Nine bird species were put on the hunting list but hunters said there were no records of these ever flying over Malta.

The additions were simply a formality. They were common in other parts of Europe and were added to the list due to Romania and Bulgaria joining the EU, the hunters' federation - FKNK - said.

It added there was no point in the birds being added to the list of species that could be hunted in Malta and their inclusion just highlighted the lack of knowledge of some legislators. None of the birds in question had ever been recorded in the wild through migration. In fact, there were no Maltese names for the species added to the list, FKNK noted.

The point had already been made at the Ornis Committee on January 20 but it fell on deaf ears, the federation said.

The birds added were the Canada goose, the red grouse, the Irish sub-species of the red grouse, the rock partridge, the rock ptarmigan, the red-legged partridge, the grey partridge, the common pheasant and the rock pigeon.