A peak migration of birds of prey brought about by south-westerly winds yesterday “was greeted with a massacre of protected birds across the Maltese Islands,” BirdLife Malta and the Committee Against Bird Slaughter (CABS) said.

In a joint statement, they said that three protected species were recovered just yesterday evening in the space of a few hours with a dead Hobby recovered by a CABS team from Xlendi, an injured Honey-buzzard found by a hiker in Mizieb, and an injured Common Kestrel from Santa Lucija.

The statement said that “two other highly- prized species that made a presence yesterday included a Black Stork and a Lesser Spotted Eagle, with the latter suspected missing after yesterday’s massacre.”

“Hunters took advantage of a low police presence to kill protected birds, with reports coming in from several locations in Malta and Gozo and a number of illegal hunting casualties retrieved by BirdLife Malta, the Committee Against Bird Slaughter (CABS) and also the police,” they said.

“Several birds were seen being shot illegally, with injured birds being recovered in the evening and members of the public inundating BirdLife Malta with calls reporting shooting at birds of prey as they sought places where to roost for the night,” they said.

BLM and CABS reported that “illegal hunting incidents were witnessed across various locations such as Xlendi, Marsalforn, Ghasri and Gharb on Gozo and in Malta at Dingli, Victoria Lines, Siggiewi and Rabat, with shooting extending into the evening beyond the 7pm curfew currently in place to protect birds of prey.”

Targeted birds included mostly Honey-buzzards but also Eurasian Hobby and Common Kestrel.Calls made for assistance to the Environmental Protection Unit (EPU) saw a single police unit for the whole island of Malta attempting to answer to the ongoing situation, while Gozo Police informed they had no field units and only district police could attend, they said.

BLM and CABS said that this follows another four illegally shot birds retrieved the day before, including a Marsh-harrier and a Night-heron recovered by Police.

Commenting on the situation at stake, BirdLife Malta CEO Mark Sultana stated, “it is inconceivable that during peak migration of birds of prey, Police presence on the ground is weak when up to 11,000 hunters are given a licence to hunt during these days.”

He added that, “it is not a coincidence that such lack of enforcement is always experienced in the run-up to a general election, with political leaders on besides remaining silent on this issue, while voicing their appease to those that break the law.”

CABS spokesperson Axel Hirschfeld stated, “the main driver for this illegal hunting remains taxidermy collections which remain unchecked and unverified and which allow yesterday’s perpetrators to continue amassing on the already half a million plus number of protected species housed by hunters in their residences.”

“Over the years we keep seeing no will to remedy this loophole, but rather a call from hunting organisations to continue tweaking legislation and administrative procedures to favour this,” he said.

“With the tally of illegally shot protected birds recovered by BirdLife Malta and Police now numbering 21 since the start of the autumn hunting season on the 1st of September and indicating another record year for illegal hunting casualties,” BirdLife Malta and CABS said that they calling on the Police Commissioner to “justify the weak presence in the field and appeal for the EPU to up their enforcement effort on both islands from now into October during which time a steady migration of protected species is expected.”Both organisations deplored what they described as the “melting pot that has led to the current situation with a hunting season open during peak periods when birds of prey are roosting thanks to the removal of the 3pm curfew in 2015, thin enforcement on the ground allowing hunters to kill protected species during such times undetected unless watched over by volunteer teams on the ground, and a complete lack of control on taxidermy collections after the amnesties to hunters granted in 1996 and 2003.”

They stated that, “to add insult to injury, the Gozo Minister’s Wild Birds Regulation Unit (WBRU) keeps being requested by hunting organisations to make further amends and loopholes in what should be regulations protecting such European species and not hunters’ interests.”

They said that this all sends a message to the hunting community to “continue shooting on protected species unabated, making Malta a cemetery of Europe’s birds impacting conservation efforts such as the case of the endangered Egyptian Vulture that went missing earlier this month.”

BLM and CABS highlighted that Malta is currently facing several EU infringement procedures on hunting and trapping, one of which mentions specifically the lack of adequate protection afforded to wild birds.

“Such situations aggravate Malta’s ability to defend itself in front of the European Court of Justice,” they said.

Photos: Eurasian Hobby found dead in Xlendi, Gozo (Photo by CABS); Illegally shot Western Marsh-harrier recovered from Girgenti two days ago (Photo by BirdLife Malta); Honey-buzzard in flight with “evident shotgun injuries” (Photo by BirdLife Malta) and Video edit showing an illegally shot Western Marsh-harrier and Night-heron recovered by police (Footage by BirdLife Malta, editing by Nathaniel Attard)

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