One Voice comes to the rescue for the Doubs birds

On 16 March, a helicopter flew over the cliffs of Mount Souvance in Doubs, under the scope of working on a railway below. These round trips bringing crates from the railway to a depot came with the helicopter hovering in front of the cliffs, where peregrine falcons and common ravens in particular nest.

For several hours, these vulnerable animals that desperately need calm in the middle of their nesting period were subjected to the deafening racket of the motor and the gusts of air from the propellers. How can they reproduce and bring up their young successfully in such conditions? And that is without counting the other birds potentially affected, such as European robins, common blackbirds, great tits...

Birds threatened relentlessly

From 15 February to 15 June, it is expressly forbidden by prefectural decree to hover over this protected environment that represents a complete sanctuary for the animals who live there. And the reason that a wildlife association wanted to alert us to this situation is because this is not the first time that these destructive practices have threatened the environment and endangered birds in Doubs. In March 2022, tree, bush, and shrub pruning and cutting had already happened without authorisation.

Although necessary for safety, the operations carried out around the railways should not be done to the detriment of animals. And certainly not in the middle of the reproduction and nesting period, which their survival depends on. Especially as the birds, tested greatly by the massive use of pesticides in the countryside and by climate change, are already hugely threatened. Are we going to lead all species to a point of no return and continue to harass individuals even when they are endangered?

This case is reminiscent of the repeated slaughtering of ibex, themselves protected, in Bargy that we were successful in having recognised as illegal for some of them. Or even the trapping and massacre of field larks, classified on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List. And it proves to us, if there is still a need to, that no animal, however threatened or protected they may be, is safe in France.

One Voice is filing a complaint for these birds and their environment to finally be taken into account and to stop being put in danger. In Doubs, as throughout France, we will keep rallying for birds.

Translated from the French by Joely Justice