https://en.belsat.eu/87305798/...xes-are-next-in-line


Bear hunting season will soon begin in Belarus, lynxes are next in line

16.06.2025, 07:08

Telegram

In Belarus, approaches to the protection of wild animals have changed: brown bears and lynxes have been excluded from the category of species under the greatest protection. Following this, hunting for these species is allowed - in certain periods and only in some regions of the country.

According to the State Inspectorate for the Protection of Fauna and Flora, bear hunting will be allowed from July 1 to December 31, and lynx hunting from October 1 to January 31, Radio Liberty noted. However, hunting for these animals will only be possible in certain areas. In the Vitebsk region: Vitebsk, Glubokoe, Gorodok, Dokshitsy, Dubrovno, Lepel, Liozno, Orsha, Senno and Ushachi districts. In the Minsk region: Borisov and Logoisk.



As explained by the Deputy Head of the Department for Control over the Protection and Use of Wildlife Stepan Guzney, hunting will be possible if there is a certain minimum population density - at least 0.6 individuals per thousand hectares. In addition, there should be at least one female bear with young animals in the hunting area. Shooting will be limited to no more than 10% of the total population.



According to the representative of the inspectorate, when preparing documents and regulating the hunting procedure, Belarusian specialists were guided by Russian practice.



The reason for these changes was the decree of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection No. 10 of March 14, 2025, which regulates the inclusion of animals in the Red Book. According to the resolution, the brown bear was transferred from the I (highest) protection category to the IV (least protected), the lynx - from the II also to the IV. In addition, according to these changes, the bison that previously had III received the IV category.



Recall that talks about excluding 12 species of animals, as well as reducing the protective status for bison, lynx, bear and badger, have been going on for a long time. At the beginning of 2024, the Minister of Natural Resources Andriy Khudyk argued that the changes are scientifically justified and related to progress in biodiversity conservation.



It is also known that the initiative was actively lobbied by Igor Shunevich, the former head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, now the head of the Society of Hunters and Fishermen, who proposed to exclude bears and bison from the book, motivating this by their danger, but scientists do not agree with this. According to ecologist Polina Burko, such an offer could be based on the desire to make money, since hunting bison for foreigners cost up to 22 thousand rubles at that time.



At the same time, we recall that in June 2025, there were many reports of the activation of bears in the Hrodna region. The Ministry of Forestry warned about this. Environmentalists attribute this to deforestation: bears are forced to look for food and a new place.



Roman Shavel / IR belsat.eu

Belarus is simply Russia Lite. As an American, no way would I risk hunting in either country….YMMV.

quote:

Originally posted by jdollar:
Belarus is simply Russia Lite. As an American, no way would I risk hunting in either country….YMMV.

Don’t be pussy that you are

It’s got nothing to do with being a pussy. It has EVERYTHING to do with refusing to fund dictators and their oligarchs. Obviously that doesn’t bother you but no surprise there, considering your lineage…..

We all go to Africa and most countries are run hell of a lot more tyrannically with massive bureaucracy and corruption and we still go so don’t get all up in arms
Look how many people on here go to Asia and specifically to Pakistan
Sometimes as hunters we get better bargains because of some of these turmoils…unfortunately

quote:

Originally posted by M.Shy:
We all go to Africa and most countries are run hell of a lot more tyrannically with massive bureaucracy and corruption and we still go so don’t get all up in arms
Look how many people on here go to Asia and specifically to Pakistan
Sometimes as hunters we get better bargains because of some of these turmoils…unfortunately

So, where are your least chances to be accused of being an American spy and waiting in jail to be exchanged for a major arms dealer.

That Is why I don’t travel with guns anymore, anywhere
Of course being traveling hunter there is always risk

https://en.belsat.eu/87916936/...-in-almost-100-years


LINK HAS PHOTO OF BEAR.



Brown bear killed in Belarus for the first time in almost 100 years

19.07.2025, 03:35

The first brown bear was killed during officially permitted hunting in Belarus on July 15, 2025. Photo: rgooboor.by

The brown bear was killed during an officially permitted hunt on July 15, 2025. However, there is no official information about the number of bears, and the available information is contradictory.


The Republican State Public Association "Belarus Hunters and Fishermen Society" reported that the weekly drawing for the right to hunt a bear took place on July 15.



This time, luck smiled on Dzianis Klimets from the Brest region, who received a unique opportunity to hunt the majestic beast. The difficult hunt ended successfully that night at the Vitsebsk hunting farm, and Klimets returned home with an impressive trophy — the first brown bear in modern Belarusian history! The majestic and mighty brown bear became a worthy opponent!" This is how the Belarus Hunters and Fishermen Society described the killing of the bear, which was in the Red Book of Belarus until recently.



The society also reminded us that, "in order to increase profitability," they sell up to 30% of the bear slaughter limit at auction as part of hunting tours.



To participate in the auction, one must have at least three years of hunting experience. The minimum cost of a permit to hunt a brown bear is 500 BYN (167 USD) for citizens of Belarus and other EAEU countries and 1,000 BYN (333 USD) for foreigners.



Notably, ex-minister Shunevich and his wife were not permitted to hunt bears. Three Shunevichs were among the 159 applicants: Igor Anatoliovich, Tatyana Vladimirovna, and Eduard Anatoliovich. Igor is a former scandalous interior minister and the current chairman of the Society of Hunters and Fishermen. The second is his wife. It's unclear who the third person is. We could not find any mention of Igor Shunevich having a brother named Eduard.



Currently, commercial hunting of animals not included in the main gene pool is permitted in Belarus. Until January 2021, old, weak, and defective animals were included in the reserve gene pool. However, the Council of Ministers' resolution "On Approval of the Rules of Protection and Rational Use of Bison" later came into effect. According to the document, young, healthy animals were also included in the reserve if they lived in "overpopulated" micro-populations. Officials consider groups with more than 350 individuals to be overpopulated.



Why is it allowed to hunt bears? Are there really so many of them?



In November 2024, Alyaksandr Lukashenka granted bears and lynxes dual status: they remain in the Red Book, but the partial removal of individuals is permitted within the framework of population management plans developed by the Academy of Sciences and the Ministry of Forestry.



As of July 1, 2025, hunting brown bears was permitted in Belarus for the first time since the 1930s. This is because Belarus completed another update to the Red Book in 2025. This time, the protection status of the brown bear, lynx, and badger was lowered. According to the authorities, these animals no longer require the highest level of protection because their population has surpassed the minimum threshold, prompting a reduction in their protection category.



However, there is no reliable information about the number of brown bears in Belarus. According to Belstat, cited in an interview with DW, the number was estimated at about 19 in 2019, 42 in 2020, and 580 in 2021. In practice, these figures are nothing short of a miracle.



At the same time, the latest statistics are even less plausible.



"In 2023, the bear population amounted to 700 individuals, and its distribution across the country is uneven. There are no grounds to say that the number of this species has reached its optimal value, which would ensure its long-term conservation," the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection told BELTA.



Nevertheless, the number of bears in Belarus in 2023 was lower than in 2002, when the animal had the highest protection status. According to Belovezhskaya Pushcha, in 2002, there were "about 1,010 individuals" living in Belarus. In recent years, the bear population may have begun to increase but has not yet reached the 2002 figure.