A Slovenian bear, like those that have been reintroduced to the Pyrenees. Drawing. - Olivier Joly - Sipa

A dog, four goats, 14 horses, 32 cows, 29 hives and, above all, 1,129 sheep. This is what we could call the "hunting table" of bears in Ariège for the 2019 season. These figures, made public this Friday by the prefecture, in fact identify the dead animals for which the breeders were compensated by the 'State, and therefore cases where the technicians were able to prove that the deaths occurred following the passage of a plantigrade.

It is the number of sheep compensated which strikes the most: it goes from 625 in 2018 to 1,129 therefore. And he understands the three derailments of the year in Ariège, these phenomena of panic of herds which cause the simultaneous fall of a large number of animals at the foot of a cliff.

The President's Promise

This assessment sheds new light on the promise made by Emmanuel Macron to the shepherds last week, during his visit to Pau. He undertook not to reintroduce bears in the Pyrenees before the end of his mandate. And even to possibly dismiss those who are the most aggressive.

The Ursine population of the Pyrenees, which now sees cubs being born each year, is estimated at around forty individuals.

Planet

Ariège: After the fatal fall of 61 sheep, the bear in question will be frightened

Planet

Pyrenees: Emmanuel Macron promises shepherds to stop reintroducing bears

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