Letters: Newcomers to France care more about wildlife than locals

To the Editor,

I read the letter from Dorne Lovegrove about the vet refusing to treat a fox  with interest.

The Ligue pour la Protection des Oiseaux (LPO) treats about 20,000 injured birds and animals each year – I doubt that they are breaking any laws. 

But when dealing with wild animals, there is a law about invasive alien species that one should be aware of, the EU Regulation 1143/2014 on Invasive Alien Species (IAS). 

It is illegal to release into the wild of Europe any invasive alien species, which include coypu (ragondin), grey squirrel (écureuil gris) and red eared terrapin (also known as red eared slider; tortue à oreilles rouges ), apple snail (pomme escargot) and some varieties of pampas grass. 

Locally, it is not uncommon for someone to post on the local facebook group « Has anyone lost a tortoise ? », which receives several replies stating that it is a wild red eared terrapin and should not be released into the wild. 

So the new owner has to find an animal refuge happy to take on the animal. 

However the terrapins can move quite quickly and often escaped back into the wild ! The advice of pest control is that these aliens should be killed humanly 

It was also interesting that there were a significant number of English people bringing injured wild animals to the vet. 

I feel that the English are more concerned about wildlife than the French. 

For instance, the LPO has 60,000 members whereas the UK equivalent, the RSPB, has 1,260,000 members. 

There was even a branch of the LPO for UK citizens for many years. 

However, I would add that I have met many knowledgeable and dedicated French birdwatchers.

Simon CROXSON, by mail

Do you agree that Britons feel more concerned about wildlife than the French? Have you ever taken a wild animal to the vet? Let us know at letters@connexionfrance.com