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Record number of volunteers for this year’s raptors
BirdLife Malta’s largest ever Raptor Camp kicked off this afternoon with the first teams of bird watchers going out into the countryside to monitor bird migration and deter illegal hunting.
The camp will run until the 2 October and during this period 66 international volunteers from ten countries; Canada, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, Netherlands, Poland, and the UK will take part.
The camp is timed to cover the peak migration period for raptors when many of these birds stop overnight in Malta, to rest while on their autumn migration to warmer climates. Although raptors are protected by law they are highly prized by illegal hunters and form the majority of shot protected birds received by BirdLife Malta.
Scientific ringing studies have confirmed that raptors shot in Malta come from at least four of the countries Raptor Camp volunteers come from; Finland, Germany, Latvia and Poland.
Since the start of the opening hunting season BirdLife Malta has received daily reports of illegal shooting, several birds have been photographed in flight with gunshot damage, and six shot protected birds have been received by the organisation.
One of the main problems in countering the illegalities is a severely under-resourced ALE unit, which normally consists of around 20 officers.
During the 2011 spring hunting season the European Commission requested an increased police presence in the countryside and ALE numbers were temporarily increased to 43, after around 5,600 hunters applied for spring hunting licenses (1).
“There are nearly twice that number of hunters licensed for the autumn hunt, but without pressure from the Commission it is unlikely that ALE numbers will be increased proportionately,” said Nicholas Barbara, BirdLife Malta Conservation and Policy Officer.
“Despite the quiet migration the past few days numerous illegalities have been observed – without a strong police presence, migration picking up is only likely to lead to many shot protected birds.”
BirdLife Malta is also encouraging members of the public to report illegalities to the police, providng instructions on what information would be required and how best to pass it on are available on www.birdlifemalta.org.
