BirdLife Malta said today that the latest illegal hunting casualty recovered in the past hours is from Gozo – a rare Short-toed Eagle (Ajkla Bajda).

In a statement, BLM said that the illegally shot protected bird, had just been recovered and was taken to the government veterinarian.

BLM explained that “a flock of 12 of these magnificent birds was met with gunfire on its arrival in Gozo and this particular bird was found by two Italian tourists who were driving in a country lane between Marsalforn and Xaghra.

BirdLife Malta President Darryl Grima, CEO Mark Sultana and Head of Conservation Nik Barbara, today provided an update about this year’s autumn hunting season so far.

They said that “with this latest shot protected bird, the total number of illegally shot birds recovered so far this year by BirdLife Malta and police has now reached 167, with 2020 continuing to be a record year for illegal hunting in the last eight years.”

BirdLife Malta also gave its official reaction to the signing of, what it said is the “secret deal between the Government and the Federazzjoni Kaccaturi Nassaba Konservazzjonisti (FKNK) handing over the Mizieb and Ahrax woodlands to the hunting lobby.”

BLM argued that this agreement “is simply a vote-catching exercise to appease a lobby which gives nothing back to society and is only there to safeguard its hunter members’ interests, and which will be gifted with the largest woodland areas in Malta in spite of transforming these two sites into meccas for illegalities throughout the years.”

BirdLife Malta went on to say that it will be joining the general public gathering at Mizieb on Sunday at 3pm to protest.

Photo by BirdLife Malta: “illegally shot protected Short-toed Eagle recovered from Gozo”

Permalink: Rare, protected Short-toed Eagle shot down over Gozo, part of a flock of 12