The autumn hunting season is to start on Friday and yet the Ornis Committee which is supposed to oversee the practice has not yet been appointed, BirdLife Malta said today. The government in a statement however, said that the board has already been approved.

The NGO said it is concerned that this committee is still not functioning a few days before the season starts.

The committee was dissolved after the election and it has not been re-appointed yet, BirdLife Malta said, while stating that it has presented a letter to the Prime Minister.

The Autumn hunting season, the NGO explained, will begin on 1 September and last for five months.

The Ornis committee is composed of representatives from BirdLife Malta, the FKNK, the Environment and Resources Authority and the Wild Birds Regulation Unit (WBRU), while occasionally summoning the Malta Police force when it comes to enforcement issues.

The NGO’s CEO Mark Sultana said that the law allows for the killing of 40 bird species during the Autumn hunting season, which will end on January 31.”The rest of the species are protected both by local and international law.”

The NGO appealed to everyone to observe the law.

It called on government and the police ALE unit to place environmental law enforcement as a priority during this period, “in which 10,000 hunters could be out in Malta’s countryside to hunt. During the past four Autumns, BirdLife Malta received a total of around 100 illegally shot protected birds. This is only the tip of the iceberg, representing only a small percentage of the total amount of birds which are illegally shot during the hunting season”

In their letter to the Prime Minister, the NGO said that over the past years, they noted a lack of police presence in the countryside, resulting in an increase in illegalities.

The NGO also expressed concern that the a number of protected birds were shot during the closed season.

“With reference to previous statements about reducing fines and penalties, we reiterate that this would only benefit those who break the law, as these fines are the only deterrent against the shooting of protected species and are meant to discourage the practice.”

The representatives argued that BirdLife Malta will monitor the hunting season.

Anyone witnessing illegal hunting should report the case to the police and to BirdLife Malta, the NGO representatives urged.

Hunting of birds at sea, the NGO reminded, is only allowed as from 1 October, and also said that the Autumn hunting season for Turtle Doves on land is between 1 September and 30 September, and there is a 7,000 bag limit for this species.

Ornis Board already approved - Environment Ministry

Environment Minister Jose Herrera said that the Ornis Board is already officially approved and the members are being notified prior to the opening of the season.

The Ornis Board will be presided over by retired Magistrate Dennis Montebello as Chairman. Sergei Golovkin will be the board’s secretary, and the board will include other members from the hunting lobbys, and the NGOs who work for the protection of birds.

 Minister Herrera said that he will meet with the committee in the coming days, while assuring that this season will be regulated by Ornis, “as every other season has been.”

The minister said that over the past years, progress has been seen when it comes to enforcement. The number of enforcement officials, he added, doubled since before 2013., while the number of on-site inspections multiplied by four times. “The number of protected birds which were injured or killed has significantly reduced.”

 

Parliamentary Secretary for Animal Rights Clint Camilleri said he will continue to strengthen the cooperation between the concerned entities.

Government statement

As was the case also in previous years, according to Conservation of Wild Birds Regulations (S.L. 549.42) the hunting of birds on land shall be permitted between 1 September and 31 January, between two hours before sunrise and two hours after sunset on any day between Monday and Saturday, and between two hours before sunrise and 1pm on Sundays and Public Holidays. However the hunting of birds on land between the 15th September and the 7th October (inclusive of both dates) shall not be permitted from Monday to Saturday between 7 pm and two hours before sunrise of the following day.

The same time restrictions also apply to the hunting of wild rabbit, which is permitted until 31 December.

The hunting of birds at sea shall be permitted between 1 October and 31 January during the same times as those applicable to hunting on land, provided that between 1 October and 7 October, inclusive of both dates, hunting at sea shall not be permitted from Monday to Saturday between 7 pm and two hours before sunrise of the following day.

Hunters can only hunt the species for which they are licensed according to their license category.

In line with the Legal Notice 69 of 2016, licensed hunters are required to report the birds caught via telephone reporting system prior to leaving the hunting area in accordance with instructions as stipulated in information booklet distributed together with hunting licenses.

Due to re-classification of the legal status of Red Breasted Merganser (Mergus serrator) in 2016, the hunting of this species is no longer being allowed. Moreover, according to Legal Notice 77 of 2016, hunting of Turtle Doves (Streptopelia turtur) shall be permitted between 1 and 30 September only, subject to maximum national quota of 7,000 birds. Targeting of the Turtle Dove outside of this period is not permitted.

The Wild Birds Regulation Unit notes with satisfaction that exemplary improvements in compliance achieved over the past three years produced extremely visible positive change that was hardly conceivable in the past. However this progress, which is a result of cooperation between the government, members of the hunting community, and bird protection NGOs, needs to be further maintained and consolidated.

Whilst calling upon all hunters and hunting organizations to continue to adopt a zero-tolerance approach to illegalities, the Unit and other law enforcement entities shall continue to rigorously monitor and enforce compliance with applicable regulations through field surveillance, spot checks and inspections.

While wishing a good season to all hunters, Parliamentary Secretary for Agriculture, Fisheries and Animal Rights Clint Camilleri calls for hunters to observe the laws so that hunting is after all safeguarded.