The badger, believe it or not, is regarded in France as quite a legitimate animal to hunt. It must be said, however, that the main, perhaps the only "hunting" is in digging them out of the ground. A short article in the Chasseur Francais, written by a barrister, Charles Lagier, gives us an overview of the laws and decrees on the subject. The badger, the article says, is not protected either in France's internal law or in European law. And he gives us the relevant reference: directive 92/43/ CEE of 21/5/1992, known as Directive Natura 2000, for the experts have estimated that "the badger was not at present considered to be an endangered species in the Community as a whole". In fact the experts assess the numbers in the community at 1,200,000 badgers or meles meles. In France they are numerous enough to survive a reasonable cull or kill.
As game, the badger can be hunted with the gun in France, but the writer tells us that this is more or less for the birds. The real chasse is done with shovels. The dates for this are fixed annually by the order of the prefet. The opening date for the digging-hunters is September 15, ending on January 15, but capable of being extended to May 15 and maybe beyond on referring the matter to rank after rank of superior officials. This may be disputed by "opponents of hunting" but there could be cause, in respect of damage done by the badgers.
This would not be allowed, the writer has it, if it disturbed the raising of the young according to the state of the population of badgers in the area. Nowhere does this short article say what the hunters do with the badgers. Do they dig them out to be baited by dogs? Do they, the hunters, eat badgers or use their fur? Badgers have been eaten in Ireland. Andy Barclay, old friend and colleague, pointed out a passage in Roy Foster's Modern Ireland 1600-1972.
Michael Doheny, the Young Irelander, telling of his experiences on the run in west Cork and Kerry in 1848 "only occasionally mentions the Famine". He and fellow fugitives were treated to "the finest trout I ever saw" with "boiled new milk, slightly curdled . . ." and the next morning they had "excellent new potatoes, butter, new milk, and a slice of the flesh of fried badger". Has anyone else in this country ever tried eating badger? Surely, it is now a protected animal, in spite of our legal author. And the badger is protected as everyone knows, in this country, under the 1976 Wildlife Act.