“The Crow of Ménilmontant” remains blocked in the Paris metro

Several interventions have been organized to recover the bird which has been for several months in the Ménilmontant metro station in the 20th arrondissement of Paris, but they have, until now, all proved in vain.

After a new rescue operation, “the crow of Ménilmontant” is still stuck in the Paris metro. For months, a beautiful bird, black from legs to beak, has been playing the intruder in the Paris metro. No doubt attracted by some mystery, the one who is now nicknamed “the Corneille of Ménilmontant”, from the name of the station where she has taken up residence, squats in the depths of the earth. Deprived of sunlight, and of her freedom, but not of food, since every day kind Parisians bring her something to eat, chopped steak or chickpeas.

“What he lacks above all is water and rest, with the metro which only stops running for four hours at night”explain Frédéric Jiguet, ornithologist from the National Museum of Natural History, specialist in crows. This expert led a rescue operation on Monday January 8, in conjunction with the RATP, which had already tried several times to capture the bird to bring it to the surface. “I set a trap, with an egg and chips, but nothing happened. She won’t be easy to capture. Crows are very intelligent birds, and this one saw me coming.”explains Frédéric Jiguet, who jokingly adds “with all this snow outside, I even wondered if she wasn’t better off in the warmth of her metro station.”

Stop unnecessary regulations

According to Frédéric Jiguet, the RATP and the MNHN are now planning to carry out a night operation, while the station is closed, by turning off lights and placing nets across the tracks. According to Frédéric Jiguet, This story should raise awareness among the general public about the fate reserved for crows in France. The ornithologist is publishing a book this week on Crows at Actes Sud, in which he recounts the genesis and achievements of a scientific program to understand crows. Its goal : “convince us to stop unnecessary regulations while proposing sustainable alternatives”.

Because if great means are deployed to save the Ménilmontant crow, the subject of all media attention, this species is in many departments classified as harmful. Like its corvid cousins, rooks and magpies, considered to be “seed raiders” In agricultural areas, crows can be captured and destroyed all year round, even outside hunting periods.