Mayhem and anarchy are reigning in the Maltese countryside as poachers take the law into their hands and open fire on migrating birds, BirdLife Malta claimed this afternoon.

"As BirdLife Malta’s Spring Watch Camp kicked off on Sunday so did the rampant illegal shooting as poachers invaded the countryside opening fire at migrating birds since Monday morning," the society said.

It said Spring Watch volunteers were also targeted by individuals with threats and insults pouring onto them.

"One of the teams in Delimara on Monday afternoon was also surrounded by aggressive individuals and ordered to leave the area although the team was on public land."

André Raine, BirdLife Malta’s Conservation Manager and Spring Watch Camp Coordinator said Monday morning was particularly bad for illegal hunting activity.

“So far over the last two days our teams in different locations have counted more than 1,050 shots. Delimara was a particularly bad area, with 486 shots counted over a four hour period on Monday morning alone. These came from numerous individuals shooting throughout the peninsula. Our observation teams have shown that this is not simply a handful of poachers breaking the law, but rather numerous individuals actively shooting in the countryside as if this is simply another open season.”

He asked how the government could claim that it could control spring hunting when it had absolutely no control over illegal hunting.

He said illegal shooting was less on Tuesday morning compared to the previous day as the bird migration was much slower due to the change in weather conditions.

BirdLife said that over the last two days its teams had witnessed birds flying by with visible injuries, including Turtle Doves (Gamiem) and Night Herons (Kwakk), as well as a Common Kestrel (Spanjulett) being shot down in Wardija in front of the birdwatchers’ very eyes.

“Even though the Police are responding to our calls very quickly they are too short-staffed to have a serious impact on this level of criminality.”

BirdLife explained that shooting was in fact stopping as soon as the poachers saw the police cars approaching, but would resume again as soon as the police left the area.

Markus Nipkow, Ornithology and Bird Conservation officer for NABU (BirdLife Germany) who is taking part in the Spring Watch Camp said: “Our conservation work in Germany will not succeed if migratory birds are slaughtered over the Maltese islands, as it is evident that the conservation of our common natural heritage lies beyond national borders. We are aware that an overwhelming majority in Malta is against spring hunting but we fail to understand why the Maltese government is reluctant to put an end to this unsustainable practice.”

BirdLife said it had also been receiving numerous reports of illegal shooting from members of the public throughout the Maltese islands.

Joseph Mangion, President of BirdLife Malta, said that what was being witnessed was not surprising when one recalled statements of the hunters' association administration that targeted the Spring Watch attendees even before they arrived in Malta.

“Why is the FKNK administration so scared of peaceful, non-violent birdwatchers who are here to witness bird migration and report illegal activity? One would expect them to sit with us and report illegal activities too if they genuinely are against illegal hunting. It is about time that this government acknowledges this fact.”

He appealed to the government to immediately take all the necessary actions to bring back law and order in the countryside.