Current study: Wildlife permeability of wolf-repellent electric fences

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A new field study by the German Association for Landscape Conservation (DVL) in collaboration with NABU Lower Saxony is investigating how wolf-repellent electric fences influence the movement patterns of wild animals. Wolf-repellent electric fences with highly conductive steel wire or horse fence wire consisting of five or six current-carrying wires were tested. The fence types tested had the following height arrangements:

• Five-row smooth wire fences: 20 cm, 40 cm, 60 cm, 90 cm, 120 cm above the ground
• Six-row smooth wire fences: 20 cm, 40 cm, 60 cm, 80 cm, 100 cm, 120 cm
• Six-row horse fence wires: 20 cm, 40 cm, 60 cm, 80 cm, 110 cm, 140 cm

The fences were tightly stretched to prevent entanglement or injury, and the voltage was between 3,000 and 6,200 volts in most cases.

The results of the study show that wild animals such as hares, roe deer, red deer, badgers and foxes overcome these fences in different ways – by crawling under, jumping through or jumping over. Wild boar, on the other hand, do not appear to cross intact fences. The study thus disproves the fear that herd protection fences represent an insurmountable barrier for wild animals. The evaluation of wildlife cameras and interviews with graziers also revealed that wild animals use the grazing areas to a similar extent before and after the fence was built. In addition, no dead or injured wild animals were found near the fences.

📌 Summary of the results:
✅ Wild animals such as hare, roe deer, red deer, badger and fox can cross the fences investigated.
✅ Crossing is achieved by crawling under, jumping through or jumping over (only in the case of red deer).
✅ Wild boar (except for young boar) were unable to cross fully functional fences.
✅ Wild animals continue to use grazing areas even after fences have been built.
✅ No injured or dead wild animals were found at the fences.

#livestock protection #wildlife-friendly #wolf protection #sustainable pasture management #electric fences #grazing animals #landscape protection