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Poland Removed Five Bird Species from the Game List

Wild Eurasian coot in Silesian Park, Poland
Conservation · Management

Poland removed five bird species from the national list of game animals with effect from 2 January 2026: common pochard (Aythya ferina), tufted duck (Aythya fuligula), eurasian coot (Fulica atra), hazel grouse (Tetrastes bonasia) and eurasian woodcock (Scolopax rusticola). The Ministry of Climate and Environment announced the change the same day, stating that the aim was to strengthen protection of the species and reduce mortality caused by hunting. From 2 January, none of the five species could legally be hunted as game birds in Poland.

The ministry linked the decision to conservation concerns and gave more specific context for several of the birds. It described Poland’s breeding population of common pochard as declining rapidly, noted that tufted duck was also declining, and linked the poor status of hazel grouse in Central Europe to habitat loss. It also stated that hunting contributes directly to mortality across the affected species and can disturb both game birds and protected birds. Removing the five species from the game list was presented as a way to reduce those pressures.

The ministry also stated that none of the five species causes damage to crops or agricultural production that would justify keeping them on the game list. It described the change as part of protecting Poland’s natural resources and biodiversity.

Sources and image credit

  1. Ministry of Climate and Environment. (2026, January 2). The common pochard (Aythya ferina), tufted duck (Aythya fuligula), Eurasian coot (Fulica atra), hazel grouse (Tetrastes bonasia) and Eurasian woodcock (Scolopax rusticola) are no longer game species in Poland.Primary government source; published 2 January 2026 and effective the same day.

Image: Rhododendrites — wild Eurasian coot in Silesian Park, Poland; Wikimedia Commons; Quality Image; representative Polish image · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source

About this content: This story was produced with AI assistance within an editorial workflow developed by Wildlife Vagabond. Editorial responsibility remains with Wildlife Vagabond.How AI is used

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Eurasian Coot Fulica atra Explore species Tufted Duck Aythya fuligula Explore species

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