A song thrush.

Trappers have warned that thick cable ties provided by the authorities to ring captured birds are inadequate for the thin, fragile legs.

A trapper from Kalkara said the cable ties risked damaging the legs of the song thrush and golden plover, the only birds that can be legally trapped.

The plastic ties were thick and too long, he lamented, making it almost impossible for a trapper to ring a bird without any help.

“Whoever chose them knows nothing about bird ringing,” he said

Lino Farrugia, secretary general of the hunters’ lobby group, FKNK, confirmed there was widespread concern about the ringing device that was chosen by the planning authority.

The industrial-grade cable ties were unsuitable for the delicate feet of the two birds that could be trapped, he said. “Ringing is simply not done with cable ties.”

The Government allowed a limited trapping season this autumn and trappers are obliged by law to ring the birds they catch.

The Malta Environment and Planning Authority, which regulates hunting and trapping, issued trappers with marked cable ties.

Mr Farrugia said the hunting federation had provided the authority with information on the available ringing devices, but to no avail.

“When they told us they were opting for cable ties we had no idea they were referring to the thick ones that are being used now,” he said.

The planning authority said the cable ties were chosen after a literature review of available marking methods for live birds, which included micro-chips, coloured split rings, cable-ties and Swiss rings.

A spokeswoman said the review took into account a variety of factors, including the level of security provided by the tagging method, identification by law enforcement officials, bird welfare and the ease with which the ring could be applied to the bird.

The tagging method also had to conform to the specification outlined in the law that states that the ring shall be “a single-use ring” taking into account the availability and cost of the article.

The spokeswoman said the thickness of the cable tie allowed enough flexibility for it to be tightened to the same internal diameters as those for closed rings used on song thrush and golden plover.

However, she said the authority was open to any suggestions to modify the system of marking in future.

The trapping season for the song thrush ends on December 31 and for the golden plover on January 10.

ksansone@timesofmalta.com