The hiker was walking in the Cantal département of central France on Saturday when she was shot by a hunter and died shortly after. A 17-year-old local woman who fired the shot has been placed under formal police investigation.

This is just the latest in a series of accidental deaths linked to hunting that is leading to growing calls for stricter regulation of the sport.

Every year around 20 people are killed by hunters in France – often hikers, cyclists and dog-walkers although the majority of victims are hunters themselves.

On Sunday animal rights charity the Brigitte Bardot foundation called from stricter controls on hunting and a limit to the days when hunters can operate.

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Charity spokesman Christophe Marie told France Info: “We need a political response because unfortunately the death of this young woman is not an isolated case.

“In 20 years, hunters have killed more than 400 people and injured thousands more. We are asking for a much stricter framework for hunting and for days without hunting in order to achieve a better sharing of nature.

“We did a survey last year which showed that 71 percent of French people feel unsafe during the hunting season.”

Meanwhile an increasing number of politicians are in favour of limits to hunting days, such as banning the activity at weekend and during school holidays.

Green candidate Yannick Jadot and far-left Jean-Luc Mélenchon both say they are in favour of this, while the current environment minister Barbara Pompili has said that the idea at least needs to be debated.

But with 1.2 million participants, the hunting lobby is a powerful one.

The Macron government has said that it “has no desire to ban hunting in one way or another. On the other hand, it must be regulated.”