The development of the wild boar tribe is not entirely easy to follow.
The surest, if not the only, yardstick is probably the so-called shooting reports that the Hunters' Association collects;
every time a hunter kills a wild boar, a report must be drawn up.
30 percent decrease
During the 2021/22 hunting season, reports decreased by as much as 30 percent compared to the previous season.
In real numbers, "only" 20,000 wild boars were shot instead of the 30,000 animals that fell victim to the hunters' bullets in 2020/21.
The most likely explanation is that the use of night vision, allowed for wild boar hunting since 2019, contributed to greatly decimating the tribe.
That is - fewer animals shot indicate fewer available wild boars out in the fields.
The same trend throughout the country
- The reduction is visible throughout the country.
In total, the number of animals shot went down from 160,000 to 120,000 in the figures we are talking about, which are the latest available, says Thomas Ohlsson.
He emphasizes that wild boar numbers fluctuate greatly over time in both Sweden and the rest of Europe.
- But this is the sharpest dip so far since shooting reports began to be collected in 2000. The number of game accidents has also decreased, which also points to a reduction in the tribe.