A group that campaigns to protect wolves in Switzerland has launched criminal proceedings after signs warning of the danger of wolves to children and dogs have appeared throughout one canton.
Groupe Loup Suisse, or the Swiss Wolf Group, says that the signs are misleading and threaten to harm tourism in Valais by frightening away visitors.
Controversy surrounding shooting wolves who are deemed a threat to livestock has raged on for many years. Authorisation to shoot several wolves has been given in the canton in the past few months. A wolf was recently shot in the Nufenen region of the Goms Valley, following two different wolf attacks in the same area that led to the death of a total of seven livestock.
Damian Constantin, Director of Valais/Wallis Promotion, says that there is no evidence to suggest that tourists are put off visiting Valais for fear of being attacked by wolves. He says that the canton is such a vast and diverse area that the risk of being confronted by a wolf is very low.
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