26. Common Kestrel

Common Kestrels were in the local news recently: they nested again after 15 years of absence! But it wasn't from want of trying: since kestrels (M: Spanjulett) are birds of prey, they are among the top trophies of illegal hunters in Malta. So despite the efforts of several pairs to breed, family plans have always been foiled through the business end of the shotgun. Now, just two years into the ban on bird-killing in spring, a pair successfully raised and fledged three chicks in Gozo. This is ample proof that - as BirdLife always insisted - kestrels will breed if hunting is controlled; there is food (mice, lizards) and habitat (open agricultural country) enough to sustain a good population of them. What still lacks seems to be some basic respect from us humans.

Text by Victor Falzon. Copyright to Birdlife Malta.