read it in the local paper, in france.
the president of the LPO was portrayed as a 'militant' and not once did it mention that what the farmer was doing was illegal.....
bugger, had a really interesting chat with the national parcs yesterday - and one who used to work for the office national de chasse (he was there to 'control' what was hunted etc).
When I said that it was mad to call the LPO guy a 'militant' he said that this wasn't considered a negative term - the opposite. Just that he really believed in the fight against these hunters and was prepared to stand up against the actions of the trappers.
bugger because - what these trappers are doing isn't actually illegal. Whilst the general practice of trapping ortolans is illegal in some restricted communities it is considered as a traditional hunting practice and is therefore legal!!! I hadn't really grasped the concept but was a bit pi3333d off. Paying for an ortolan in a restaurant is illegal though.
On a better note he was, and is now under a different title, employed to do bag checks - checking feathers etc. of shot birds. Anyone with a dodgy feather (its called 'control de plume' - feather check literally but more likely would be the body of something) is subjected to fairly hefty fines. For example a Hen Harrier would come with a fine in the 1000's€ and loss of gun licence as a minimum. Also, unlike the Sandringham HH, if he witnessed the event that would be enough proof in a court of law ie doesn't need to produce a 'body' - for joe public the same doesn't apply. In shooting a protected species the hunter is subject to strict(?) liabilty in the sense that he cannot later say he didn't realise it was an x, y or z -he has to know what he is shooting.
It was all very interesting mainly because I don't believe the same sort of 'environment protection officers' exist in the UK or have the same powers. He was amazed when I started to tell him about some of the practices of games keepers in the UK and also the ridiculous level of punishment if caught out.
Interestingly, he felt that the levels of punishment really dis-swayed hunters from shooting 'anything' and only a very small percentage break the rules in this area. I think, the parcs employees are actually 'gendarmes' (police) so their powers are far reaching - when we went on Lammergeier nest protection duty my friend wore a 'Gendarme' badge and not the usual parc national badge (this may not be applicable to all employees - don't know). I'll ask what the situation is.
Lots to learn and possibly apply to the UK.... (if they had the will and money)
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