Renewed Concerns Over the 'Massacre' of Migratory Birds in Fereydunkenar

Iranian news agencies and media have once again warned about the number of illegally hunted migratory birds in Fereydunkenar. According to reports from Iran, this figure has increased by at least '30 percent' over the past decade to 'one million'; this is while the Iranian Department of Environment has ordered a ban on the mass hunting of these birds. Last month, the ILNA news agency reported on the increase in illegal bird hunting, quoting Alireza Hashemi, an environmental activist, stating that this number has reached one million annually. Advertising banners to identify migratory aquatic birds have been reported. The Arman newspaper also mentioned that the number of flamingos hunted in the fall reached a point where the price of each flamingo dropped to only 5,000 tomans. The official news agency of the Islamic Republic, IRNA, also referred to the increase in the number of illegal migratory bird hunts on December 19, stating, 'Millions of birds migrate annually to the largest wintering habitat in the world in Fereydunkenar, and according to the latest announcement from the Global Bird Life Institute in 2003, about 700,000 birds were hunted, which has now reached [one] million.' IRNA reported that these birds, traveling from Asia and Europe to Africa, are being hunted 'completely silently and quietly.' According to reports, Masoumeh Ebtekar, head of the Department of Environment, has issued a 'strict order' prohibiting the mass hunting of migratory and aquatic birds by new methods. The Arman newspaper quoted Hamidreza Khalildar, head of the Department of Environment Protection, stating, 'Trappers in Fereydunkenar have been left unchecked for eight years. There was no discussion in previous governments about addressing excessive hunting.' This official from the Iranian Department of Environment has promised that action will be taken against traps and aerial nets, which reportedly play a major role in illegal hunting.