Hunters are leading efforts to bring back sedentary species (e.g., grouse, partridge) as well as migratory waterbirds and land birds such as the Turtle Dove. Numerous examples of such efforts are documented on www.biodiversitymanifesto.com The Turtle Dove deserves a special mention as it forms a core part of FACE’s demand in point 4 (link). The European Commission opened legal infringements against France and Spain effectively stopping all hunting in the western flyway. In contrast to other European countries where the species has almost disappeared and where there were few, if any, conservation efforts for the Turtle Dove undertaken over recent decades, France and Spain still hold good numbers of the species and engage in its conservation. Therefore, this move from the Commission is deemed to be unjustified by FACE Members. They perceive the motivation for these infringements is biased towards hunting rather than on the declining trends in national populations and related conservation efforts.
What’s more, where hunting of Turtle Dove takes place there are long-standing conservation efforts made by the hunting community to manage and safeguard suitable habitats for the species, bringing many benefits. Whether it be the impressive number of hedges planted in France (link) or the seeding of thousands of hectares per year with various crops left unharvested in Greece (link), the hunting community has been actively implementing and financing on its own many other management actions benefiting the Turtle Dove.