Wave of bear attacks spark protest in Catalan Pyrenees

A string of bear attacks on livestock in the Val d'Aran and Pallars Sobirà counties in the Pyrenees has incited pushback from local shepherds. 

The most recent attack resulted in the death of a fenced lamb, and came just a few days after shepherds took to the streets in response to escalating tensions between agricultural communities and the increasing presence of bears. 

The Conselh Generau d’Aran rural agents reported the first attack of the season in Naut Aran, where a bear killed a goat, a ram, and two sheep, with another goat missing. 

The next attack resulted in the death of a lamb that had the added protection of a fence. Shepards say this second attack displayed the increased audacity of wild bears and emphasizes a need for change in how bears are managed throughout the region. 

In light of these recent events, shepherds in the northern county of Pallars Sobirà have taken to the streets, protesting what they describe as the "disastrous management" of the bear population by the administration. 

"Fences must be built. Bears cannot coexist with extensive livestock, as has been demonstrated. But now they will live and coexist with inhabited areas," Pere Roqué, from the ASAJA association, says.

Around 70 shepherds blocked the C-13 road at the entrance to the town of Sort, arguing that the current situation, where they must secure their livestock themselves, is unsustainable considering the impossibility of coexistence between extensive livestock farming and growing bear populations.

While the protests of the last week have been defined by recent attacks, they are also a response to the resurfacing of tensions between livestock farmers and conservationists who have been slowly reintroducing brown bear populations to the Pyrenees regions since 2014.

As farmers and conservationists come to a standstill, authorities must grapple with assessing how bear populations have affected people’s livelihoods, and whether the costs of conservation efforts outweigh the benefits. 

Even with tensions at a climax, the recent shepard protests underline a broader issue: the need for strategic and logical compromise when balancing the needs of people and endangered species. 

With the summer fast approaching, the administration faces mounting pressure to implement effective measures that address the concerns of the shepherds while promoting wildlife conservation in the Pyrenees.