Around 500 bears are set to be shot in Sweden from tomorrow as the country’s annual licensed hunt begins. In total, the government has approved the killing of 486 brown bears \- 20 per cent of the wild population – between 21 August and 15 October. Campaigners say this “trophy hunt” is incompatible with the large carnivore’s status as a strictly protected species within the EU. “There are several ways to better live side by side, with many more than 3,000 bears in Sweden,” says Magnus Orrebrant, chairman of the Swedish Carnivore Association. “By taking preventive measures to avoid damage and b…
