Overview

• Hunters in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern shot nearly 22,000 raccoons in the 2023/24 hunting season, surpassing the five-year average of over 20,000.
• The species has been detected in more than 90 percent of the state’s hunting districts, signaling its widespread establishment.
• Environment Minister Till Backhaus confirmed that the state provides €50 per trap and €100 per trap transmitter to support raccoon control.
• Budget constraints led authorities to reject a proposal for a direct cash bounty on raccoon captures.
• The Deutscher Jagdverband warns that raccoon predation on amphibians such as toads, frogs and newts poses a threat to regional biodiversity.