Did Trump's son Don Jr. illegally hunt rare ducks in Italy? Activists say yes, blast him: 'Italy is not the property of the USA'

After video of Donald Trump Jr. shooting from a foxhole while wearing camouflage gear surfaces, he is charged with unlawfully hunting rare ducks in Italy.

Italian activists have accused Donald Trump Jr. of unlawfully hunting rare ducks in Italy, and the First Son is being criticized for his behaviour.

What happened in Venice?

After claiming that a video of a camouflaged Donald Jr. showed him shooting at the endangered birds in a protected area, environmentalists and local MPs have called for an investigation.


Donald Jr. is one of the men participating in a hunting trip in a lagoon near Venice in the video posted by the American website Field Ethos, which bills itself as a "premier lifestyle publication for the unapologetic man."

The nearly six-minute video, which was recorded right before Christmas, shows Don Jr. emerging from a foxhole while wearing camouflage gear and shooting at the ducks, some of which are dropping from the sky, as quoted in a report by Mail Online.

He is accompanied by six other men who are having a good time in the northeastern Italian marshes. 'It was a great duck shoot with a little bit of good eating in Venice,' remarks one hunter before another shooter concludes, 'Don got about 50.'

Donald Trump Jr. is shown in the video surrounded by a variety of dead birds at one point, including an odd duck with an amber colour that he describes as a rather uncommon bird in the area.

The unidentified duck in question seems to be a Ruddy Shelduck, a species that is rare in Europe and is said to be experiencing population declines.

Andy Surabian, a spokesman for Donald Trump Jr., told DailyMail.com that Donald Trump Jr. and his group were hunting in a legally permitted area with all the necessary permits, even though there were numerous other hunting groups there.

"Donald Trump Jr. takes following all rules, regulations, and conservation on his hunts very seriously and plans to fully cooperate with any investigation, even though it's unclear whether this single duck was accidentally shot by someone in Don Jr.'s hunting group, another hunting group, or killed in another manner and retrieved by the group's hunting dog," as quoted in a report by Mail Online.

The video has sparked controversy in Italy, with Italian environmentalist and Green Party politician Andrea Zanoni accusing Don Jr. of breaking a number of laws in the country. Zanoni claims that Don Jr. killed a protected species without a regular license and also hunted in a conservation area protected by the European Union.

The controversy is unlikely to dampen the warm relations between President Donald Trump and Italy's right-wing Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

FAQs

What exactly is Trump Jr. accused of?
He is accused of illegally shooting protected species in Venice's lagoon, which is a serious environmental violation.

Has Trump Jr. previously faced hunting controversies?
Yes, in 2019, he was discovered to have killed a rare Argali mountain sheep in Mongolia without permission.