The hunting federation will “immediately revoke” the membership of trappers who are found guilty of illegal trapping activities, the organisation warned.
The FKNK was reacting to the recent discovery by bird conservationists of six active illegal trapping sites that were used to catch water birds, also known as waders.
In a sternly worded statement, the hunting federation said it will not tolerate anyone whose illegal activity jeopardised the tradition of bird trapping.
It insisted that without membership to the organisation, trappers would be unable to obtain a trapping licence.
The warning came as Malta faces legal action at the European Court of Justice over the opening of an autumn trapping season on finches.
The government opened a finch trapping season in 2014 for the first time since 2008 after it invoked a concession under the Birds Directive. Trapping was limited to seven species of finches and included national quotas for each of the species.
Water birds are afforded the highest protection under EU and domestic law, which means they cannot be trapped at all
Trapping is not allowed under EU law except under very specific conditions. The European Commission took the government to court after it concluded the condtions had not been satisfied.
The case is ongoing.
On the other hand, water birds are afforded the highest protection under EU and domestic law, which means they cannot be trapped at all.
The recent discovery of illegal sites was made by teams deployed by the Committee Against Bird Slaughter (CABS). Six illegal trapping sites were discovered in Żejtun, Mġarr, l-Aħrax, Mqabba and Xewkija.
The trapping sites were intended to capture the protected oystercatchers, sandpipers and other water birds.
CABS alerted the police, who seized several sets of clap nets and bird callers, as well as a number of live protected birds, including two wood sandpipers and a green sandpiper. Given that these birds enjoy the highest legal protection, according to Maltese Law the perpetrators, if found guilty, should be given an adequate fine and permanent revocation of their trapping licence.
CABS said that most of the sites were found during aerial survey flights. Others were found during night patrols to detect illegal bird callers used by the trappers. Three of the sites were known to have been used for illegal trapping before.
CABS acknowledged there was a clear drop in illegal trapping during wader migration season, though it insisted its teams were not able to monitor the whole countryside. “The sites found represent only a fraction of the poaching,” CABS added.
This comment earned the Munich-based organisation rebuke from FKNK that accused it yesterday of trying to influence the ECJ as it deliberates on Malta’s case.
Waders fly to Africa
Bird wader species have started making an appearance over the past few weeks in wetlands around Malta and Gozo.
For these birds, the migration back to Africa starts earlier than the autumn season, when most other birds make their voyage south to avoid Europe’s cold winter.
In an update on migration released four days ago, Birdlife said two spoonbills spent some days feeding on insects, crustaceans and tiny fish at the Għadira and Simar reserves. Other waders noticed at the start of August included juvenile glossy ibises, which spent a couple of hours at the Għadira reserve.
Many other water bird species were spotted around coastal areas like Xgħajra and Marsascala by bird watchers and hunters, who have posted photos of them on Facebook over the past few days.