Extremely rare animal

“Bird of the Year” ends up on hunters’ plates

The now rare teal nevertheless ends up on the plate.(Bild: Michael Dvorak)

The now rare teal has been named Bird of the Year by Birdlife - but the hunt for the animal continues in Styria.

According to Birdlife, it wasn't so long ago that the teal was anything but a rare phenomenon in the landscape - after the mallard, the smallest duck in Europe at a maximum of 38 centimetres was one of the most widespread swimming duck species in Austria.

According to the expert initiative, this has long since changed - and dramatically so. The fact that thousands temporarily come to the Burgenland Seewinkel region to moult in these very special climes at the change of feathers in September should not obscure the fact that Birdlife itself only suspects a mere 100 breeding pairs in Austria. And therefore, self-explanatorily, calls for their strict protection.

Thousands are drawn to Burgenland in particular to moult.(Bild: Michael Dvorak)

The Styrian hunting community takes a different view, with 210 teals having been shot last year alone. "And you can't shoot what isn't there," they say, questioning the NGOs' counting method. "However, the hunting community is happy to carry out counts where the duck is found, so we can compare them," says spokesperson Marion Kranabitl-Sarkleti.

There is also no discussion about stopping the hunt for the small duck, "you have to leave it up to the hunt to decide what and how much is shot within the legal framework". In addition, ducks can be hunted throughout the EU.

But why are hunters targeting the small duck at all, since - unlike perhaps the wild boar - it causes neither agricultural nor animal damage? Kranabitl-Sarkleti says frankly: "It tastes good."