Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1391768
9 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 11 JULY 2021 INTERVIEW special licence. As happens every year, the Wild Birds Regulation Unit issued a public call for appli- cations before the season opened. At the time, however, it had not yet been established, by the Ornis Committee, whether this year's spring season would be for quail, for turtle-dove… or for both. That decision was taken only af- ter the licenses were applied for. What this means, in practice, is that many licensed hunters – despite having paid their regis- tration fees, etc. – simply did not go out to hunt last season at all. I know many hunters personally, who had only applied for the li- cence in the hope that it would be a turtle-dove season. When they realised that the season would be for quail instead… they just stayed at home. So you can't say that, if there were 8K licensed hunters this year… all 8K of them actually went out hunting. Apart from that: this year, we also saw how – unfortunately – the effect of climate change is also altering the patterns of mi- gration. Where we usually asso- ciate spring with a flourishing of nature… this year, it was almost like summer. And the quail mi- gration was particularly poor, during an already- limited season of only 10 days. Again, I know a lot of hunters who didn't shoot a single quail, in the entire season. I myself only bagged one… right at the beginning of the season, as it happens… But if you yourself are conceding that climate change is already impacting bird migration… how 'sustainable' is it, to shoot the few remaining birds that do still migrate over Malta? I would approach the same issue slightly different. Yes, the chal- lenges are there… and climate change is definitely one of them. But why don't we work together, collectively, to try and address the real problems? For example, [the EU's] Common Agricultural Policy. From the 1970s to today, over 80% of birds that breed on agricultural land have been wiped out. Why don't we ever talk about that? […] But ultimately: the reason we hunt, is to conserve. If a hunter doesn't conserve… he can't hunt. To give an example: if you're go- ing to target a particular species of bird… you also have to pre- serve that bird's natural habitat. So we can't keep looking at hunting only from the perspec- tive that it 'takes' from the en- vironment, without ever giving anything back. We have to also consider the hundreds of hours, invested by enthusiasts – not just in Malta; but all over Europe – to conserve the natural habitat of the birds themselves. And not just the birds: the conservation work we do, is also of enormous benefit to all the rest of the flora and fauna… Fair enough: but what about the impact on the populations of those birds? As you yourself said, many hunters were ex- pecting a turtle-dove season this year: but the turtle-dove is now an endangered species… It's not 'endangered'. Its official status is 'in decline'… All the same: what's the point of 'conserving the turtle-dove's natural habitat', when you are also adding even more pressure, on a species that is already un- der threat? I've already mentioned one of the factors contributing to the turtle-dove's decline. Even ac- cording to the European Com- mission itself, intensive agricul- ture in Europe has wiped out a lot of its natural habitat. But to answer your question about whether hunting, in itself, is also a factor: just look at the two European countries which registered the greatest decline in breeding turtle-dove popula- tions, over the years: Germany, and the UK. Both those countries actually banned turtle-dove shooting, all the way back in the late 1970s/ early 1980s. And yet, the resi- dent breeding populations [of turtle-dove] keep declining, year after year… This fact, alone, proves that hunting is not a factor in the spe- cies' decline… But hunting certainly was a ma- jor factor in the eradication of numerous other former Maltese breeding birds… the Kestrel, the Jackdaw, the Barn Owl… What a coincidence: it was just today that we released the first of our captive-bred Barn Owls [as part of a project supported by the Conservation of Wild Birds Fund for Voluntary Organisations]. And yet, it was hunters who originally drove the Barn Owl to extinction. So even this project you just mentioned… isn't it all just part of a 'greenwashing' exercise: i.e., making token 'conservationist' gestures, in order to cover up for the much greater damage that is being done? First of all, you can't really say it was 'because of hunters'. The Barn Owl – like all birds of prey – was always a protected species in Malta: even at a time [before the 1980s] when most other spe- cies weren't. So it wasn't really 'hunting' that exterminated that species in Malta… it was the ille- gal taking of birds. Unfortunately, however, there is a tendency here to always use the word 'hunting' to also mean 'illegal hunting'… when in actual fact, it is the op- posite. Even so, however: with this project, the FKNK is at least ac- knowledging the errors of the past, and shouldering its respon- sibilities by trying to re-introduce this species back into the wild. What's so wrong with that? In itself, nothing. But there could be a reason why so many people associate the word 'hunt- ing' with 'illegality'. This year BirdLife Malta registered 58 protected species shot, in just 10 days. Don't you think that there is simply too much illegality – and too little enforcement – in Maltese hunting today? What I can tell you is that, when such cases are reported, we al- ways publicly condemn them. Always. And we never have any problem doing it. But I'm the type who sees the glass as being 'half-full', not 'half-empty'. I'm not saying that there aren't problems; but you also have to acknowledge how much has really changed – not just in terms of hunting regu- lations, but also the culture of hunting itself – in the past 15 years… from the time when, yes: perhaps we did need to introduce a little discipline. But today… when we talk about 'illegal hunting', we are really talking about just a few isolated cases. It is the exception, not the rule. As for 'enforcement': there is infinitely more today, than there ever was before… Are you sure about that? Last I looked, the ALE still had only around 28 members, to patrol the entire countryside…. If you look at how many in- spections are being carried out, however, you will find they have increased substantially. But by enforcement, I also meant to the issue of self-regulation. Today's hunters are far more self-regulating than they used to be. There is a lot more aware- ness, even about hunting regula- tions: in this sense and the FKNK worked very hard to educate the local hunting community. But yes, it may also be because of the efforts of other NGOs. But the fact remains that Mal- tese hunters, today, are much more conscious of their responsi- bilities towards the environment. There has been a major improve- ment, especially in the last 15 years; and I think it's only fair to acknowledge this. Even CABS, for instance, re- cently issued a statement ac- knowledging that the situation has improved. Unfortunately, however, a certain other NGO – which always endorses all CABS' other statements – chose not to endorse this particular one, for some reason…