As a game bird, the grey partridge (Perdix perdix), always were to French cereal-growing plains what grouse (Lagopus scoticus) have meant to the moors of Scotland. Partridge populations had decreased dramatically in the last decades.
Research by the Game Conservancy (U.K.) had demonstrated that insecticides were certainly responsible, but it was believed that other chemical treatments and agricultural methods such as irrigation might also affect recruitment of young birds.
The Foundation launched a big project on the general theme: "Is it possible to reconcile modern, intensive agriculture and the grey partridge's survival in Europe? " Newborn partridge chicks are entirely dependant on a high-protein insect diet during the first ten days of their lives. Insufficient insect densities led to 100% chick mortality. But the presence of most insects on farmland depends largely on broad-leafed weeds.
Weeds and insects are, on the other hand, considered as pests by farmers and were eliminated in the race for greater cereal production.
To resolve this problem, the Foundation brought together as partners all the interested stakeholders: farmers, hunters, agronomists, biologists, etcÉand their professional institutions. A number of farms practicing intensive cereal growing were chosen as proving grounds.
Different avenues for weed/insect/partridge rehabilitation were tested, the ecology of the farmland and the evolution of partridge populations monitored.
United Kingdom research had highlighted the need for the "3-legged stool" approach for partridge conservation and development, i.e. providing nesting cover where insects were abundant, controlling predators and adapting shooting levels to partridge densities.
The Foundation showed that a fourth leg was needed for that stool in order to enable partridge population to grow back to former densities: supplemental feeding for the adults, all year round, together with adapted high-protein pellets for the chicks in their early age.
This last leg is imperative in what remains a hostile and poor environment for wild birds. As a result of the project, on many farms in Central and Northern France, wild partridge nesting densities have grown back to over 50 breeding pairs per 100 hectares and breeding success allows a sustained bag of one bird /hectare/year.
The Foundation's strategy has been to publicize on a large scale the project's results, demonstrating that means exist to reconcile conservation of some biodiversity with agricultural policies and economic constraints. An extension booklet was published, and a 55-minute videocassette was produced explaining the recipes for success.