The Ornis committee decided to recommend this year’s opening of a spring hunting season under derogation, pending the outcome of the referendum result of April 11.

As it has done every year, the committee’s decision was based on the scientific report prepared by the Wild Birds Regulation Unit (in previous years a study done by the Malta Environment and Planning Authority), which evaluates the present conservation status of the turtle dove and the quail based on ringed records available from the so-called reference populations (certain European member states), which are known to migrate over the Maltese islands.

The report classified both species conservation trends as being stable.

On the other hand, the No to spring hunting lobby has claimed that “scientific evidence disproves hunters’ justifications for spring season”. It says the WBRU report showed that quail and turtle dove numbers were at an all-time low across Europe and that a separate report, published by the Government on March 2, “revealed that the number of quail migrating over Malta was actually higher in autumn than in spring”. According to No, this defeated the hunters’ argument that the autumnhunting season did not represent a viable alternative.

In respect of the first claim, it must be clarified that the assessment considered the latest available scientific literature with regard to the conservation status of both species at the global, pan-European and EU levels.

The assessment indicates both species are characterised by extremely large populations and geographical range

The analysis also delved into the conservation status at the level of reference populations which are proven to migrate over the Maltese islands through ring recoveries from other EU member states.

The assessment indicates that both species are characterised by extremely large populations and geographical range. While some countries in the EU have registered a decline in the population of both species, those in countries from which turtle doves and quail migrate over Malta are stable and marginally increasing.

While there was a decline in the long-term trend of turtle dove by a further three per cent over the previous update of 2014, the short-term trend assessment indicates a marginal improvement of nine per cent over the previous year’s update.

In its calculations, the No campaign included the UK population of the turtle dove, where the species, notwithstanding being protected, is in serious decline. With regard to the British turtle dove population, it is a fact that these birds do not migrate over the Maltese islands; any migration is via the Gibraltar flyway. Also, according to Birdlife Malta’s report, Malta has no records of ring recoveries pertaining to turtle doves that originated from the UK (Raine, 2007).

Furthermore, Browne & Aebischer (2004), cited in Loveridge et al (2006), found that “the observed decline in UK breeding turtle doves could be entirely explained by changed UK farming practices with no direct evidence for a damaging impact of hunting”. (In 2010, Aebischer, a renowned, world authority on turtle dove, was commissioned by the Maltese government to propose the numbers of turtle doves and quail that can be hunted in Malta during spring.)

Several other scientific studies by different authorities on this subject are available.

The No camp’s second claim that the independent scientific study of turtle dove and quail migration conducted in September and October revealed that the number of birds migrating over the Maltese islands in autumn is bigger than the number of birds migrating in spring is also based on an incorrect interpretation of the report.

According to the report, it is estimated that 7,956 turtle doves and 45,683 quail migrated over the Maltese islands in September and October 2014 (nine weeks; 61 days). During three weeks in April 2014 (19 days), when an identical study was also conducted, about 24,922 turtle doves and 37,773 quail had been observed.

If one were to compare the intensity of migration on the basis of a daily average, this would work out at an average of 130 turtle doves and 749 quail in autumn and 1,312 turtle doves and 1,988 quail in spring.

Thus, the average daily intensity of migration in autumn was 10 times lower than in spring for turtle dove, and 2.6 times lower for quail. This indicates that the extent of migratory influx in spring is higher than the migration in autumn.

Moreover, the geographical distribution patterns of migration in autumn appear to be different to those in spring when turtle doves and quail tend to be present over the entire territory of the Maltese islands, whereas, in autumn, their presence appears to be much more localised and limited mostly to the south-western part of the islands.

Finally, I believe that if the birds’ decline was as serious as is being alleged by the No camp, than the European Commission would have certainly already taken the necessary steps with regard to the annual take of circa 3,500,000 turtle doves and 4,000,000 quail in other EU member states.

Sylvana Zarb Darmanin is a corporate services manager in the financial sector

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