Search

The article highlights the saga of spring hunting of migrating birds, including Turtle Doves Streptopelia turtur and Common Quails Coturnix coturnix, in Malta. The efforts of Malta to improve the bird hunting situation in the country and to comply with the Birds Directive when it joined the European Union (EU) in 2004 are reported. Evidence of illegal shooting of birds and other protected species, and the outcome of spring hunting season in Malta in 2013 are cited.

The article reports that a referendum to defeat spring hunting in Malta held on April 11, 2015 has been defeated by a slender margin. Malta's Prime Minister Joseph Muscat has urged hunters to respect the country's law. The article also presents statistics about the hunting of animals including Turtle Doves and Common Quails.

A correction to an article about the Common Quail, Coturnix coturnix, that was published in the September 2009 issue is presented.

The article reports on the discovery of a leg bearing a Belgian ring beneath a Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus nest on the church in Grantham, Lincolnshire, England on July 1, 2009. The discovery was initially rejected by the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), but it was confirmed by the Belgian Ringing Scheme. The remains were identified as those of a Common Quail Coturnix coturnix.

The article reports on the self-imposed ban announced by Malta Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi on spring hunting of Common Quails, Coturnix coturnix, and Turtle Doves, Streptopelia turtur. He prohibited spring hunting activities while the case against the country is still with the European Court of Justice. Groups such as the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) and BirdLife Malta have been working to stop illegal hunting in the country.