GozoNews.Com

A report issued by BirdLife Malta reveals the impact that Maltese hunters and trappers are having on the conservation efforts in other European countries where hunting is not permissible in spring and trapping is outlawed throughout the year. Birds from a minimum of 35 countries have been killed in Malta by Maltese hunters.

The five most commonly recorded countries for birds killed in Malta are Finland, Sweden, Tunisia, Italy and Germany. The majority are birds that are currently protected, non-huntable species, with a significant proportion being given special conservation designations as Annex 1 species under the EU Birds Directive.

Trapping currently occurs in Malta at such a high level that only a handful of each of the common finch species regularly breed on the islands, despite breeding in abundance in other areas of the Mediterranean. 73.2% of all finch recoveries in Malta come from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy, Slovenia, and Croatia.

Half of the ring recoveries of Turtle Doves come from Italy and a further quarter come from the Czech Republic. The vast majority (94.4%) of ring recoveries of Common Quail originate from a single country only; Italy. The hunting of Common Quail in Malta will therefore be having an impact on the breeding populations of Italy in particular.

The data presented on Turtle Dove and Quail in the BirdLife Malta report also shows the government’s justification given to the European Union for breaching the Birds Directive is incorrect as these two species come from a small number of countries and not from the entirety of their breeding range as the government claims. This means that spring hunting and trapping will have serious impact on the populations of Turtle Dove and Quail in countries like Italy and Czech Republic. Both Turtle Dove and Common Quail are currently considered to be of an Unfavourable Conservation Status in Europe and therefore a derogation can not be applied for these species.

Dr. Andre Raine, Conservation Manager of BirdLife Malta said: “Any conservation rewards gained from hunting and trapping restrictions in other European countries are presently serving the interests of Maltese hunters and trappers. Maltese hunters get to shoot what their counterparts in Europe are obliged to protect during spring. Furthermore, illegal hunting in Malta has a direct impact on the conservation efforts of countries throughout Europe and Africa.”

The BirdLife Malta report is based on ring recoveries that were used to analyse the international importance of Malta’s position along one of the main European-African bird migration routes. International ring recoveries came from 1,188 individuals, representing 120 species.

BirdLife called for the protection of migratory species through robust national legislation which implements the Birds Directive in its entirety. “The recent step taken by the government to end spring hunting earlier this year is a positive development. But this should be further supported by outlawing hunting and trapping in spring starting from next year onwards. Furthermore increased assistance for over-stretched law enforcement officers and the application of significant penalties (in court and not just on paper) for those who break the law are essential.” concluded Dr. Raine.