Police apprehend armed poacher inside Nature Reserve

Police apprehended an armed hunter yesterday evening inside 'Is-Simar' Nature Reserve in Xemxija.

The police were alerted to the break-in at the wetland Bird Sanctuary by one of the reserve’s watchmen, and immediately dispatched a unit to the location.

Officers attending the scene chased down and caught a single armed suspect, who was still inside the reserve when they arrived.

Is-Simar is one of only two wetland Nature Reserves in Malta, managed by BirdLife Malta. It is home to many birds and other wildlife found in few other places in the Maltese Islands.

It is thought the break-in was carried out in an attempt to target birds currently over-wintering in the wetland, which include several Teal, Snipe and Coots.

BirdLife Malta’s Nature Reserves Manager, Mark Gauci, said that it is a shame that watchmen are needed to guard a nature reserve, as this incident highlighted.

With winter slowly giving way to spring, several of Is-Simar’s birds are already starting to display breeding behaviour, including Little Grebes for whom the wetland is the only known breeding site in the islands, thanks to the ideal habitat provided by the dense reed beds around the brackish lake.

Visitors can enjoy these and other birds, animals and plants at Is-Simar every Sunday throughout the spring, when the reserve is open to the public between 10.30am and 4.30pm, with regular guided walks from the reserve’s visitor centre and a public bird-watching hide which offers the best chance of getting close-up views of wildlife.