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The Poitevin marshes have been confronted for many years with the invasion of nutria. For lack of predators, trapping campaigns are organized against these “pests”.
The summer drought did not stop their proliferation. Nutria have become a scourge in the French countryside, near rivers, ponds or marshes. This rodent imported from South America in the 19th century causes a lot of damage. It has been classified as a “vermin” for more than 20 years. In the Poitevin marsh, we try to regulate their presence. In Magné, in Deux-Sèvres, Nicolas Marilleau, cattle breeder, notices the holes formed in his land by coypu. The earth is collapsing near the banks. The weakened soil is not without consequences for his livestock. “If a cow breaks a hind leg here, the cow is euthanized…”he laments.
To fight against the proliferation of nutria, and for lack of predators, trapping campaigns are organized in the Poitevin marsh twice a year. The animals are then slaughtered. They can be legally killed all year round. For some associations and naturalists, these regulations are absurd.