“I am outraged!
It’s a massacre.”
Falconer Jacques-Olivier Travers does not hide his anger when he talks about the death of the white-tailed eagle that he released into the wild last September near Lake Geneva (Haute-Savoie), as part of a program aimed at reintroducing the species in the Alps.
This eagle, the largest in Europe, was poisoned and hunted down to the last 130 years ago.
“It’s terrible to see that such stupid acts still exist.
The body of this female was found on February 24 in the mountains surrounding the sanctuary of Notre-Dame de la Salette (Isère), says the founder of the Parc des Aigles du Léman.
Accidents can happen, especially with power lines.
But there was no doubt: he had been shot, what's more, outside the hunting season and in an area where it is prohibited.
They admitted to doing it for fun!
But do they realize the colossal work that is being done to reintroduce the eagle into the Alps?
Without thinking of the children who followed him…”
The corpse spotted thanks to its GPS beacon
This eagle was called Morzine, after the name of the ski resort that financed the GPS beacon that this female had on her back.
It was thanks to this box that his body could be located.
The National Biodiversity Office quickly confused two hunters in their thirties who admitted the facts.
Feathers of the raptor were found at their home.
Placed under judicial supervision, they will be tried on May 13 for destruction and illegal possession of protected non-domestic species.
They risk up to three years in prison and a fine of 150,000 euros.
“Of the fourteen young people released since 2022, this is the third eagle that we have shot.
We really need to change beliefs about these predators and leave them alone,” implores Jacques-Olivier Travers.