The reclassification of turtle doves as a vulnerable species in the latest European Red List of Birds will not affect the government’s approach to spring hunting, according to the Parliamentary Secretariat for Animal Rights.
A spokesman for the secretariat told Times of Malta yesterday that, in accordance with the regulations governing the opening of the spring hunting season, “the government shall be taking full account of all available scientific data, including the data presented in this most recently published report.
“Since such latest scientific information is always considered prior to the taking of any decision concerning the opening of any spring hunting season for turtle dove and quail, there is no change in the government’s approach.”
Turtle doves, previously considered a species of ‘least concern’, have now been declared as ‘vulnerable’ in view of population declines of 30 to 49 per cent across Europe in the last 16 years, or three generations.
The ‘vulnerable’ category is the first of three categories for species threatened with extinction, according to criteria drawn up by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Birdlife Malta director Steve Micklewright said on Wednesday that the government was now legally bound to consider the change in status before opening next year’s spring hunting season.
Mark Mifsud Bonnici, president of St Hubert Hunters, stressed that hunting was not one of the main reasons for the population decline, adding that the limited scope of hunting in Malta meant that any contribution to the decline would be minimal.
There is no change in the government’s approach
Hunting is listed in the Birdlife International species report for turtle doves as a “significant” factor, behind other issues such as transformation of agricultural land, changes in agriculture practices and the widespread use of chemical herbicides.
Mr Mifsud Bonnici noted that, while a number of European countries linked to Malta on turtle dove migration routes had suffered population declines, a number of others, including Turkey and Russia, still showed stable levels.
He added that the collared dove, considered a pest in many European countries, was a protected species in Malta even though the report pointed out that this species created problems for the turtle dove, with which it competes for resources.
“There are people who want to take advantage of this but we are bound by the Birds Directive and all it permits. If there’s any change, we’ll follow that but, until that comes about, there’s no cause for alarm,” Mr Mifsud Bonnici said.
FKNK president Joe Perici Calascione declined to comment.