Every year, 800,000 persons visit a 1,500 hectare forest entirely surrounded by suburban housing just East of Paris. The forest is managed and hunting of Roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) leased by the National Forestry Office.
Besides extraction of timber and hunting other activities include biking, horseback riding and strolling on the road network throughout the forest. It was noted that Roe deer population density had decreased by two-thirds in the last few years.
The Foundation offered its help in order to elaborate a strategy aiming to reconcile access to the forest by all interested parties with the tranquillity needed in certain places and at certain times for wildlife species to thrive.
An important number of Roe deer were captured and equipped with radio-collars in order to monitor their movements, to see how human activities affect the animals' behaviour.