sudenkuopat

Sudenkuopat are historical pit traps designed to capture wolves. The term derives from suden, meaning wolf, and kuoppa, meaning pit, in Finnish.

Construction and use typically involved digging a vertical shaft in fields or along routes used by livestock. The pit was often lined with wood or stone to prevent collapse and camouflaged with earth and vegetation or covered with a lightweight lid to conceal its true nature. Bait might be used to lure an animal toward the trap, and a triggering mechanism or hidden cover could cause the animal entering the pit to fall in.

Historically, sudenkuopat were employed in rural Finland and other parts of Northern Europe as a method of predator management and livestock protection. The practice reflects past approaches to protecting herds before modern wildlife management and animal welfare standards were widely adopted.

In contemporary times, such traps are controversial and are generally illegal or tightly regulated in many jurisdictions. Their use has declined as non-lethal and more humane or regulated methods of livestock protection—and broader predator management—have become preferred. Sudenkuopat are now primarily discussed in historical contexts, folklore, and analyses of past rural practices rather than as active tools.