Rare Spoonbill resting at Ghadira Nature Reserve

A rare Spoonbill, known in Maltese as 'il-pallettuna' has been seen at Ghadira Nature Reserve since Thursday.

The bird probably originates from the Danube Delta and used to be highly prized for its feathers.

Reserve Warden, Alex Casha, admitted of having wanted to keep quiet about the presence of the bird, as past experience had shown that if poachers knew that such birds were present, poachers would try to break into the reserve at night to try to kill them.

"But now that the Spoonbill has been at the reserve for several days it is highly likely that word will have spread and the poachers will know about it," Casha said. BirdLife has decided that the best protection for the bird while it continues to reside in the Nature Reserve is for as many people as possible to know it is there and for local residents to help by keeping an eye and ear out for any suspicious activity in the area.

The reserve is already guarded by a security guard outside opening hours and throughout the night.

Spoonbills are infrequent visitors to the Maltese Islands on migration, making them highly prized by poachers.

BirdLife said that it had received numerous reports of continued illegal shooting all around the islands since the end of the hunting season on Tuesday, which adds to concern for the safety of this bird.

Anyone wanting to see this amazing bird while it is in Malta is encouraged to visit Għadira Nature Reserve during normal public opening hours of 10.30am to 4.30pm, Saturday and Sunday.