Storks settle at SVPR, ALE officers on the lookout

Five beautiful white storks spotted resting at the St Vincent de Paul Residence

The White Storks were spotted outside SVPR
The White Storks were spotted outside SVPR

Five beautiful white storks were photographed resting at the St Vincent de Paul Residence, leaving visitors at the residential home staring in awe at the rare sighting.

Officers from the Administrative Law Enforcement are monitoring the birds.

The government has revamped national legislation and doubled applicable penalties for illegal shooting of protected birds.

Any shooting or trapping for protected species listed in Schedules I and IX of these Regulations, even in the case of a first time offence, will automatically incur penalty comprising of €5,000 fine, and / or imprisonment for one year, as well as permanent revocation of license and confiscation of corpus delicti.

In case of second or subsequent offence, the applicable penalty will go up to €10,000, confiscation, and / or imprisonment for two years.
The measures represented a tenfold increase in the presently applicable minimum fine for first time and subsequent offences, whilst permanent revocation of license, and imprisonment, which, at present, only apply to repeat offenders, will also apply in the case of a first time offence in such cases.