BirdLife rescued 21 stranded Scopoli's Shearwater fledglings last month, a record number, it said today.

BirdLife said October marked the fledging season for Scopoli’s Shearwaters.

Fledging at night, the young birds are guided by the horizon  but the growing threat of on-land light pollution could disorientate them and cause them to become stranded inland and unable to fly back out to sea - putting their survival in danger.

Most stranded Scopoli's Shearwaters this year were recovered from Ħal Far, Ċirkewwa and Birżebbuġa in Malta and Xlendi and Xewkija in Gozo. 

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