Guide — small game regulations

Regulations on returning small game to the wild: what you need to know before ordering

Permitted species, periods, authorisations, provenance and traceability: the regulatory framework for restocking explained simply by an approved game farm based in Chatte, Isère, since 1951. This guide helps you prepare a compliant return to the wild — it does not replace the advice of your departmental hunters' federation or of your DDT(M).

The general framework

Why is returning game to the wild regulated?

Introducing animals into the wild is never a trivial act: the regulations aim to protect wild populations (genetics, health, competition), to guarantee the provenance of the animals returned to the wild and to fit each operation into coherent management of the ground. The French environment code (Code de l'environnement) distinguishes game farms whose animals are intended to be introduced into the wild — category A — from farms whose output goes to the table. A category A farm must hold a certificate of competence and a prefectoral operating licence, keep a register of arrivals and departures, and have an identification number. GIBIS meets these conditions and is registered under holding no. 38001, with veterinary, health and environmental approvals. For the hunter or ground manager, the principle is simple: only permitted species are returned to the wild, from an identified farm, under the conditions set by the département — and you must be able to prove it. All the rules that apply to restocking are set out on our restocking game page.

Category A game farm

Certificate of competence, prefectoral operating licence, farm register and identification number: the four pillars of the status of a farm whose game is intended to be returned to the wild.

Protecting wild populations

Provenance rules and local bans (rock partridge, management plans) prevent genetic pollution and health risks for the wildlife already present.

Proof at any time

An invoice naming the farm of origin, a health certificate and, where needed, an authorisation: these are the documents requested if the OFB carries out an inspection.

Permitted and prohibited species

Which small game species can be returned to the wild in France?

Returning game to the wild is only possible for species that may legally be hunted — and even then not all of them, nor everywhere. The table below summarises the situation of the small game species we rear — and of those we do not, with the reasons why.

Species	Return to the wild	Conditions and restrictions
Common pheasant (melanistic, Chinese ring-necked, PUR CHASSE® strain)	Permitted	Summer restocking (12-16 weeks) or birds for shooting in season; departmental cut-off dates may apply.
Red-legged partridge	Permitted under conditions	Prohibited where the rock partridge occurs (mountain areas) to prevent hybridisation. Check with the FDC.
Grey partridge	Permitted	French strain recommended; some départements with natural populations regulate returns to the wild in their SDGC.
Mallard	Permitted	Returned to the wild on ponds and marshes; vaccinated birds recommended; mind the specific rules of reserves.
Wild rabbit	Permitted under conditions	Listed as ESOD (species liable to cause damage) in some communes, where introduction requires authorisation. Vaccination against myxomatosis + VHD essential.
European hare	Permitted under conditions	Prohibited in management units covered by a hare management plan; animals tested for brucellosis and tularaemia required.
Common quail	Prohibited	Returning quail to the wild is prohibited in France (risk to the wild migratory species). That is why GIBIS does not offer them.
Reeves's pheasant	Permitted	A huntable species, but we stopped producing it more than twenty years ago — our page explains why, honestly.

Pheasants, partridges, mallards: the restocking trio

The three pillars of feathered restocking game, permitted in almost every département, with local nuances written into the departmental scheme.

No quail at GIBIS — and for good reason

Returning quail to the wild is prohibited in France to protect the migratory common quail. Beware of any supplier offering them for a return to the wild: the buyer is responsible for their introduction.

Local restrictions, not national ones

Red-legged partridge in rock partridge areas, hares in management units, rabbits in ESOD communes: the bans are almost always territorial. Hence the importance of contacting the FDC before ordering.

The regulatory calendar

At what times of year can game be returned to the wild?

There is no single national calendar for returning game to the wild: the periods result from the biology of the species, the objectives pursued and departmental rules, often set by prefectoral order or written into the departmental hunting management scheme. Three main windows shape the year. In spring, from February to April, breeding stock — pairs and coveys of partridges in particular — is returned to the wild to breed on the spot. In summer, from June to August, comes the heart of restocking: birds aged 8 to 16 weeks returned to the wild 6 to 12 weeks before the opening so that they revert to wild behaviour. Finally, during the hunting season, returning birds intended for shooting remains possible but is more tightly regulated: many départements set a cut-off date after which it is prohibited (often during the season, sometimes the day before the season closes for the species), and some schemes impose a minimum interval between the birds' arrival on the ground and any shooting. These dates vary from one département to the next: the only reliable source is the order in force where you are, available from your FDC or the DDT(M). Our restocking page details the production calendar that matches these windows.

February – April: spring returns to the wild

Partridge breeding stock in pairs or coveys, to build a population that nests on the spot. Also a good time to establish rabbit warrens.

June – August: summer restocking

Pheasant poults of 12 to 16 weeks, 14-week partridges, young mallards: returned to the wild well before the opening, they have time to acclimatise and disperse.

Hunting season: departmental cut-off dates

In season, returning birds for shooting is legal but limited: check the cut-off date set in your département and any waiting period before shooting.

Traceability

Provenance and traceability: the documents that must accompany every return to the wild

In the event of an inspection — the OFB (French Biodiversity Agency) has authority in the field — the holder of the hunting rights must be able to prove the origin of the animals returned to the wild. In practice, this rests on the documents the breeder supplies on delivery, and it is an excellent criterion for judging a supplier before you order. At GIBIS, every delivery leaves with an invoice stating the species, number, age and holding number of origin (38001), together with the corresponding health certificate. For hares, the brucellosis and tularaemia test results accompany the animals; for wild rabbits, the myxomatosis and VHD vaccination certificate. For monitored operations (GIC, federations), we supply ringed stock with provenance data. For export, movements are accompanied by the official health certificate and TRACES documents. These papers are not red tape: they prove that your return to the wild is lawful, and they protect the ACCA or club president who signed the order form.

Invoice stating provenance: Species, quantity, age, date and holding number of origin: the invoice is the first document requested if a return to the wild is inspected.
Health certificate with every delivery: Issued for the batch delivered; supplemented by brucellosis/tularaemia tests for hares and vaccination certificates for wild rabbits.
Farm register and rings: Our registers of arrivals and departures allow every batch to be traced; ringing is offered for management operations that require individual monitoring. Every Gibis bird carries a numbered ring: hunters report their recoveries (report a ring you have found) and it is the hunters' federation of the département that validates each recovery.
Declared transport and purpose-fitted vehicles: Live delivery in our own game-farm vehicles, with movement documents; EU export by road or by air to IATA standards with TRACES documents.

Adult game pheasant with a full tail in a meadow — traced and identified bird, GIBIS holding no. 38001

The regulatory players

SDGC, FDC, DDT(M): who decides what in your département?

Three players shape the local rules on returning game to the wild, and it pays to know who does what before setting up a restocking project. The departmental hunting management scheme (SDGC), drawn up by the departmental hunters' federation and approved by the prefect for six years, is the reference document: it may set the conditions for returning game to the wild (species, periods, densities, prohibited areas) and is binding on every hunter in the département. The FDC is your first point of contact: it knows the scheme, the management plans in force and the suppliers, and often provides technical and financial support for ACCA restocking operations. The DDT(M) — departmental directorate of territories (and the sea) — examines, on behalf of the prefect, applications for authorisation to introduce game into the wild where these are required, generally after consulting the federation. It also issues the operating licences for game farms. Finally, the OFB checks in the field that operations are lawful. Our departmental pages detail the local context — for example in Isère, where the presence of the rock partridge in the mountains restricts the return of red-legged partridges to the wild, in neighbouring Drôme, in the Rhône or in the Ain.

The SDGC: the departmental rulebook

Approved by the prefect for six years and binding on hunters: this is where the local conditions for returning game to the wild are set out. Ask your federation for it — it is public.

The FDC: your first call

Before any order, a call to the departmental federation tells you what is possible, on which dates, and whether restocking aid exists for your ACCA.

The DDT(M): authorisations

Introductions of game requiring authorisation, game farm licences, exemptions: the DDT(M) examines the files for the prefect, generally after consulting the FDC.

The OFB: inspection

Environmental inspectors may check a return to the wild and demand proof of provenance. With a proper invoice and health certificate, the inspection is a formality.

Hare management plan

The special case of the hare: management plans and management units

The European hare is the most tightly regulated small game species when it comes to returning animals to the wild. Many départements have divided their territory into management units with a hare management plan written into the SDGC: maximum authorised bag (PMA), bag book, specific dates — and, very often, a ban on returning hares to the wild in the units where the wild population is covered by the plan. The logic is health and genetics: a natural, self-sustaining population is being protected. Restocking with hares remains possible outside these areas, or as part of operations validated by the federation, and it is then subject to strict requirements: health screening required by the FDC or the DDT(M) depending on the département (brucellosis, tularaemia), a spell in an acclimatisation pen strongly advised, low densities and large grounds. Before any order of restocking hares, we systematically ask our customers to validate their project with their FDC — returning hares to the wild is prepared months in advance, and it would be a shame to invest in French leverets (€95.00 each) or wild-caught hares (€410.00 a pair) for an operation that is unlawful or doomed to fail. To see how much the rules differ, three hare management plans are public: Nord, 2020-2026 management plan, Drôme, hare annex 2026-2027 and Allier, hare management plan (all in French). On health matters, the EBHS fact sheet of the Fédération nationale des chasseurs and the tularaemia fact sheet of the French Ministry of Health are the references. The step-by-step method is in our guide to returning hares to the wild, and the prices of both supply routes are in the hare catalogue.

Management units and PMA

The département is divided into units; where a management plan applies, the bag is limited and returning hares to the wild is generally prohibited to protect the wild stock.

Health screening

Brucellosis and tularaemia: the screening required depends on the FDC and the DDT(M) of each département. Our animals are delivered tested — wild-caught hares during their quarantine — and every batch leaves with its health certificate.

Acclimatisation and suitable densities

A few days in an acclimatisation pen, then a density matched to the species, on large grounds: around 13 pheasants per 100 hectares (benchmark from the FDC Isère's PDT), but no fewer than 8 to 15 hares per 100 hectares, below which EBHS strikes harder. This is the method that gives measurable results.

Our position as a breeder

What the regulations say about us — and what we say frankly

A serious game breeder has no interest in seeing its customers break the law: an unlawful return to the wild means an ACCA in trouble and a wild species put at risk. That is why we would rather lose a sale than sell an animal for a prohibited use. We do not offer quail, because returning them to the wild is prohibited in France — the quail sold “for dog training” or “for shooting” pose a real regulatory problem for the buyer as soon as they end up in the wild. We stopped rearing Reeves's pheasant more than twenty years ago, and our dedicated page says so clearly rather than leaving any ambiguity. And when a customer calls us to return red-legged partridges to the wild in a mountain area, or hares in a management unit, our first advice is to call the federation before signing the order form. We owe this way of working to three generations of game farming in Chatte: the trust of federations and hunting clubs — some of which have been with us for decades — is worth more than any one-off sale. You will find our references on the references and federations page.

No sales for prohibited uses

No quail for returning to the wild, no hares without FDC validation in management-plan areas: we turn down orders that are clearly unlawful.

Honest product pages

Reeves's pheasant has not been produced here for more than twenty years, and the page says so. What we sell is described as it is, prices included.

The federation reflex

Before any unusual project, we refer the customer to their FDC. A return to the wild validated upstream is an operation that goes well — for the customer and for the wildlife.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do you need authorisation to return small game to the wild on your ground?

It depends on the species and the département. The principle laid down by the French environment code is that introducing animals of game species into the wild is regulated: for the classic restocking species (pheasant, partridge, mallard), returning them to the wild is generally possible under the conditions set by the departmental hunting management scheme, without a burdensome individual procedure, but some cases require an authorisation examined by the DDT(M) after consulting the federation — notably wild rabbits in communes where they are listed as ESOD, hares in certain areas, or particular species and situations. In every case, you must be able to prove the provenance of the animals (invoice from an identified farm, health certificate). The right reflex: call your FDC before ordering, with the species, the quantity and the planned date.

Can quail be returned to the wild for hunting in France?

No. Returning quail to the wild is prohibited in France, to protect the common quail, a wild migratory species whose populations are fragile and which farm-reared birds (often hybridised with the Japanese quail) would contaminate genetically. Farm-reared quail are still sold for dog training in enclosures or for the table, but introducing them into the wild exposes the buyer to penalties. That is why GIBIS neither rears nor sells quail: we offer no animal whose normal hunting use would be unlawful.

Which farm-reared small game species can be returned to the wild?

The classic restocking species: common pheasant (and its melanistic and Chinese ring-necked forms), red-legged partridge, grey partridge, mallard, wild rabbit and European hare. All are subject to conditions: the red-legged partridge cannot be returned to the wild in mountain areas where the rock partridge lives, the hare is prohibited in management units covered by a management plan, the wild rabbit requires authorisation in communes where it is listed as ESOD, and departmental cut-off dates may apply to all of them. Details by species are on our pheasant, partridge, duck, wild rabbit and hare pages, and the local framework is in your département's SDGC.

Up to what date can game be returned to the wild during the hunting season?

There is no national date: each département sets its own rules, by prefectoral order or in the departmental hunting management scheme. Many départements prohibit any return to the wild after a date during the season, others impose a minimum interval between the birds' arrival and any shooting in the area, and some restrict birds intended for shooting to equipped grounds (recall aviaries, pens). The only reliable source is the text in force in your département, which your federation will provide. For genuine restocking the question hardly arises: the birds are returned to the wild from June to August, well before the opening.

What documents must the breeder supply when delivering game?

At a minimum: an invoice stating the species, quantity, age and identification number of the farm of origin, and a health certificate issued for the batch. Depending on the species, test results (brucellosis and tularaemia for hares) and vaccination certificates (myxomatosis and VHD for wild rabbits) are added. For a movement to another EU country, the official health certificate and TRACES documents are compulsory. GIBIS, holding no. 38001 with veterinary, health and environmental approvals, supplies all these documents with every delivery — keep them: they are your proof if the OFB carries out an inspection.

What is the departmental hunting management scheme (SDGC)?

It is the framework document for hunting in each département. Drawn up by the departmental hunters' federation for six years and approved by the prefect, it is binding on every hunter in the département. Among other things, it may regulate returning game to the wild: species concerned, periods, conditions, areas where certain operations are prohibited (for example the red-legged partridge in rock partridge areas), species management plans including the hare management plan. Before any restocking project, consult your département's SDGC — it is public and available from your FDC — to check that your project fits within it.

Can hares be returned to the wild anywhere in France?

No. Many départements have introduced hare management plans by management unit, written into the SDGC, and returning hares to the wild is generally prohibited there in order to protect the monitored wild population. Outside these areas, or as part of operations validated by the federation, it remains possible with animals that have undergone the screening required by the FDC or the DDT(M) (brucellosis, tularaemia), ideally via an acclimatisation pen, at low density and on large grounds. With a French leveret at €95.00 and a pair of wild-caught hares at €410.00, the financial stakes alone justify validating the project with the FDC before ordering — which is what we systematically ask of our customers.

Who inspects returns of game to the wild, and what are the penalties for breaking the rules?

Field inspections are carried out by the OFB's environmental inspectors, and by the federations' development officers as regards compliance with the scheme. Returning a prohibited species to the wild, out of season, without a required authorisation or without proof of provenance exposes you to criminal penalties (fines, or even an offence for introducing species whose introduction is prohibited) and jeopardises the association's relations with the federation and the authorities. Conversely, a documented return to the wild — invoice from an identified farm, health certificate, compliance with the SDGC — can be checked in a few minutes. Compliance is not a constraint: it is what protects the ground manager who signed the order.

Can a private individual buy game and return it to the wild on their own land?

Yes, a private landowner can buy restocking game and return it to the wild on their ground, under the same conditions as ACCAs and hunting clubs: permitted species, compliance with the SDGC and any departmental cut-off dates, proof of provenance kept. Local restrictions apply in the same way (rock partridge, hare management plans, ESOD communes for rabbits). In practice, we advise private individuals to follow exactly the same approach as associations: a call to the departmental federation about the project, then the order. We deliver to private landowners with hunting grounds and advise them on densities and habitat management.

Planning a return to the wild? Let's talk before, not after

Species, period, département: we help you shape a compliant and effective return to the wild, with traceability documents supplied with every delivery. Quotations on +33 4 76 38 31 01 or by email — and if your project needs the FDC's opinion, we will tell you so frankly.