In collaboration with the Chambre d’Agriculture des Bouches-du-Rhône, the managers of the Réserve Naturelle Nationale de la Crau and the shepherds of the 2024 season organised a friendly get-together on the evening of 25 March at the Peau de Meau sheepfold, which has been occupied for the past few weeks by Taha and his 1,400 sheep. Many thanks to him for welcoming us!
The event was an opportunity to welcome new comers to the Crau and provide them with essential information about the geographical and environmental context, as well as giving members of the Reserve the chance to meet their new ‘natural space housemates’.
The gathering also provided an opportunity to discuss in greater detail the actions to be implemented as part of the LIFE SOS Crau grasshopper project, and in particular the installation of temporary electric fences, known as exclosures, in the Coussoul to protect the grasshopper’s translocation zones.
Thanks to the combined efforts of local stakeholders and conservationists, traditional pastoral practices continue to be harmonised to preserve the rich ecosystem of the Coussouls de Crau. The LIFE SOS Crau Plain Grasshopper project and the Reserve teams are committed to continuing to strengthen exchanges between the agricultural and conservation worlds.