Migrating Birds as Prey

Every autumn many migrating birds crossing the Mediterranean Sea en route to Africa seek shelter on the Maltese islands, a small archipelago in the middle of the Mediterranean. Their journey often ends there.

Europe's birds use three main routes to travel between their European breeding grounds and African wintering grounds - in the East over the Bosporus, in the west over Gibraltar, and in the central Mediterranean via Italy, Sicily and Malta. 

With around 15,000 bird shooters and trappers in the EU's smallest member state, Malta has the highest density of hunters in the European Union. Malta also boasts an impressive list of 389 bird species recorded over the islands, of which around 170 occur annually. 

This Honey-buzzard is one of over 200 shot protected birds which BirdLife Malta Raptor Camp and CABS teams last September. Photo: Louise Greenwood.

75 protected species shot

Over the past three years alone, BirdLife Malta has received shot birds of at least 75 protected species including 17 raptor species.

Lack of resources within the Malta police force is a key problem leading to inefficient enforcement of hunting regulations. The unit trained in hunting legislation consists of less than 25 police officers and only a handful of vehicles. This unit also has other duties such as beach and sea patrols.

BirdLife Malta - Raptor Camp
BirdLife Malta is the main organisation working to stop the killing of protected species. We run regular surveillance operations, gathering evidence to assist the police with prosecuting illegal hunters. During the peak autumn raptor migration period, international volunteers are invited to join local birdwatchers in a two week long Raptor Camp aiming to record bird migration and deter illegalities by maintaining a strong presence in the countryside.

Migration map Ringing studies have linked BirdLife Malta to 48 African and European countries through bird migration. Shot ringed birds have been recovered from 37 of these 48 countries.

Lesser Spotted eagles and Black storks
Rare birds such as eagles and storks are particularly prized by Malta's poachers for their collections. BirdLife Raptor Camps have recorded Lesser Spotted eagles and Black storks, among other rare migrants, being targeted within hours of their arrival over the years.

Convictions
One of the eagles was killed in a Bird Sanctuary about 1.5 Km away from an observation post manned by a Raptor Camp team. The hunter recovered the dead eagle, stashed it under a barrel and tried to escape. The police, who were called and directed by the team, apprehended the hunter and an accomplice, and the dead bird was recovered by the team. The team took footage of the whole incident by fitting a camera to a telescope, and the evidence helped convict the illegal hunters. Over the last years Raptor Camp teams have managed to gather enough evidence to help the police to convict many illegal hunters.

200 dead protected birds
It is not only the rare and exotic that are targeted. Last September Raptor Camp participants uncovered one of the largest wildlife crime scenes in Malta's recent history. A two day search by BirdLife and CABS (another bird conservation organisation that runs a similar camp) volunteers, accompanied by the police, uncovered over 200 dead protected birds stashed throughout a stretch of woodland used as ‘hunting grounds' by Malta's biggest hunting organisation. The birds discovered were predominantly herons and raptors, but other protected species were also found, including a Hoopoe and a Nightingale. The birds had been killed on the day and over previous days or months, showing that this criminal activity was the norm in the area.

Red-footed falcons are listed under the Global IUCN Red list as a threatened species, but that did not protect this bird which was recovered by BirdLife Malta last June after being illegally shot. Photo by Andre Raine.

The targeting of protected migratory birds by illegal hunters in Malta is a cause of concern for many European countries. Great bittern was the subject of massive conservation projects in the UK, just as Lesser Spotted eagles are the subject of a re-introduction programme in Germany. Large sums of money have been spent on conserving these species by organisations and institutions in Europe, including the European Commission itself, yet both species among other rare protected birds have been recorded killed in Malta. Ringed birds from 37 countries, ranging from Russia to South Africa, England to Hungary, have been recovered shot in Malta.

The birds getting killed in Malta are birds which many countries invest time, effort and finances into protecting. This makes hunting in Malta an international concern. To support BirdLife Malta's work and learn more visit www.birdlifemalta.org