As one of the last European countries to authorise hunting birds with glue, France will be outlawing the practice in October after the European Commission has threatened legal action and fines.

The move has been welcomed by activists who have described the trap as “barbaric” as they have urged the French government not to yield to the demands of the powerful hunting lobby.

Hunters have argued that the method for trapping birds, known as chasse à la glu, is a centuries-old rural tradition and rejects accusations of cruelty.

In France, the hunters are allowed to catch four types of thrush and one type of blackbird. While hunters claim to free any unintended victims not on the permitted list, evidence suggests otherwise. In a video released by the Guardian last year, it showed that birds that were not on the hunting list were still harmed by the glue-traps. Species of trapped birds included robins, blue tits, warbles, finches, and kestrels, many of which were found struggling and dying on the glue-trap and not released back in the wild as alleged.

Since the 1979 Bird Directive, the practice of using glue sticks to catch birds has been outlawed in Europe, except in specific circumstances where the practice is “controlled, selective and in limited quantities”. As for France, they have continued to utilize glue-trapping on the basis that its practice is “traditional”.

Yves Verilhac, head of the League for the Protection of Birds (“LPO”) commented:-

“This is a final warning from the European commission. France cannot be the last country that allows the trapping and barbaric torture of birds. This hunting is non selective and cruel…Besides, not all traditions should be defended. Hunting with glue sticks is an abomination.”

In opposition, Willy Schraen, the president of the Hunting Federation, is in “complete disagreement” with the French government and stated:-

“We will legally defend glue-trapping because it is a symbol [of our culture].”

It is estimated that around 40,000 birds die annually from the traditional glue-traps and 5,000 people still practice this form of hunting in France. A report conducted by the French National Centre for Scientific Research in 2018 has found that the number of birds in France’s rural areas had dropped a third in 17 years

With the move to ban this traditional practice, many wildlife victims will be spared from these unspeakably “cruel” hunting methods and acts as a conservation method to protect endangered species. 

In Hong Kong, the possession, sale and use of glueboard traps needs to be completely prohibited, as trapped animals often suffer unnecessarily as a result of being caught in these contraptions. Animals stuck in these traps struggle and fight for release, which only increases their aggravation, stress and may ultimate result in their injury and death

From 1 January 2015, the use and sale of glueboards in New Zealand was prohibited, and similarly in Victoria, Australia where the sale and use of glue traps for trapping animals was prohibited (with the exception of insect glue traps so long as they are not capable of trapping an animal).

Courtesy of Arial Ng.

Main source: The Guardian.