On Wednesday 16 April, the representatives of the Member States (Coreper) decided to bring the Habitats Directive into line with the amendment to the Bern Convention of 7 March (see EUROPE B13595A19), which will change the wolf’s protection status from ‘strictly protected species’ to ‘protected species’.
This change in legal status gives Member States greater flexibility in wolf management. The aim is to “minimise the impact of the growing population of the species”,...