Methodological approach in conflict assessment and mitigation caused by game animals in Latvia

Attempts to estimate the allowable maximum population density is well known in the history of game management in Latvia. Relatively permanent environmental features (e. g. landscape and forest structure) have been used for the assessment of carrying capacity of hunting grounds. Amount of the available winter feed was considered as a limiting factor for major game species in each landscape unit and forest type. While focusing on the actual abundance of feed, many other factors, including mutual interaction among species and populations, were overlooked. In this study we suggest a multifactor approach for gaining more knowledge of the reasons why animals prefer one habitat or habitat combination and avoid others. Two aims were advanced for this study: (1) identifying warning indications about a high risk of damages to provide the hunters and landowners with practicable recommendations; (2) naming the reasons for conflicts between the landowners and users of hunting rights that might be considered by supervising authorities.