France reviews its hunting rules

Across France, the forests and vineyards in winter are blissfully quiet. Apart, that is, from the periodic sound of gunfire. The season for la chasse (hunting) runs from September to February. Over New Year, when there is less to do in the fields, many farmers and other locals pick up their guns and head out in search of sangliers (wild boar), hares or other game. To the unsuspecting rambler, the sight of a fully grown sanglier fleeing along a footpath can prompt surprise—or worse. The number of accidents caused by hunting each year has triggered an intractable row about the use of the French countryside.