Increased enforcement during autumn hunting season, 40 offences registered

Over 95 enforcement personnel from various entities, including the police administrative law enforcement (ALE) unit, district police, the AFM and the Wild Birds Regulation Unit have been deployed to oversee the hunting season since the 1^st of September 2013, double the officers deployed in the same period last year.

The officers carried out 4,170 field inspections, contributing around 10,000 man hours on the beat, which is 40% more than the number of hours contributed during the same period in 2012, the parliamentary secretariat for animal rights and rural affairs said.

"This ratio of enforcement deployment, amounting to roughly one officer for every 2 square km of Maltese countryside is unprecedented anywhere in Europe and possibly in the world. In addition, the countryside was monitored by several dozen local and foreign volunteers from various NGOs, which cooperated with the authorities," the secretariat added.

Field inspections carried out during the "curfew" period between 15^th September and 7^th October 2013 resulted in the disclosure of 40 offences of various categories, including one case of illegal shooting of a protected bird, one case involving suspected targeting of protected birds at sea (presently under investigation) and five cases of trapping of protected birds. The most common type of offence disclosed during this autumn period was illegal use of pre-recorded bird calls (15 cases), followed by possession of a shotgun holding more than three cartridges (seven cases), followed by hunting within prohibited distances from roads and inhabited areas (five cases) and illegal trapping (five cases).

There were no disclosed cases involving hunting in bird sanctuaries or during unpermitted hours. No incidents of illegal targeting of birds of prey from 15th September up until 7th October were disclosed after 1500hrs. Some 24 persons are being prosecuted with respect to the above-mentioned offences.

Last year, a total of 32 offences were detected during the same period, of which four incidents involved illegal shooting of protected birds. The most common type of disclosed offence during this period in 2012 was hunting within prohibited distances (nine cases), followed by possession of a shotgun holding more than three cartridges (five cases) followed by shooting of protected birds (four cases) and hunting and trapping without a license (four cases).

Some 95% of cases prosecuted with the assistance of the newly set-up Specialist Enforcement Branch of the Wild Birds Regulation Unit resulted in convictions, which is an excellent rate comparable to best practices in the field EU-wide.

Between 15^th and 30^th September 2012, a total of 49 injured birds suffering gunshot wounds have been recovered. During the same period in 2013, 18 birds suffering gunshot wounds have been recovered, of which 11 succumbed to their injuries or were euthanized by veterinarians due to the nature of their wounds. Seven birds are being rehabilitated. "This indicates that whilst the number of illegally targeted birds has markedly gone down, the issue of illegal persecution of protected birds still remains to be of concern and needs to be tackled with further measures," the secretariat said.

"In view of the above, the government has embarked, in collaboration with key stakeholders, on developing a national strategy for the eradication of illegal killing, trapping and trade in wild birds. Zero-tolerance policy towards such offences is the only way forward. The government has also put forward a proposal, for consideration by the Malta Ornis Committee in the coming weeks, for a new procedure for the handling and rehabilitation of recovered injured birds

"It is clear that the increased deployment of enforcement personnel has resulted in a considerable reduction in the number of serious crimes such as shooting protected birds or hunting in bird sanctuaries. At the same time, the higher intensity of inspections has led to increased rate of disclosure for minor offences such as illegal use of bird callers."