Ministry takes action: Thousands are being released into the wild!
The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has launched a campaign using natural methods to combat the rise in tick cases during the summer months. As part of this initiative, partridges are being released into the wild in many provinces to reduce the population of harmful insects.
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With the arrival of summer, tick bites have seen an increase in Turkey. To take precautions against this situation, partridges raised at the Partridge Breeding Station in the Şuhut district of Afyonkarahisar have been released into designated areas.
Kemal Can, the 5th Regional Director of Nature Conservation and National Parks (DKMP), stated that the Şuhut Partridge Breeding Station, which has been operating since 2009, produces chukar and grey partridges. Can noted that 137 thousand chukar and 39 thousand 600 grey partridges have been produced to date.
REGIONS WHERE PARTRIDGES ARE RELEASED AND THEIR OBJECTIVES
Stating that the production of 6 thousand chukar and 3 thousand grey partridges is planned for this year, Can said that the partridges are generally released into the wild in provinces such as Çanakkale, Yalova, Bursa, Tekirdağ, Denizli, Muğla, Manisa, and Afyonkarahisar. The areas where the partridges are released are closed to hunting for three years to ensure these birds establish themselves and breed in the region.
THE ROLE OF PARTRIDGES IN BIOLOGICAL CONTROL
Stating that the partridges are released into the wild to support the ecosystem and ensure the continuation of the species, Can emphasized that these birds play an important role in biological control, particularly by feeding on insects. By feeding on pests such as sunn pests and ticks, partridges prevent the spread of these species, thereby protecting the natural balance.