Camposano – The Carabinieri Forestry Corps' efforts to combat poaching, a threat to wildlife in Campania, continue. Yesterday, on an uncultivated land in the municipality of Camposano, officers from the Roccarinola Carabinieri Forestry Corps caught three men engaged in a completely illegal hunt inside a makeshift hide.
The operation, part of a wider round of checks on the application of hunting laws, led to significant seizures and criminal charges, demonstrating how the phenomenon remains rooted despite the bans.
The facts emerged during a routine inspection in the Neapolitan countryside, an area often the scene of irregular hunting practices due to its proximity to the protected areas of Partenio and the Picentini massif.
The three hunters, caught red-handed, were armed and used methods prohibited by Law 157/1992 – the cornerstone of Italian legislation on the protection of wildlife, amended over time to increase penalties for distortions of traditional hunting.
In particular, the violations discovered involved the use of electroacoustic equipment: a remote-controlled speaker and an electronic decoy capable of artificially reproducing bird song, an unfair technique that deceives migratory birds and alters the natural balance of the species.
But that's not all: the military also discovered four live specimens of Turdus philomelos (the song thrush, a passerine bird protected during the breeding season), used as "live decoys" to attract prey.
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According to data from the Forestry Corps, these methods contribute to the decline of already fragile populations: in Campania, poaching reports have increased by 15% in the last two years, directly impacting ecosystems that depend on the seasonal migration of birds. In light of the evidence, the three individuals were reported to the Nola Public Prosecutor's Office for violations of hunting regulations.
At the same time, three hunting rifles, a remote-controlled speaker, an electronic decoy, and an illegally held song thrush were seized (the other three decoys were released on site after veterinary checks). Administrative fines were also imposed: over €450 per person, with prison sentences of up to two years for the most serious offenses.
This operation is not an isolated one. The Carabinieri Forestry Group of Naples, with its territorial branches, conducts dozens of similar operations every month, from the Sele Plain to the Vesuvian forests, to combat an underground economy that generates an estimated annual illicit turnover of hundreds of thousands of euros.
(h3)The seizures carried out:
3 hunting rifles;
1 speaker with remote control;
1 electroacoustic recall;
1 live specimen of song thrush (illegally kept).
The Camposano incident is a warning: in a region as rich in history and nature as Campania, surveillance will not tolerate shortcuts. Investigations are ongoing to verify possible complicity, while local environmentalists applaud the operation, calling for even tighter controls ahead of the migration season.
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