The hunting season opens this Thursday and the Government has announced that, according to new regulations enacted earlier this year, licensed hunters are required to report the birds caught via telephone reporting system prior to leaving the hunting area in accordance with instructions as stipulated in information booklet distributed together with hunting licenses.

This requirement replaced the previous obligation to report through Carnet de Chasse, which was phased out earlier this year.

In addition to this new reporting requirement, there have also been changes concerning the species that can be hunted. Due to re-classification of the legal status of Red Breasted Merganser (Mergus serrator) the hunting of this species will no longer be allowed.

The Parliamentary Secretariat in a statement today said that the hunting of birds on land is permitted between 1 September and 31 January, between two hours before sunrise and two hours after sunset on any day between Monday and Saturday, and between two hours before sunrise and 1pm on Sundays and public holidays.

However the hunting of birds on land between 15 September and 7 October (inclusive of both dates) will not be permitted from Monday to Saturday between 7pm and two hours before sunrise of the following day.

The same time restrictions also apply to the hunting of wild rabbit, which is permitted until 31 December, the government said in a statement.

The hunting of birds at sea is permitted between 1 October and 31 January during the same times as those applicable to hunting on land, provided that between 1 October and 7 October, inclusive of both dates, hunting at sea shall not be permitted from Monday to Saturday between 7 pm and two hours before sunrise of the following day.

Hunters can only hunt the species for which they're licensed according to their license category.

Moreover, hunting of Turtle Doves (Streptopelia turtur) will be permitted only between 1st and 30th September only, subject to maximum national quota of 7,000 birds, the Secretariat said.

"Targeting of the Turtle Dove outside of this period will not be permitted and any offenders shall be prosecuted in accordance with the law."

The Wild Birds Regulation Unit said that it noted with satisfaction that "exemplary improvements in compliance achieved over the past three years produced extremely visible positive change that was hardly conceivable in the past."

"However this progress, which is a result of cooperation between the government, members of the hunting community, and bird protection NGOs, needs to be further maintained and consolidated," it added.

"Whilst calling upon all hunters and hunting organisations to continue to adopt a zero-tolerance approach to illegalities, the Unit and other law enforcement entities will continue to rigorously monitor and enforce compliance with applicable regulations through field surveillance, spot checks and inspections."

The WBRU said that "anyone caught shooting or trapping protected species listed in Schedules I and IX of the Conservation of Wild Birds Regulations will automatically incur penalty comprising of €5,000 fine, and / or imprisonment for one year, as well as permanent revocation or ban on obtaining a hunting or trapping license, and confiscation of corpus delicti.

"In case of second or subsequent offence, the applicable penalty will go up to €10,000, confiscation, and / or imprisonment for two years. Penalties for all other irregularities, including for non-declaration of bagged birds through telephone will also apply."

File photograph by David Tipling/Nature Picture Library.

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