Shadows in the Forest

There are mornings in the forest when everything is just right. Light falls obliquely through the beech trees, the ground steams, and somewhere between the trunks a shadow moves. Quietly. Deliberately. Invisible to anyone who has not learned to look. I know this feeling—the moment when the camera's viewfinder becomes a window. When a lynx, a goshawk, a peregrine falcon ceases to be a statistic and becomes an individual.

I photograph animals that hardly anyone gets to see. Lynx gliding silently through beech forests. Goshawks sitting motionless on a branch in the morning light before plunging into a clearing. I do this because I believe: what we do not see, we cannot protect. But there is something I have not said loudly enough for a long time—namely, what happens to these animals when no one is watching. What happens when the forest falls silent. Not because of the season. But because someone made it so.

The Silent Disappearance

In Bavaria, between 2015 and 2020, at least 14 lynx disappeared under unexplained circumstances. Fourteen animals. Fourteen complete lives, extinguished—without a trace, silently, without public attention. No outcry, no headlines, no consequences. The animals were there, and then they were not. Some wore GPS collars whose signal suddenly went silent. Others were simply never seen again—not by camera traps, not by researchers, not by hikers.

The lynx is strictly protected in Germany. Anyone who kills one commits a criminal offense under Section 71 of the Federal Nature Conservation Act. In theory, fines and up to five years' imprisonment are possible. In theory. In practice, it looks different: the vast majority of cases are never solved. The perpetrators know this. The authorities know it too. And precisely this certainty—that wildlife crime in Germany is almost never punished—is part of the problem.

Wildlife crime—the illegal persecution, poisoning, and killing of protected wildlife—is not an exotic problem of distant countries. It is not an issue limited to ivory trafficking in East Africa or tiger bones in Southeast Asia. It happens here. In our forests, in our fields, in our low mountain ranges. With our animals. And it happens with a regularity and systematicity that is alarming—and that hardly anyone notices because the victims have no voice and the crimes take place in secret.

The Grim Reality of Poaching

Poachers rarely operate spectacularly. There are no night-vision devices, no chases, no Hollywood-worthy drama. The reality is more sober, more cold-blooded—and precisely for that reason so difficult to grasp. The methods of illegal wildlife persecution in Germany are quiet, insidious, and designed to leave no traces. That is exactly what makes prosecution so difficult and the crimes virtually impossible to prove.

Poisoned Baits—The Invisible Weapon

The pesticide carbofuran is among the most frequently used poisons in illegal wildlife persecution in Europe. It is highly toxic, odorless and tasteless, and kills within minutes. It has been banned in the EU since 2008—but it continues to circulate on the black market. A single prepared animal carcass, laid out at a forest edge or in a meadow, can be enough to endanger not only the target but an entire local population. Because poisoned baits kill indiscriminately: the lynx that sniffs at the carcass. The red kite that spots it from the air. The fox that finds it. And the dog let off the leash during a walk. There are documented cases in which a single poisoned bait killed dozens of animals—birds of prey, crows, martens, badgers. A chain reaction of death, triggered by one hand and a gram of poison.

Traps—Banned but in Use

Snares and leg-hold traps are banned in Germany but are repeatedly found—in forest areas, at field edges, near poultry farms. These traps kill without distinction: lynx, wildcat, red kite, white-tailed eagle, peregrine falcon. The person setting the trap does not care which species falls into it. In many cases, the traps are placed so that they remain undiscovered for weeks or months. Animals die slowly, agonizingly, over hours or days. And whoever set the trap never comes back—or retrieves the carcass before anyone finds it.

Illegal Shooting—Birds of Prey in the Crosshairs

Birds of prey are particularly affected by illegal persecution. In Germany, an estimated several hundred birds of prey and owls are illegally killed every year—by shooting, poisoning, or nest plundering. Those who operate hunting grounds, maintain pigeon lofts, or manage small game sometimes view buzzards, kites, and goshawks as unwanted competition. The result: targeted shootings, destroyed nests, poisoned prey. The red kite is particularly affected—a species for whose global population Germany bears special responsibility, because more than half of all breeding pairs live here. Every illegally killed red kite is not only a loss for the local population but for the entire species.

Why Law Enforcement Fails

If wildlife crime is so clearly punishable—why does so little happen? The answer is an interplay of structural weaknesses, lack of prioritization, and missing expertise. And it begins with an uncomfortable truth: in Germany, nature conservation crime is not treated as serious crime.

It starts with the investigation. When a dead bird of prey is found, the forensic infrastructure to definitively determine the cause of death is often lacking. Not every federal state has specialized laboratories that can detect poisoning. Samples must be secured in time, refrigerated, and sent to the right places—a process that can already fail at the discovery site if the finder does not know what to do. Even when poisoning is proven, the connection to the perpetrator is often missing. Poisoned baits leave no fingerprints. There are no witnesses. The crime takes place in open fields, away from cameras and eyes.

In addition: wildlife crime enjoys no priority with police and prosecutors. Investigators are rarely specialized in environmental crimes. Proceedings are dropped because the evidence is too thin—or because simply no one wants to invest the necessary resources. The result is a cycle of impunity: low clearance rates lead to low risk for perpetrators. Low risk leads to repetition. Repetition leads to habituation. And habituation leads to wildlife crime being normalized—as a regrettable but ultimately unavoidable phenomenon on the margins of society.

The Fight Against the Dark Figure

The good news: things are moving. Slowly, but noticeably. Two current initiatives directly address the systematic failure of law enforcement—at the European and scientific levels.

Both projects share a fundamental idea: the problem is not the absence of laws. The laws exist. The problem is their consistent application—and the societal indifference that enables their non-application.

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What an Image Accomplishes That No Law Can

Laws protect species on paper. Empathy protects them in real life. And empathy does not arise from paragraphs, regulations, or threats of punishment. It arises from encounters—even when these encounters sometimes only take place through an image.

When I photograph lynx with my camera traps—after hours-long snowshoe hikes, with chewed cables and numb fingers—the resulting images are not for decoration. They emerge as documents. As proof that this animal exists. That it lives. That it has a story, a territory, habits, a personality. And that it deserves to have this story told.

Images make numbers human. The number "14 disappeared lynx" is shocking—but it remains abstract. It is a statistic that one takes note of and forgets again. But a photograph of a lynx looking directly into the camera, with those amber eyes, that alert, calm gaze—that is something different. That is real. That creates a connection that no report and no legal text can establish. And from this connection arises something that all the paragraphs in the world cannot force: genuine concern. The feeling that the loss of this animal is unacceptable.

Documentary nature photography is therefore not a romantic hobby and no escape into nature. It is political. It changes perspectives. It gives animals a face that would otherwise only appear as a species name in a Red List. It turns strangers into acquaintances—and we protect acquaintances. This is not a law of nature, but a deeply human truth: we fight for what we know. For what matters to us. And meaning arises through visibility.

What You Can Do

Wildlife crime thrives on invisibility. The most important weapon against it is attention—and the willingness to act when suspicion arises. You do not have to be a biologist or an investigator to make a difference. You just need to know what to look for and what to do.

In Case of Suspected Illegal Killing

Have you found a dead or injured wild animal that shows no obvious signs of an accident? A suspicious bait at a forest edge or in a meadow? A trap that should not be there? Nest trees in your area have been felled? Do you suspect that a crime has been committed? Then it could be nature conservation crime—and your action can make the difference.

The most important steps:

1. Do not touch anything—you could come into contact with poison or destroy forensic traces. Also keep children and dogs away.
2. Take photos and videos—document everything as comprehensively as possible: location, surroundings, condition of the animal, any baits or traps. Even when evidence is unclear. Every detail can become relevant later.
3. Make notes—Where exactly? When? What did you see? Were other people nearby? Write everything down while the memory is fresh.
4. Call the police: 110—inform the responsible police station and wait for officers to arrive. The Code of Criminal Procedure (Section 163) obliges the police to take immediate action. Insist that the find be recorded as a possible crime—not just as a "dead bird."
5. Note names and case numbers—record the station, names of the officers taking the report, and the case number. You will need this information for any follow-up inquiries.
6. Have suspicious animals examined—in case of suspected poisoning: store carcasses cool or frozen and transfer them to a veterinary examination office as quickly as possible. The faster the examination takes place, the higher the chance of detecting the poison.
7. Report the case—via the reporting form at tatort-natur.de or by email to info@tatort-natur.de. Reports can also be made anonymously.

The illegal killing of protected animal species is not a trivial offense—and the perpetrators must be held accountable. Every single report helps to identify hotspots, recognize patterns, and enable prosecution. Tatort Natur is a joint project of LBV (Bavarian Association for Bird and Nature Conservation) and the Gregor Louisoder Environmental Foundation and systematically documents all reported cases of nature conservation crime in Bavaria.

Beyond That

Not everyone will become an investigator—but everyone can help ensure that wildlife crime does not remain an invisible crime. Talk about it. Share this article. Support organizations like LBV, the Gregor Louisoder Environmental Foundation, or the Committee Against Bird Slaughter, which work day after day against illegal wildlife persecution. And if you are out in nature with a camera yourself: document what you see. Every image of a living lynx, a breeding red kite, a hunting peregrine falcon is an argument for the protection of these species—and against the silence that protects their killers.