Birds Directive
Protection of Animal species
- Hunting, capture or killing of birds
Nevertheless, this does not mean that the general prohibitions are no longer in force. The general protective rules remain in force for all species not mentioned in the Annexes, or if the article’s conditions for derogation are not fulfilled.
Article 8:
1. In respect of the hunting, capture or killing of birds under this Directive, Member States shall prohibit the use of all means, arrangements or methods used for the large-scale or non-selective capture or killing of birds or capable of causing the local disappearance of a species, in particular the use of those listed in Annex IV, point (a).
2. Moreover, Member States shall prohibit any hunting from the modes of transport and under the conditions mentioned in Annex IV, point (b).
Under Article 8 of the Birds Directive, Member States have to outlaw all forms of non-selective and large scale capture or killing of birds, especially the methods listened in Annex IV of the Birds Directive. In this context, the Commission has supported the preparation of European management plans for several huntable species which are considered to be in an unfavourable conservation state, such as the Redshank.
These plans should assist Member States to fulfill their obligations under the directive. However, neither are they binding nor do they commit the Member States beyond their existing legal commitments under this directive.
Further reading:
In 2001, the Commission, in co-operation with experts from Member States and key stakeholder groups, such as BirdLife International and the Federation of Associations for Hunting and Conservation of the European Union (FACE), prepared a guide on sustainable hunting. The European ‘Sustainable Hunting Initiative’ aims to improve the understanding of the legal and technical aspects of the directive’s provisions on hunting and to develop a programme of scientific conservation and awareness-raising measures to promote sustainable hunting in accordance with the directive.