HAPPY EASTER

● Season’s dates coincide with peak migration of the protected Turtle Dove: government risking EU infringement action - BirdLife Malta

BirdLife Malta treated children to a traditional Easter egg hunt and other fun-filled activities at the Simar Nature Reserve yesterday, the day before the spring hunting season opened for business Photo: Michael Camilleri

This year’s spring hunting season, dedicated solely to quails, has officially opened today and will run until 21 April. Yet concern has arisen, with Bird Life Malta stipulating clearly that this year’s season constitutes a clear threat to the recently protected Turtle Dove.

In fact, this spring hunting season has opened 15 days later than had been proposed by the Environment and Resources Authority (ERA) to the government, and a week later than last year.

Although the season is supposedly only for Quail, this year the season dates have been changed, allegedly on purpose, to coincide with the peak migration of the Turtle Dove, despite hunting of the now protected species being subject to a moratorium for the second year running.

The spring hunting season is open between two hours between sunrise to noon and closes from 12pm onwards. A maximum of 5,000 Quail can be hunted across the season with a daily bag limit of five Quail and a seasonal bag limit of ten Quails per hunter.

An Ornis Committee meeting usually held at the start of every season on enforcement was cancelled last minute this week due to “unforeseen circumstances”. The meeting involves feedback on levels of enforcement plans in terms of police deployment whilst also having the Wild Birds Regulation Unit (WBRU) announcing the number of hunting licences granted for this year’s season.

“The European Turtle Dove is in serious decline across Europe, with the species being classified as ‘vulnerable’ by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)” BirdLife Malta stated in a press release issued in reaction to the opening of spring hunting. The government back 2016 had then introduced a ban on hunting Turtle Doves in spring, with last year’s spring hunting season moved to the start of March to avoid hunters being active during the period when this bird migrates over the Maltese Islands.

“The decision by the Government to push this year’s season dates to April puts this vulnerable species at great risk of being hunted, whilst also putting the Maltese Government at risk of being subjected once again to infringement action by the European Commission over the opening of a spring hunting season” BirdLife Malta explained.

In this year’s spring hunting 6,754 licensees (Malta: 5,583 licences, Gozo: 1,174) have been authorised by the Government. In a press release published yesterday, the Government stipulated that in the opening time of Spring Hunting each 1,000 licensees will have 7 officers supervising with a minimum of 47 officers in all (40 in Malta and 7 in Gozo) during hunting hours. At closed hours, from 12pm onwards, 2 officers for every 1,000 licences with a minimum of 14 officers (12 in Malta and 2 in Gozo). After the Spring Hunting Season from the 22nd April 2018 until at least 1st May, 3 officers for every 1,000- licences with a minimum of 20 officers (17 in Malta and 3 Gozo). Spot checks shall continue until at least four weeks from start of the season.

Parliamentary Secretary for Agriculture, Fisheries and Animal Rights Clint Camilleri stressed the importance of strict enforcement during this period, including spot checks, as required by the Framework Regulatory SL 549.57 which requires, among other things, that such enforcement should continue during the afternoon during the season and after the season ended from 22 April onwards. This is to ensure that the hunting is only on quail and no other species and to prevent any form of illegalities. Camilleri called for every hunter to strictly obey all the conditions of the special license which they will receive in the coming days, including the obligation to report immediately any quail caught. Camilleri said the police will ensure that there are no illegalities along with officers and officials of WBRU would also are on the ground to assist in enforcement.

Just last week, MEPs from several political groups participating in a round table discussion hosted by Dutch MEP Anja Hazekamp (GUE/NGL) at the European Parliament in Brussels called on the European Commission to open infringement procedures against Malta to stop the practice of spring hunting on migratory birds as “there is concrete evidence that the derogation from the EU Birds Directive, applied by Malta to enable spring hunting of Quail, does not meet the required conditions”. It was also announced that there will be an EP plenary debate in May on spring hunting in Malta.

BirdLife Malta stated that it was clear that “Turtle Doves will be killed due to this change in dates, as there is no doubt either that enforcing the moratorium is going to be close to impossible. The 2018 spring hunting season follows an autumn hunting season which was the worst one for illegalities in the past five years.”

Furthermore, a report published by the Wild Birds Regulation Unit a few days ago made it very clear that in 2017, the digital self-reporting system which requires hunters and trappers to declare their catch, was a complete failure. “According to the Game Reporting Data 2017 Report - also known as the Carnet de Chasse Report – just 14% of hunters and trappers bothered to participate in the telephone system which replaced the previous Carnet de Chasse system to record the number of birds killed last year. On its first page the report says that 2,167 hunters and trappers reported Carnet de Chasse out of a total of 10,467 hunting licences and 4,534 trapping licences issued last year. While these figures declared by the hunters themselves shows that the number of birds reported as having been hunted last year is extremely low, the Maltese Government will now be using these same figures to justify to the European Commission the need to open this year’s spring hunting season” BirdLife Malta explained.

“Last year 6,653 hunters had registered to hunt in spring. Attempts by BirdLife Malta to get the information about the 2018 spring hunting season were unsuccessful with our official requests to the Ornis Chairman and the Wild Birds Regulation Unit to provide this data remaining unanswered.”

BirdLife Malta assured that as usual they will be monitoring the controversial spring hunting season through its annual Spring Watch camp. “We will be counting on the public’s engagement to ensure that environmental law enforcement remains a priority and urge anyone witnessing illegal hunting to immediately report the case to the police and to BirdLife Malta in order for action to be taken.”

Any illegalities or shot birds witnessed should be reported to the police on 119 and to us by calling 2134 7645/6 during office hours and on our hotline 7925 5697 (strictly only for wildlife crime emergencies) during evenings and weekends.