Young birdwatchers listen to shearwaters

BirdLife Malta's junior section Klabb Huttaf held an outing to the areas around Ghar Hasan to listen to Cory's shearwaters coming in to their cliff-face burrows.

Shortly before sundown, BirdLife Malta youth leaders met a group of 45 members and parents, and led them to an area of cliff south of Ghar Hasan, a prime habitat for Cory's shearwater (ciefa), a large greyish brown seabird that nests in cracks along a substantial stretch of this coast.

Hundreds of pairs breed in this area, rendering the Benghisa/Hal Far cliffs one of 11 designated important bird areas in Malta.

The high-pitched call of this bird is similar to a crying human baby, and in the past it used to give rise to stories of infants abandoned on the shore.

For more information write to info@birdlifemalta.org