The Government decided to ban, with immediate effect, the hunting of wild rabbits on the island of Santa Maria.
Under the terms of an ordinance issued by the Regional Secretariat for Agriculture and Forestry, published in the Official Journal today, this prohibition is justified by "the need to adopt measures to control wild rabbit populations" due to an outbreak of Viral Haemorrhagic Disease in some areas of Santa Maria.
It also claims to be "necessary to prevent the spread of this disease during the current hunting season in order to minimise its effects on the wild rabbit populations" of Santa Maria.
The ordinance issued by Noé Rodrigues also reminds that despite this ban on the hunting of wild rabbits, "the safeguarding of agricultural crops, in specific situations, will be always possible by adjusting the species density."