Eurasian Curlew

Until recently, the species was considered to be non-threatened. However, recently it has been put into the category of vulnerable species due to several negative factors impacting its demography. Its global status is "near threatened". In Great Britain, after a 48% fall in its populations in the last 20 years, the Eurasian Curlew has recently been added to the national red list. It is talked about granting it absolute priority in terms of conservation actions. Taking the example of France, its breeding population has been classified as "vulnerable" (the status probably isn't accurate enough because reliable updates of the breeding populations - and therefore of trends - have not been available for many years, so old numbers have been taken into consideration for the analysis). Meanwhile, its wintering population is considered to be non-threatened. It is due to losses in habitats due to changes in land occupation and management. The Eurasian Curlew was doing well, adapting to large-scale cut-meadows, but unfortunately, the agriculture has modernized and mechanized for economic return; modern practices, such as ensilage and wrapping, threaten the species' subsistence in the long-term. In its traditional breeding areas, the Eurasian Curlew is the victim of the following: - The turning-over of meadows to crops, which has caused its disappearance from Alsace, as the wide tracts of land were transformed into maize fields - The draining of meadows which dry them out - Rolling the meadows in the spring to eliminate the molehills and other rough parts, which can end up destroying early incubations - The input of fertilizers, that stimulates the growth of meadow coverage (which become too high and dense for the breeding of nests), and also dwindles the valuable vegetation diversity essential to the curlew.Furthermore, the fertilization of the plots is a source of numerous disturbances, sometimes prohibitive if the laying had already taken place - of the mowing of the meadows, correlative to the ongoing climate changes, which makes naught the Eurasian Curlew nesting. The practice of ensilage or roll-wrapping allows to store the product of mowing in April-May and is particularly harmful. To counter these negative effects, agri-environmental measures have been in place for a number of years, allowing for the adaptation of agricultural management to the major nesting areas of the Eurasian Curlew (and the Water Rail, a victim like the curlew). In exchange for financial compensation, voluntary farmers accept to mow their plots later to allow the nests to take off. There is also the problem of hunting. Following a moratorium of up to 2018, the species is spared on the nesting sites, but not on the migration routes or in winter (it can be hunted on the Public Maritime Domain in France). However, due to the negative evolution of its status, hunting should be prohibited at all times and everywhere.