Once-common bird will soon be extinct in France

It will be the first vertebrate to disappear in France this century.

The Ligue pour la Protection des Oiseaux (LPO) said the last known pair of pie-grièches à poitrine rose abandoned newly-hatched chicks in Hérault for unknown reasons. The chicks were found dead.

A common sight 100 years ago, the species (Lanius minor) is migratory and it is extremely unlikely it will return to France next year.

Denis Rey, of LPO Hérault, cited multiple reasons. He said: “Inten­sive agriculture has meant destruction of nesting sites and fewer insects, andclimate change means rains in spring, which is not favourable.

“However, it over-winters in southern Africa and then flies 10,000km to reproduce in Eur­ope. There are many dangers on the way, including poaching in Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

“In southern Africa, trees are being destroyed for larger fields, plus there are more droughts.”

There were only 15 pairs in France in 2008 putting the species on the “in critical danger of extinction list”. Mr Rey said: “It would require a huge inter-
national operation and massive funding to save it and we do not know if this will be possible.

“It is likely to be the first vertebrate to disappear in France this century.”

Numbers are also falling in Spain and Italy. While it is still present in central Europe, with most in Romania, reports show a significant decrease.

Birds such as the European turtle dove and the common curlew are also on the danger list, with numbers halved since 2001. Mr Rey is appalled that the government left both on the permissible hunting species list for the 2019-20 season.

“Inexplicably, 20 species in dan­ger are still hunted. The hunting lobby is very strong.”