How much is being done to stop the illegal killing of birds on the Maltese islands?

While I congratulate the excellent work of Birdlife Malta and note improvements since Malta joined the EU in 2004, what I recently saw and heard on holiday in Xlendi was enough to put me off returning any time soon.

In Gozo, on a late October painting holiday, we were awoken daily by gunshots. Throughout the day this shooting persisted as we tried to enjoy the peace of our painting locations. Travelling about we saw shooting towers in the landscapes at heights which would make the killing of birds effortless.

We saw trapping equipment in Ħondoq and, as we sat outside our hotel at the end of the afternoon, men could be seen carrying shotguns walking along the cliff tops.

I do not know the details of the Maltese spring and autumn shooting seasons, nor the dates that shooting is allowed and the circumstances in which birds might ‘legitimately’ be hunted. However, it is my understanding that both resident and migratory birds are shot indiscriminately.

Clearly, the position of the Maltese Islands on the central migratory route between Europe and Africa attracts resting birds, which renders them extremely vulnerable to this threat.

This is cruel, illegal (I suspect) and morally repugnant.

All wild birds are protected under the EU Birds Directive, which means that no wild bird must be deliberately killed, caught or disturbed. My brief experience in Gozo makes me question the extent to which this directive is applied. My concern is for the birds but surely the impact on tourism must worry even the people who persist in killing our precious wildlife?