In addition to press coverage of the annual Greater flamingo ringing (see article opposite), the Tour de Valat also appeared in the pages of the La Croix newspaper. As part of a special series on biodiversity, the national daily paper devoted a double page spread to the Prespa Lakes area between Greece, Albania, and Macedonia. The article highlighted the work undertaken by the Society for the Protection of Prespa which operates in the area, in partnership with the Tour de Valat, to protect the site’s biodiversity, particularly the emblematic Dalmatian pelican.
On television, the Global Mag programme on Arte devoted its 7 September programme to a report on mosquitoes and mosquito control in the Camargue. The Tour du Valat scientific team was interviewed about its research on BTI (Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis), the bioinsecticide currently most commonly used worldwide to control mosquitoes. Following a four-year study, our team has brought to light a negative effect of BTI on the reproductive success of swallows, and highlighted the precautions to be taken in mosquito control operations.