Hunting will begin in the Fontainebleau forest in Seine-et-Marne on September 20, nearly two months after a large fire burned through approximately 2,000 hectares—nearly 10% of the forest. This marks the start of a three-year hunting plan that includes the "harvesting" of 125 deer annually. However, large portions of the forest remain closed to the public due to the risk of falling trees weakened by the fire. These closed areas cover about 2,500 hectares, out of the forest’s total 22,500 hectares. Following the fire, a national petition calling for an immediate halt to hunting in the area gathered over 500,000 signatures by September 18. Environmental groups and naturalists have also raised concerns about the impact of the fire on wildlife. The association Pour une forêt vivante is urging a one-year suspension of hunting across the entire area. The association’s president, wildlife photographer Yannick Dagneau, explained that all small animals, including hedgehogs, reptiles, insects, and mustelids (such as weasels and ferrets), have been affected by the disaster. Larger animals like deer, roe deer, wild boars, foxes, and badgers have either been killed or have fled to other areas. Another group, Projet Animaux Zoopolis, is calling for a three-year pause in hunting in the affected forests to allow wildlife to recover. Meanwhile, Allain Bougrain-Dubourg, president of the League for the Protection of Birds, criticized the decision to open the hunting season as "surreal, unacceptable" in an article for HuffPost. He argued that wild animals need time to recover and noted that many responsible hunters have also recognized the need for a break. The debate highlights the tension between conservation efforts and traditional hunting practices in the region.