The province of North Holland will take steps to tackle the swan poachers around the Blaricum district of Blaricummermeent. Local residents last week sounded the alarm after they found empty swan nests and suspected that the swans had been robbed. They had also seen suspicious types. The responsible supervisor of the province is now starting a neighborhood investigation.
In recent weeks, at least three swan nests were most likely looted in the Blaricum neighborhood. Only one pullover remained, but that too is now missing. The local residents think that this is about poaching, to sell the pullets as a delicacy or as an ornamental bird. One of the concerned residents, Blaricumse Ilona Haas, raised the problem with NH News†
In the radio program NH Throw Saturday says Haas that shortly after the publication she had a conversation with the provincial supervisor of the Nature Conservation Act.
The province is responsible for enforcing this law and must therefore address reports of animal cruelty and poaching. “It was a very pleasant conversation,” says Haas. “Unfortunately, these kinds of reports are rarely received by the province because people do not know how to find their way.”
“We want to see if any suspicious images have been recorded”
Neighborhood Survey
The responsible supervisor at the province is Pier Hoekstra. He has already started a neighborhood survey in the Blaricummermeent. Hoekstra, for example, has looked around at the swan nests and has asked several residents who live near nests and have cameras at the front door to send the camera images. “We want to see if any suspicious images have been recorded,” he says. But this still takes time because these residents first have to go to the security companies to have the cameras read.
The local residents informed him that they had seen a suspicious man with ‘excessive interest in the swan’s nests’. A resident took a photo of this. A car with an Eastern European license plate was also seen around the same time. Hoekstra is currently trying to find out exactly where and when this was, so that she can see a registration certificate from camera images along the road.
Too late for now
Unfortunately, the nests are already empty and it is too late for the swans and pullets this year, but Hoekstra says that game cameras may be installed next year at the new nests. According to Hoekstra, the idea of local resident Haas to set up a swan guard next year is also a good idea, but until then he emphasizes that residents should call if they see anything suspicious. “The reports will also be shared with the police.”
Listen back to the whole interview with Ilona Haas via this link†