Guest Speakers
Prof. Djuro Huber, PhD
Dr. Djuro Huber is a professor of biology, with expertise inecology and wildlife parasitology. Since 1981 he is conducting research and conservation project on brown bears in Croatia, which is today expanded to the study of large carnivores (bear, wolf and lynx). He led projects founded by the National Geographic Society, International Bear Association, Euronatur, Bernd Thies Foundation, U.S.-Croatian science technology program, ALIS, Alertis, LIFE Wolf, EU LIFE COEX etc., and has published about 200 scientific and professional papers. He is a member of numerous international societies, including IUCN/SSC Bear Specialist Group (co-chair BSG for Europe), IUCN/ SSC Wolf Specialist Group, International Bear Association (Council member and past Vice-president), Large Carnivore Initiative for Europe (Core Group member) and Wildlife Disease Association.
Invited talk title:
Large carnivores in Croatia: research, status, management and conservationAbstract
The management plans for brown bears (Ursus arctos), gray wolves (Canis lupus) and Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) are expected to bring together different interests such as ecological, aesthetical and economic, as well as care for the safety of people and their properties. Bears are game species in Croatia, while wolves and lynx are legally protected. The management actions are to ensure the viable sizes of populations but within the social capacity. This means that the densities of large carnivores should minimize the conflicts with people. In order to achieve this goal, a series of actions and measures related to the human activities in the habitat like highway construction and forestry, the prevention of damages and occurrences of problematic individuals and scientific monitoring of all changes in the population have to be regulated. The implementation of plans is responsibility of various interest groups. They undergo occasional revisions, because in large carnivore management there are no final and universal solutions. Croatia expects that, with its Brown Bear Management Plan, Wolf Management Plan, and Lynx Management Plan, all officially accepted in 2004, will ensure the long-term existence of optimum large carnivore populations and their habitats, with as few negative effects as possible.