32In that respect, the Court has stated that derogations under Article 9 of the Directive may be granted only if it is ensured that the population of the species concerned is maintained at a satisfactory level. If that condition is not fulfilled, hunting of birds cannot, in any event, be considered judicious and, accordingly, acceptable for the purposes of the 11th recital in the preamble to the Directive (see, to that effect, Case C-182/02 Ligue pour la protection des oiseaux and Others [2003] ECR I-12105, paragraph 17).
Source: EUR-Lex, © European Union, 1998-2026. Reuse authorised under Decision 2011/833/EU.