WATCH | Police apprehend bird trapper laying nets on Valletta ravelins

A bird trapper chooses the unlikely location of Valletta, a world heritage city, to trap birds. The Valletta Police are seen apprehending the trapper.

After receiving numerous reports from members of the public of a trapping site behind the public library, a BirdLife team last week caught this trapper on early Friday morning actively targeting finches, which since 2009 may not be trapped.

The trapper’s site is on top of the ravelin between the Belt is-Sebh library and rural affairs ministry buildings.
 
The police were called and arrived around 30 minutes later, apprehending the illegal trapper and confiscating the nets.

In Malta trapping sites are prepared when vegetation is first removed using chemicals, fire and mechanical means, destroying habitat for a host of species.

Trapping is forbidden throughout the EU under the Birds Directive so when Malta joined the EU, it negotiated a five-year phasing out period for finch trapping. This period ended in December 2008 and since then the government has honoured Malta’s EU Accession Treaty and not opened a finch trapping season.

The government has however opened a season for four other species under derogation on the Birds Directive – Turtle Dove and Quail between 1st September and 30th October, Song Thrush and Golden Plover 20th October to 10th January.

BirdLife claims that trappers have been observed with Song Thrush decoys on a site, appearing to be operating legally as part of the trapping derogation, however using cleverly hidden finch decoys or even electronic lures with finch songs, so target finches.