Europeans support large carnivore recovery while opposing both further population growth and hunting

After centuries of persecution in Europe, large carnivores are now recovering. Whether this conservation success continues likely depends on public support. Here, we show using a survey of ten thousand respondents across European Union Member States that, while support for the recovery of wolves, bears, and lynx remains strong, most respondents oppose both further population growth and hunting—particularly of wolves. Attitudes are remarkably consistent across rural and urban populations, and many respondents express no strong position, suggesting that large carnivores are less polarizing than often portrayed. The recent amendment to the Habitats Directive, which grants Member States greater flexibility to manage their wolf populations, appears broadly aligned with public opinion, as long as its implementation does not lead to population declines. However, the presence of views in tension—rejecting both population growth and hunting— may pose challenges for designing policies that are both science-based and democratic.

Methods
We conducted an opinion survey between 2022 and 2023 of 10,807 respondents across all 23 European countries that host breeding populations of large carnivores, using the Qualtrics online survey platform. For each surveyed country, we aimed to include at least 500 respondents, with a balanced distribution across key demographic categories: an equal number of female and male participants, equal representation of individuals younger and older than the country-specific median age, and an equal number of respondents from rural and urban areas (self-reported by participants). Respondents were asked a series of questions to assess their attitudes toward large carnivore recovery in Europe, their views on desirable future population trends for wolves, lynx, and brown bears, and their opinions on the hunting and culling of these species. In addition, we collected demographic and political covariates.