The life of this young wild Great Flamingo, which has been ‘adopted’ by the other birds at the Bird Park in Salina, could be short-lived after hunters were seen encircling its sanctuary. The hunting season officially opens today but it has not stopped some hunters from taking aim at anything that flies, with two charged in court yesterday. Photo: Natalino Fenech

Hunters have attempted to kill the young wild great flamingo that has sought refuge in the Salina Bird Park and was ‘adopted’ by one of its own, The Sunday Times of Malta has learnt.

Park owner Kevin Mallia said he had filed a police report that men with guns had circled the park on two consecutive nights – on Thursday and Friday at sunset – and fired shots into the pond.

“The hunters were hoping the shots would scare the flamingo [which is a protected species] so it would fly away, providing them with the perfect target,” he said.

On Thursday, Times of Malta reported that the wild flamingo had been ‘adopted’ by one of the other flamingos in the park.

Initially, the other flamingos started chasing it away, but when it returned for the third time a bigger flamingo intervened and the two birds seem to have bonded.

The older flamingos in the park have had their wings clipped to prevent them from flying but the hunters are fully aware that the latest addition to the park can easily take flight if they startle it with gunfire.

Their mission failed on both nights, but they did succeed in shooting a flock of night herons that sought refuge in the park on Thursday night.

The park is declared a sanctuary but the area around it is not, which provides hunters with the perfect position to take aim.

“Birds have to literally pass through a war zone to seek shelter in the park,” Mr Mallia said.

The hunters were hoping the shots would scare the flamingo so it would fly

Ornithologists believe it is only a matter of time before the flamingo, which arrived with a flock in mid-August, is killed, meeting the fate of at least eight others shot over Gozo.

The only thing that gives Mr Mallia some comfort is that flamingos are birds that seek safe haven in a flock where they have food and company, so the chances that this young flamingo will fly away are minimal.

The bird has quickly settled in and not only did it start feeding immediately on the tiny invertebrates found in the water of the park, but was readily eating food the other flamingos gave it.

Mr Mallia said it was quite unusual that such a young flamingo had flown to Malta and it was likely the flock had been disturbed. Those seen in Malta are likely to originate from birds breeding in Italy, Sicily and Sardinia. Flamingos are can live for more than 27 years in the wild.

The hunting season officially opens today and runs until January 31, amid controversy after the Government relaxed the curfew.