Bird Protection Flanders and Dryade are initiating a lawsuit against the Flemish government to protect the wild hamster from extinction. After repeatedly raising the alarm with policymakers, the efforts remain systematically inadequate. A lawsuit is therefore the only option left to force the government to take responsibility to prevent the extinction of this protected species.
The wild hamster – an introduction
The wild hamster (cricetus cricetus, hereafter: hamster) is naturally found mainly in grasslands, fields, steppes, and arable land. With the rise of agriculture several millennia ago, its habitat spread further west. It can be found from Southwest Russia through the Danube Valley and the Pannonian Plain through Germany to South Limburg, East Belgium, and Northeast France.
Hamsters can only be found in our region in arable land, scrub, or small landscape elements with a loess or clay soil, where they can dig an underground burrow. The hamster is located in Flanders at the western edge of its natural distribution area.
Why is the hamster threatened? The failing species protection programme.
The hamster is a protected species that should, in principle, enjoy the strictest species protection regime. The hamster is included in Annex IV of the EU Habitats Directive and falls under the Flemish Species Decision as a protected species (category 3). Nevertheless, the Flemish government is seriously failing to protect the hamster.
Unfortunately, the population in Flanders is declining sharply. Today, it can only be found in Widooie (Limburg).
The increasingly intensive agriculture and rapidly succeeding monotonous crops do not provide the hamster with sufficient quality to forage and benefit from the natural protection offered by crops. On fields where harvesting is done late (i.e. after 1 September) or not at all, hamsters have the best chances of survival. Here, the reproductive success is high, and the offspring from the second litter can successfully establish themselves. On regular fields, where the harvest is already taken in summer (July), the chances of survival decrease significantly because cover is lacking, making the species very vulnerable to predation by foxes, birds of prey, and martens. The rise of modern agricultural techniques, along with increasing spatial fragmentation and climate change, is therefore the number one threat to the survival of the hamster.
Moreover, its habitat has become so fragmented in Flanders that it is at risk of completely disappearing.
The first species protection programme (SBP) was inadequate and the Flemish government took hardly any emergency measures while awaiting the second SBP. Unfortunately, vague, empty words are not sufficient to protect, conserve, and restore a threatened species. The objective is, however, clear. A minimally viable population of 1500 hamsters in a well-managed hamster area of at least 600 hectares, including a minimum of 100 hectares of core area under direct management. This objective is based on research by, among others, scientist A. Kayser. She states, based on genetic research, that this minimum population size (minimum viable population) should be assessed in the spring.
However, due to the failing species protection programme, there is a real chance that the last remaining hamster population in Widooie will also disappear. The first SPB, which was extended twice, expired on 21 July 2023. No emergency measures were implemented and the second SBP is not yet in effect. In conclusion, the hamster currently enjoys little to no protection in practice. The crops in the fields are generally harvested from July onwards, which coincides with the hamster's breeding season (July – September). Without protection from the crops, the remaining wild hamsters are doomed.
In addition to the lack of decisive emergency measures in Widooie, the Flemish government also made no effort to reintroduce the hamster into former core areas, such as Bertem or Hoegaarden. Nevertheless, the Court of Justice and various national judges have ruled that the legal protection prohibitions of the Habitats Directive entail a duty of restoration for the member states.
In 2004, the Flemish government was once again held accountable by the European Commission for failing to meet its obligations under the Habitats Directive. The Commission threatened with an infringement procedure, where fines could amount to several million euros.
What do we demand?
Bird Protection Flanders and Dryade expect the Flemish government to adopt a second SBP in the short term that sets the bar high enough. This means a minimum viable population of 1500 hamsters and a well-managed hamster area of at least 100 hectares under its own management. Concrete actions are also needed in the former hamster areas of Bertem, Hoegaarden, and Bilzen, where the species has already become extinct.
We want to emphasise that past discussions have always been constructive and conducted in a good spirit, but the cabinet was not willing to tighten the objectives (regarding area and population) for the second SBP. It is certainly not the case that only the current Flemish government is responsible for the mismanagement that has occurred (the government has been falling short in this matter for 20 years), but it is now up to this and the next government to rectify this mismanagement, and for that, a more ambitious policy will be needed.
Read the full press release here.
Hamster as a symbol and umbrella species for arable biodiversity
The fate of the hamster is indicative of the general decline of our biodiversity. A hamster-friendly management within a smaller-scale agricultural landscape not only provides benefits in terms of biodiversity but also contributes to the water-retaining capacity of the soil, reducing the runoff of fertile soil and making the natural environment more resilient to the effects of climate change.
“In this sense, the hamster is not only a symbol but also an umbrella species: a robust hamster-friendly policy also benefits other species, including typical arable species such as partridge, hare, skylark, or corn bunting.”
Niels Luyten – Bird Protection Flanders
Nature restoration is crucial
The precarious situation of the hamster in Flanders is also at odds with the EU biodiversity strategy. Now that the Nature Restoration Law has been approved by the European Parliament, we are one step closer to (additional) legally binding targets with restoration obligations for affected ecosystems. The intended nature restoration is a crucial link in addressing the climate and biodiversity crisis.
“The precarious state in which the hamster finds itself, and by extension various species of the agricultural landscape, painfully highlights that there is still much work to be done. Only ambitious SBPs with clear objectives and effective measures can contribute to the challenges faced by the Flemish government.”
Niels Luyten – Bird Protection Flanders
An ambitious hamster policy is therefore a sustainable investment for the future. Hendrik Schoukens, hamster specialist and also our lawyer in this case, wrote an interesting opinion article why the €800,000 that has been invested so far is not wasted money. Germany, France, and the Netherlands are working hard and have seriously raised their ambitions. For instance, France has drawn up a master plan for 2019 – 2028 in which they strongly adhere to a minimum viable population. In Germany, a rigorous policy is also being implemented near the German town of Pulheim. This policy focuses on the most valuable plots, where no profitable production is allowed and where no further harvesting takes place. These measures seem to be bearing fruit. The number of hamster burrows has doubled in just a few years.
BBC Earth has a beautiful fragment about the wild hamster in Vienna.
Bird Protection Flanders and Dryade are doing everything possible to implement an ambitious second species protection programme as soon as possible.