The killing of Tara
Newsletter 10/10/2016
KATO was shot already on September 1 2016, the first day of the hunting season in the Tuscany. One month later, on October 8 2016, the male bird TARA was shot near Thiene, province of Vicenza.
TARA was one of the oldest and most experienced birds in the reintroduced population. The accident happened during a stopover on the way to the wintering site. Linda Nowack, a member of Waldrappteam, found the body of TARA. She states: “I'm still shocked. I cannot believe that this wonderful bird was killed. The hunter just left the body in a small river, like waste. What kind of man is that?”
In the period when TARA and KATO were shot, a total of 17 migrating Northern Bald Ibises were on their way through Northern Italy towards Tuscany. Shooting two out of 17 birds is an extremely high rate.
The fact that all Northern Bald Ibises carry GPS tags makes them an indicator species for the real dimension of this threat. They clearly indicate that poaching is not a trivial matter but a serious threat to endangered species like the Northern Bald Ibis. Consequent measures are urgently needed.
We try everything to ensure that the responsible people are identified and will be accused, following the precedent case of a hunter who shot two Northern Bald Ibises in 2012 and was convicted at the court in Livorno.
We also urge the hunting associations, as our partners, to act decided and consequent against the minority of their members which illegally hunt on protected species and to exclude them from the hunter’s community. Poachers seriously damage the international reputation of Italy and of the Italian hunters in particular.
Picture: X-ray of TARA after the accident, with lots of pellets all over the body and with the GPS tag on the back.
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