Earlier this year, Sweden lowered the so-called reference value, the number of wolves needed for a favorable conservation status, from 300 to 170 animals. The decision has now prompted the EU to react, several media outlets report.
The commission believes that Sweden's minimum limit of 170 wolves is unscientific and risks the species' viability in the long term, reports Svensk Jakt.
The Commission points out, among other things, that the government determined and communicated target 170 without the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency having proposed it in a scientific assessment.
Sweden is therefore urged to review and submit a revised version of the report as soon as possible.
In a comment to Svensk Jakt, the Government Offices' press department writes that it recently received the letter from the Commission.
"The views that have been received are now being prepared within the Government Offices. We cannot anticipate that process."
Following the EU criticism, the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation believes that the already decided licensed hunt of 48 wolves in January 2026 must be stopped.
"The wolf is protected and classified as highly endangered and needs to be protected from disappearing," says Beatrice Rindevall, chairwoman of the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation, according to a press release.
