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In the Hörnli cemetery in Basel, the high deer population becomes a problem. Drastic countermeasures are now planned, but thousands defend online.
Deer find a lot of food in the Hörnli cemetery: the population is increasing. Here: deer with fawn in Rorbas.
“Instead of taking away the animals that have been living there forever, Basel would be wiser to order elsewhere,” said one, and you know where: “In the city hall, for example.” The request to speak came from an online petition that started on Friday and for which more than 3,000 signatures were collected in two days. “There is no roe deer massacre at the Hörnli cemetery in Basel,” the signatories demand in the letter that the animal welfare association wants to deposit aid for needy animals at the Basel State Chancellery in the near future.
This week, the Basel city garden center confirmed on the SRF program “Today Switzerland” that individual deer should be shot in the Hörnli cemetery. With 54 hectares and space for more than 60,000 graves, the Hörnli is the largest cemetery in Switzerland. In recent years, the population has increased from about 15 to about 25 animals, explained Emanuel Trueb, head of the city’s garden, the SRF. The roe deer population in the cemetery is therefore three times higher than in a corresponding area in the forest. Now the canton has to approve the shooting. Assassinations must take place during blackout and with silencers. In this way, the stock should be slowly reduced to a healthy level.
The sight of the gentle animals
However, the project proves to be a highly emotional affair. “The sight of the gentle animals and the fact that their deceased relatives are not alone gives many visitors to the cemetery a great pleasure every day,” the animal welfare association, Help for Animals in Need, complained with their request. However, the club can expect great success. The large number of wild animals in the Hörnli has been a problem for years. Inventory must be regulated by shooting. This is not surprising: the forest is nearby, and in the cemetery animals find plenty of food in the form of cut flowers and grave decorations, even in winter.
According to Trueb, the high number of deer causes annual costs of CHF 100,000 for all defense and maintenance measures. But this damage is not even the focus. The high density causes stress on deer, and there is also a risk of animal diseases. That is why the governing council made it clear five years ago that shooting must be possible: hunting is regulated in the cantonal hunting ordinance. “This does not provide for an explicit ban on hunting in the Hörnli cemetery.”
Even then, the issue triggered emotions and made it to parliament. However, it was practically impossible to block wild animals from accessing the cemetery, the governing council said at the time in response to a concerned move: This is because animals can easily jump over a fence. To protect against damage caused by roe deer, the cemetery nursery relied on the use of organic preparations made with whey, blood and horn flour, which would prove successful in making deer, the governing council said. at that moment.
The cemetery as a destination
However, it is not entirely undesirable that nature can develop in a healthy way in the cemetery: “In contrast to our sometimes very unpleasant burial sites, the cemetery embedded in the green of the landscape should take the distance from everyday life to visitors who are not in Basel today are, but are missed by many “, say the documents of the competition for the construction of the Hörnli cemetery, born in 1924: this idea would invite” to take more care of the graves “and the cemetery” It would be one at the same time Excursion destination for those who need to rest and visit Basel means. ”As early as 1934, the city recorded a“ manageable deer population ”in the Hörnli.
The cemetery as a recreation area near the settlement: in Basel, this idea not only applies to nature. An art exhibition by Bernese artist Matthias Zurbrügg has been held at the Hörnli since April. 26 word images with letters up to four meters in size span the entire cemetery. According to the city nursery, it was planned to “position the Hörnli cemetery more as an open space, or cultural space, with a high quality of stay.”
