Efforts to stop the poaching of ortolan buntings in SW France

Nidal Issa and Alison Duncan of LPO/BirdLife France describe an important campaign to tackle the illegal poaching of ortolan buntings

Male ortolan bunting. Photo credit Aurelien Audevard

The Ortolan bunting (Emberiza hortulana) is a regular breeding species and a migrant in France.  In the national IUCN Red List the conservation status for the breeding and the migrant populations, are Vulnerable and Endangered respectively.  The whole European population has seriously declined between 1980-2012, by 84%, one of the largest declines of any passerine in Europe over the past 30 years

In France, hunting of Ortolan buntings has been forbidden by law since 1979 and the species was put on the protected list in 1999.  Each year, however about 30,000 ortolans are trapped illegally during migration, August-September, in the SW France principally in the département of Les Landes using what are called “traditional hunting methods” (matoles or cage traps).

Trapping site with matoles (cage traps) set for ortolan bunting, SW France. Photo credit CABS

Ortolan bunting trapped in a matole. Photo credit Baptiste Marechal LPO

These birds are then put in the dark and force-fed to increase their fat reserves.  They are considered a delicacy and may be sold, illegally, to restaurants for up to 150€/bird. In 2014, several of the French Grand Chefs holding several Michelin stars came out publicly (national TV news) to support the tradition of trapping ortolan buntings, pleading for at least one weekend when the trapping could be legalised.  In 2002, in the UK the series “Meet the Neighbours” stopped off in France and a well known TV personality can be seen eating ortolan buntings in a restaurant.  The fine for trapping these birds can be as much as 15,000€ and a year in prison.  However, the public authorities in charge of applying the law simply cite “tolerance” and turn a blind eye to this poaching.

The LPO/BirdLife in France considers this situation is unacceptable. Confronted with the French government which does not apply the law properly, LPO decided ten years ago to start intervening physically during migration to expose the practice and raise awareness amongst the general public.  Today the LPO works together with CABS (Committee Against Bird Slaughter) in an attempt to bring an end to this illegal trapping.  The trapping sites are identified from the air, any caught birds or decoys are released, and reports on the illegal trapping are handed into the local police stations or the offices of the National agency for hunting and wildlife (ONCFS) in the hopes that the cases will be pursed rather than shelved.

Ortolan bunting decoy on a trapping site. Photo credit Baptiste Marechal LPO

President LPO, Allain Bougrain Dubourg releasing an ortolan bunting.

The LPO made a complaint to the European Commission, who replied in March 2015 that the French government had reassured the Commission that everything was under control! The EC therefore proposed to close the complaint.  LPO sent further proof to indicate that no specific actions had yet been taken by the government and there was much evidence that the trapping was continuing.

Ortolan buntings illegally trapped handed over by the LPO to a representative of the Prefect as proof of the illegal practices. Photo credit – Ph. De Grissac LPO

As a result of this, and because the trapping of ortolan bunting is not the only species of passerines suffering persecution through traditional hunting methods, an estimated 400,000 of a dozen species are killed each year around France, the LPO has today launched a petition « Help stop the illegal massacre of common birds » in France.

This petition reminds President Hollande of his commitment announced at his election in 2012 to make France exemplary in terms of biodiversity protection.

Anyone wishing to help France drop these barbaric methods of trapping little birds and to simply apply the law is invited to click on the link to the petition and then share it with others