Police receive training in handling shot birds

The Wild Birds Regulation Unit and BirdLife Malta have organised a joint training session for police officers on how to handle injured or stranded wild birds.

Parliamentary secretary for animal rights Roderick Galdes said in a statement that the training sessions were held in collaboration with Hungarian veterinary surgeon Eurydike Kovacs, who has been contracted by the WBRU to provide veterinary care to rescued birds.

The WBRU – the state hunting regulator – said that members of the public who stumble upon a stranded wild bird should first confirm that the bird is indeed injured or a newly-fledged bird. They should then contact the WBRU or the police with details of the bird, type of injury and location, and stay with the bird until offices arrive to retrieve it.

If catching the bird is unavoidable due to imminent danger to either itself or others, it should only be caught if it can be immediately placed in a well-ventilated covered box to wait for treatment.

BirdLife Malta on Thursday called on the government to suspend the autumn hunting season, in light of the fact that at least 32 wild birds were reported killed.

“Although we have 100 hunters who utilise cameras when hunting, we have to bear in mind that our small country has 10,000 hunters who do not think twice to break the law if and when they are aware that enforcement is lacking so they can get away with it,” BirdLife chief executive Mark Sultana told a press conference.

He suggested that the Prime Minister’s refusal to suspend the season – as he had suspended previous seasons following widespread illegalities – was a tactic aimed at appeasing hunters ahead of the next general election.