BirdLife complains of rampant flouting of hunting laws

BirdLife Malta yesterday said it was running out of patience following yet another nationwide "massacre" of protected birds at the weekend.

BirdLife president Joseph Mangion warned that BirdLife might have no option but to call for a complete ban on hunting in future should the rampant flouting of the law prevail.

"We are trying to avoid being extremist but there is a limit to the slaughter. There seems to be no goodwill from the majority of hunters, who are shooting at anything that flies," Mr Mangion charged.

Both BirdLife and The Times yesterday received reports of rampant bird shooting, both in Malta and Gozo, on Sunday.

BirdLife yesterday called a news conference to display a number of injured or dead birds which it said had been gunned down at the weekend.

An adult honey buzzard, a protected species, was clearly in pain as it was picked up for reporters to see. The lead from the shotgun pellets would poison its blood and it could die shortly, Mr Mangion said.

A golden oriole lay dead on a desk. An injured montagus harrier and a kestrel were also displayed to the media. All birds are protected species.

Mr Mangion said the BirdLife phoneline had been inundated by people calling about illegal hunting, especially since the start of the spring open season on March 25.

He said that BirdLife had received reports of illegal hunting taking place in Mellieha, Qala, Dwejra, and Madliena, among others. No hunting is permitted by law on Sunday afternoons.

Honey buzzards, which migrate from Africa to Europe between April, peaking in the beginning of May, were the main target on Sunday.

Reports from Gozo said that 10 of the birds were seen flying over Xaghra on Saturday at 11 a.m. Within five minutes, three of them had been shot down, Mr Mangion said.

About 100 others were seen flying over Gozo later in the afternoon. Their fate is unknown.

What was surprising was the number of protected dead birds left lying around: hunters normally take them to a taxidermist.

Mr Mangion once again made a strong call upon the police to allocate more resources to the Administrative Law Enforcement unit.

With just 21 members, the ALE is clearly overstretched, he said. If the problem were to be dealt with seriously, then at least five cars in Malta and two cars in Gozo, each with four police officers, were needed.

He said BirdLife had believed that a balance had been reached with the hunting organisations.

"But after this development we think that many hunters can`t be trusted. They`re bringing this upon themselves," Mr Mangion charged.

He said he hoped that rumours circulating that hunters were demanding more concessions on hunting at sea were false. BirdLife would not accept any more easing of laws, he stressed.

The Times also received complaints from irate bird-lovers.

One woman claimed that a hunter had the cheek to stop his car by the roadside on the road leading to Marsaxlokk on Sunday afternoon.

To the shock of motorists, he walked out, brandished a shotgun and shot down two to three large birds flying over the area.