The police did not cordon off the Miżieb woodland despite the discovery of 76 dead protected birds on Sunday, a number which shot up to over 190 as the seach for carcasses continued yesterday.

BirdLife Malta conservation manager Andre Raine said he was surprised the police did not close off the area which was "one big crime scene".

In fact, the organisation's President Joseph Mangion wrote to the Attorney General requesting his intervention to "ensure a serious inquiry" was held into why the crime was not being treated with the seriousness it deserved.

The carcasses, bones and feathers of more than 190 protected birds were recovered by birdwatchers from underneath stones and bushes in the woodland that is managed by the hunters' federation.

The find, the biggest of its kind in recent memory, even attracted the attention of foreign press like the BBC.

As the search continued yesterday, shots could still be heard in other parts of the woodland. It is legal to hunt up to 1 p.m. on public holidays.

The volunteers from BirdLife and CABS (Committee Against Bird Slaughter) were supervised by policemen from the Administrative Law Enforcement, who took note of every discovery made.

When asked about their approach to the investigation and why they did not cordon off the area, the police simply said that investigations were "ongoing".

Volunteer Pete Charleston, a former British police officer who worked in the wild life crime unit in northern Wales, said he never came across anything like what he had seen in Miżieb.

Mr Charleston said that ideally the investigation should have been conducted completely by the police but acknowledged that because of the lack of police resources it was more practical to have volunteers work under the direct supervision of the ALE.

"We all know that this investigation will not lead to anybody in particular being blamed for the crime, after all we are only finding dead birds. But it goes to show the extent of illegality that is taking place and puts pressure on the authorities to do something about it," he said.

Five protected birds found on Sunday had only just been shot while yesterday the volunteers found a freshly killed nightjar and a night heron that might have been shot a week ago.

The rest were bones and feathers of protected bords that could have been shot weeks and months ago.

The search progressed through the woodland with picnickers enjoying the shade oblivious of the bird cemetary around them.

Dave Wood from Scotland, on his fifth visit to Malta as part of BirdLife's raptor camp initiative, described the grim scene as a national disgrace.

"I have been coming here long enough to expect something like this. This shames the Maltese government... it is probably the tip of the iceberg," he said.

Another volunteer, David Brown, whose job in England is to watch over the nests of birds of prey, spoke of the misfortune of having to witness the death of so many birds.

"I see them get born and it is very sad to witness them die here," he said.

A similar sentiment was expressed by Briton Louise Greenwood, who was on her first trip to Malta.

"Yesterday I saw my first ever honey buzzard and it was shot down in front of my eyes," she said, while standing watch over a stone where bones were found until Dr Raine and the police inspector came over to document the find.

Dead birds

Protected birds found killed in Miżieb by 3.30 p.m. yesterday.

35 night herons
3 unidentified heron
38 marsh harriers
33 falcons
18 honey buzzards
49 skeletons of raptors (as yet unidentified)
Three kestrels
One nightingale
One golden oriole
Four racing pigeons
Three hoopoes
Four nightjars