A census of forest dwellers was conducted in the Vitebsk region

March 17, Vitebsk / Diana Kurilo - BELTA /. The census of forest dwellers has been completed in the Vitebsk region. An increase in the population of all hoofed game species has been recorded based on the results of the winter count, Gennady Gorlanov, Head of the Department for the Protection and Use of Land, Forests, Fauna and Flora, Specially Protected Territories of the Vitebsk Regional Committee for Natural Resources and Environmental Protection, told a BELTA correspondent. Compared to the 2009 census data, in 2010 the number of elk increased from 6909 to 7165, red deer from 739 to 893, roe deer from 12671 to 12893, and wild boars from 15617 to 16275. This winter, beavers were also counted (they are counted every two years). The population of Europe's largest rodent in the region is 16425. As Gennady Gorlanov noted, the population growth dynamics in the region remain stable. This indicates that hunting farms are working not only on harvesting but also on conserving game species. In the current hunting season, hunters harvested 783 elk, 20 deer, 1230 roe deer, and 7912 wild boars. -0-