Lethal control may be selectively targeting specific individuals that are considered to pose a higher threat to livestock and pets than the average individual in the population. In this case it could be undertaken through selective trapping, poisoning, or hunting. Alternatively, lethal control may be unselective and target any individual in a population with unselective trapping, poisoning, or hunting. The largest decrease in risk of livestock predation has been found in studies where selective removal has been used (Blejwas et al, Harper et al.) whereas unselective removal had a smaller effect (Bradley et al, Wagner and Conover). The effect of lethal control to prevent recurring attacks on livestock is largest if the intervention is used immediately after a first attack, whereas the effect is severely reduced after 7 days and no effect remained if the intervention occurred 14 days after the first predation event (Bradley et al).
