Long awaited for many months, the woodpigeons were faithful to their appointment with the hunters from mid-October. Although a few rare birds were seen at the beginning of October, the blue wave really began to appear on October 13th, only to quickly stop, particularly because of the rain, for Saint Luke's Day. The migration was relaunched on October 20 and was sustained in the days that followed, marking time in early November.
Now the season has ended for a few days. The latecomers, whom some hunters were waiting for, did not come down as usual. In mid-November, the church seemed to have been said and most of the paloumayres decided not to play overtime, apart from those with installations close to the crops. Mechanics and nets were mostly put away before November 20, the closing date for hunting using nets.
From dropping out
Several elements marked this season: birds difficult to land and significant disparities depending on the location, a passage going deeper and deeper into the land and a lack of birds in November.
“The installation was delicate, especially at the start of migration. But I'm not complaining, I saw birds” declares Michel Rey, Paloumayre from Lermois.
For Jean-Pierre Bugeade, a Soussacais hunter, the observation is slightly different. “It wasn't too bad, but no major thefts. Just dropping a few birds and small flights,” he admits. The month of November so awaited by some did not really keep its promises. “Generally, there is the migration of Scandinavians and, many hunters having returned to work, the birds are less in demand. That wasn't the case. These woodpigeons coming from Scandinavia have passed in good numbers through narrow corridors further east, like those coming from Russia and the Baltic States” analyzes Dan Testet, columnist for “Palombe et tradition”.
Victims
The migration moved even further towards the east of the department, or even further, because the woodpigeons used a huge corridor in Lot-et-Garonne in large numbers. On the other hand, in the west there was misery. “We are totally devastated. For two years we have seen half as many wood pigeons as before. And to make matters worse, they are not very cooperative” underlines Philippe Laporte, based in Preignac.
Wouldn't the gap of 23,000 hectares due to the mega fire of 2022 be responsible? “You have to wait several years to draw up an observation. This situation is perhaps due to the westerly wind, as in 2023, but this season the dominant winds were to the east and yet the phenomenon of decrease continues. On the other hand, a corridor which had disappeared for eight years has reappeared on the burn site for two years” remarks Bruno Trénit de Landiras. Another strangeness: Stéphane Armagnac observed half as many woodpigeons in Escaudes as Michel Rey in Lerm-et-Musset, although neighboring towns.
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