WOLVES, LIVESTOCK, AND THE PHYSICAL AND SOCIAL ENVIRONMENTS

A talk by Prof. Marco Musiani (University of Calgary)

THU, APRIL 14, 7:00PM PST
Online via Bluejeans
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To celebrate the 2021 edition of the Italian Research Day in the World, University of Calgary’s distinguished Prof. Marco Musiani will give a lecture on the topic of wolves and their enviropnment in Canada, in an online event organized by Arpico, the Society of Italian Researchers and Professionals in Western Canada, in collaboration with the Consulate General of Italy in Vancouver.

Due primarily to wolf predation on livestock (depredation), some groups oppose wolf (Canis lupus) conservation, which is an objective for large sectors of the public. Prof. Musiani’s talk will compare wolf depredation of sheep in Southern Europe to wolf depredation of beef cattle in the US and Canada, taking into account the differences in social and economic contexts. It will detail where and when wolf attacks happen, and what environmental factors promote such attacks. Livestock depredation by wolves is a cost of wolf conservation borne by livestock producers, which creates conflict between producers, wolves and organizations involved in wolf conservation and management. Compensation is the main tool used to mitigate the costs of depredation, but this tool may be limited at improving tolerance for wolves. In poorer countries compensation funds might not be available. Maybe conservation groups should consider the potential consequences of all of these ecological and economic trends? Declining sheep or cattle price and the steady increase in land price might induce conversion of agricultural land to rural-residential developments, which could negatively impact the whole environment via large scale habitat change and increased human presence.
 
Marco Musiani is a Professor in the Dept. of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Calgary. He also has a Joint Appointment with the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine in Calgary. His lab has a strong focus on landscape ecology, molecular ecology, and wildlife conservation. Marco is Principal Investigator on projects on caribou, elk, moose, wolves, grizzlies and other wildlife species throughout the Rocky Mountains and Foothills regions of Canada. All such projects are run together with graduate students and have applications towards impact assessment, mainly of human infrastructure. His focus is on academic matters. However, he also serves as reviewer for research and management projects, and acted as a consultant for the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (working on conflicts with wolves).
 
Register for the talk: https://bluejeans.com/584776566

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