Malta misled European task force over turtle dove spring hunt

Malta misled a European task force that was discussing expert advice recommending no hunting for turtle dove this year, minutes of the meeting confirm.

The task force met on 18 March to discuss an experts’ report that proposed no hunting of turtle dove in countries that fall within the central-eastern flyway. Malta is one of these countries.

Only two days earlier, the Ornis Committee, a hunting advisory body, had recommended to the Maltese government the opening of a limited spring hunting season for quail and turtle dove. The recommendation effectively ended the spring hunting moratorium for turtle dove introduced in 2017 when the European Commission threatened action.

But when a BirdLife representative on the task force expressed concern about a possible spring hunting derogation that was being considered in Malta, the Maltese representative from the Wild Birds Regulation Unit stated that “no decision had been made and the possible derogation was being discussed in the Ornis Committee”.

By that time, Ornis had not only discussed the matter but also made the recommendation for turtle dove to be included in the spring hunt.

The minutes, reveal how the chair of the task force, Luisa Samarelli, deputy head of the European Commission’s Nature Conservation Unit, “urged Malta not to adopt a spring hunting derogation, as this would go in the opposite direction than the conservation actions discussed in the task force meeting.”

Government eventually took up the Ornis recommendation and the spring hunting season is expected to open on 17 April and close on 30 April with a national bag limit for turtle dove set at 1,500 birds.

However, Malta’s decision goes against the expert advice received by the European task force that recommended zero harvest of turtle dove for the whole of 2022.

The task force was discussing expert findings that showed a sustained decline in the population of turtle dove in the central-eastern flyway. The experts also emphasised the lack of proper monitoring and control mechanisms on this migratory flight path to develop a robust population model.

The update showed ongoing population decline amid lower quality data with the experts recommending the adoption of a precautionary approach. The evidence led the experts to recommend a temporary hunting ban on turtle dove in 2022.

This means that Malta was not only expected not to open a spring hunting season, which already requires a derogation in its own right, but was being asked to stop the hunting of turtle dove even in autumn.

During the meeting the chair urged the authorities to build credible control and enforcement systems as well as monitoring programmes and put in place habitat management measures.

A previous European Commission recommendation had been a 50% reduction in the hunting bag limits for turtle doves in countries on the central-eastern flyway. These countries include Italy, Greece, Austria, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Romania and Malta. No decision on the temporary complete ban for hunting on turtle dove has been taken.

Hunting in the EU is allowed in autumn and banned in spring although exceptions can be allowed. Malta has been adopting a derogation for spring hunting on quail and turtle dove after a European Court ruling allowed a window of opportunity given Malta’s specific situation.

The turtle dove was declared a vulnerable species by the IUCN, an international body, in 2015. Two years later, Malta introduced a moratorium on the spring hunting of turtle dove after the European Commission threatened action.

Meanwhile, BirdLife Malta filed a court injunction to stop the spring hunting season on turtle dove. The court has upheld an interim injunction until the sitting takes place on 19 April, two days after the season opens.

The provisional injunction means that turtle dove cannot be hunted when the spring hunting season opens on Sunday until the court gives a final definitive ruling.

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