild animals in the cultural landscape" (1977).
  4. ^ H. Kalchreuter "The thing with the hunt" (1977).
  5. ↑ z. B. Aldo Leopold's classic "Game Management" from 1933.
  6. ↑ Lecturer in Game Ecology and Hunting Management - Home . Website of the TU Dresden. Retrieved May 25, 2012.