Endless controversy
The controversy between hunters on the pre-opening. The politics that rejoices and shines medals for having conquered this day of turtle dove hunting, but you know, we are in the electoral campaign and the political model of "Cetto La Qualunque", a well-known character played by Antonio Albanese, is the master. This, while on the other side of the fence, one remains absorbed in one's own thoughts, as Vasco Rossi sang, speaking on the theme in commercials. In this story all the limits of politics have emerged, it is time for the hunting world to ask itself some questions. What has happened in the last two years in Umbria is the failure of hunting policies, which had to support hunters, trying to make them understand the complex dynamics that revolve around hunting, international conservation interests, European strategies for the conservation of Biodiversity. Themes that have characterized the last thirty years of European policies and that, in an overwhelming way, influence the choices we are called to make in drawing up hunting calendars and in managing the territory; decisions that have a strong emotional impact on hunters.
The levels of the population
It becomes very necessary, at this point, to clarify some fundamental aspects: the turtle dove, according to the Bird Life International classification, is considered SPEC 1, classified as seriously threatened, and included in the IUCN Red List with the vulnerable classification. According to the European Directive 2009/147 / EC, concerning the conservation of wild birds according to their population level, geographical distribution and reproduction rate throughout the Community, the species listed in Annex II (among which is inserted the wild turtle dove Streptopelia turtur) can be hunted under national legislation, it being understood that in the case of a declining species, hunting cannot, by definition, be sustainable, unless it is part of a adequate management plan, including habitat conservation and other measures capable of slowing and reversing the decline. In March 2022, therefore, the national management plan for wild turtledove was approved, in implementation of the European action plan which provides for adaptive management of the withdrawal at continental level, provided that environmental improvement measures are applied on a significant scale, which adequate checks are carried out in relation to compliance with the rules on hunting activities, that a maximum withdrawal of 50% is made compared to the culls of previous years and that an immediate reporting system of the culls is adopted so that the withdrawal does not exceed the established quota.
What emerges from the hunting cards
In light of the above, the Umbria Region, in the faunal consultation, communicated to the hunting associations the prerogatives for exercising the collection of the turtle dove, namely: the realization of the environmental improvements provided for in the action plan, the need to establish the quota that can be withdrawn, a figure that can only be inferred from the reading of the cards of the previous years, and a system that would allow the immediate reporting of the abatements by means of an electronic card or other system, however, which can always be used via smartphone, as, at the moment, no other tools capable of meeting these requirements are available. Some hunting associations immediately opposed this solution. In June we were informed by the Umbria Region of the number of animals that can be taken and, in the meeting of 4 August, the Region, consulting the hunting associations, asked whether or not it should introduce the species in pre-opening by adopting the measures provided for in the management plan. of the species. At that date no system for reporting the culling had yet been implemented, only in the meeting of 23 August we were illustrated the methods for reporting and at that point there was little to do: accept what was proposed, or not hunt the turtle dove in pre-opening.
Key concepts
The Councilor, shrewdly, asked that the decision be taken unanimously, in the face of this, any Association had allowed itself to disagree, would have been pilloried by the others, and in fact the blame fell entirely on the Associations. These are the facts, the choice was: not to pre-open or to do it on the basis of the correct application of the management plan. For Arci Caccia the only regret is that all this could have been avoided if the decisions had been taken at the right time; in this case we would have had the time to inform the hunters of the methods of collection, correcting the errors in the course in case it was needed. In March we had already asked the Councilor to approve the hunting calendar, as required by law, by June 15, also in light of the fact that, in December, the new Key concepts had been approved, which provide for substantial changes. on the dates of prenuptial migration and independence of the offspring, a period in which, according to the Birds Directive, hunting is not allowed, but that's another story, let's hope it doesn't end badly! By continuing to not inform hunters correctly, we only play the game of our detractors and those who would like to put an end to the hunt. On 29 September all the hunting associations will be called to present their proposals on the occasion of the General States of hunting in Umbria convened by Councilor Morroni. It will then be the task of the Region to draw up a proposal for the next few years, hoping that the final decision will be taken, also in this case, unanimously and not by majority (source: Arch Hunting).