Wild Fowling

Iberian doves
Pigeon hunters of the Midi
In the land of abundance
A Very English Air

In Autumn, the palombes fly to Spain across the Pyrenees. But global warming change their winter destinations. Ancient hunting grounds are now derelict, new ones appear in other places, as in Catalonia. This film describes how doves adapt themselves to these new winter lands.

The pigeon is acquiring new admirers every day. As a result, in recent years a host of structures of varying heights — tall enough, in any case, to protrude from the foliage of the oak grove — have emerged above the southern scrubland, dedicated to awaiting the waves of blue birds. To the south, to the east, a new generation of Paloumaïres — pigeon hunters — is being born.

A portrait of Jamon Arrosagaray, a colourful Spanish pork butcher, who shares a common passion with his brother Luis, a urological surgeon. Together, they hunt pigeons in the Valcarlos valley, but have also created a small business arranging hunting trips in north-western Argentina, in the extensive wetlands along the rivers. This is where the huge bird populations of the Gran Chaco can be found. But beyond the hunting parties, the film raises the question of the impact of this type of activity on species management.

Originally a British breed, today the English setter is the most popular gun dog in France. What are the reasons for its success? Is the English Setter really the most versatile of hunting breeds? From its origins to the present day, this documentary retraces the history of the English Setter with leading specialists in the field.