Lark trapping on the Atlantic coast
In almost all European countries the skylark population is in free fall, the iconic song is vanishing from our landscape. In France, each year around 1.8 million skylarks end up in frying pans and on the grill. Most of them are shot, but some meet their fate in nets and small cages on the Atlantic coast.
As with several other Mediterranean countries shooting larks is permitted in France at specified times. However, four departments have also allow the trapping of these endangered migratory birds. In Aquitaine around Bordeaux, 10,000 trapping installations with gigantic nets block the birds' way south. The dunes of the Atlantic coast and the harvested grain fields directly behind them are filled with nets in autumn.
Through lawsuits filed by our partner association LPO, the Supreme Court has declared lark trapping illegal in 2021 and 2022. But there is still no reason to sound the all-clear, as the government in Paris seems to continue to look for tricks to re-authorise bird trapping!
Live decoy-birds serve as lures. The specially caught larks are tied by their feet and connected with a long cord to the bird trapper, who will sit in a hut at the edge of the enclosure. When birds approach the nets, the bird trapper pulls the cords and the tethered birds begin to flutter in response. In addition, the catcher imitates the flight-call of the larks by means of a whistle and can lure an entire swarm into their grasp. If enough birds have gathered, the bird-trapper triggers a mechanism and the nets (often measuring several hundred square metres) beat together over them.
To make matters worse, in two departments each bird trapper is allowed to set up up to 300 cages for larks!
Officially, more than 3,000 bird trappers are allowed to catch skylarks; the quota varies from department to department. A total of 1 million skylarks may be caught, in reality it could be several hundred thousand more!