50,000 euros fine for smashing seagull eggs with an oar

We knew the hen with the golden eggs, it will now also be necessary to take into account the black-headed gull, a protected species.

A Latvian will remember this for a long time after being fined 50,000 euros for crushing the eggs of this rare bird.

A judge in the Baltic state pronounced this severe sanction against Artis Krumins who, then in the spring of 2021 on an island in the north of his country, had crushed a dozen eggs of this seagull, after having crossed a nest on its way.

The case could have gone unnoticed if a local scientist doing research on the island at the same time had not been able to film Artis Krumins… and hand over his images to the authorities.

“I tried to calm the egg breaker down, but it got even more aggressive,” the scientist told the audience.

“He started using his oars, throwing the eggs in the air and hitting them,” he testified.

“These ten eggs cost more than if they were pure gold!” “Protested in his defense Mr. Krumins’ lawyers, according to an article by local media Latvijas Avize.

Arguments that left Judge Lauris Shnepsts unmoved, the magistrate saying that it was a mistake to “compare the eggs of this protected wild species with a piece of shiny metal”.

“I hope this case will set a legal precedent for the protection of wildlife in our country,” he told reporters after the judgment delivered on Tuesday.

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