Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1503864
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 16 JULY 2023 7 ALMANAC Nature Notebook 875. Spotted Flycatcher IT'S not exactly the most eye-catching bird: mousy brownish-grey, small and rather shy. Yet it's on that special list that raises its status with local naturalists, because it's a breeding bird. Spotted flycatch- ers (M. żanżarell tat-tikek) do not live here all year, they spend win- ter in the forests and savannas of central Africa, whisking tropical flies and mosquitoes from the air. But come spring they strike north, cross a couple of thousand kilometres of desert and a few hundred kilometres of Mediterranean Sea – an endurance stunt that defies belief – imagine that pea-sized heart beating at 1000+ times per minute – and all this to find somewhere to nest. And for some (a 'some' that seems to be on the increase, too), Malta is the destina- tion. Right now a pair of these marathon fliers could well be raising chicks in a pine grove near you. Call on your politicians to Save Bees and Farmers! Safe food should always be the easy choice. Yet, everyone in Europe is exposed to varying degrees of pesticide residues through food and wa- ter, with direct adverse effects on health. What's more, pesticides deplete soils, pollute water and put wildlife in peril, thus endangering the entire ecological system upon which food production depends. Friends of the Earth Malta marks today's #WorldFoodSafetyDay by launching a Europe- an-wide online campaign, in collaboration with other organizations [you can tag them], to involve citizens and put pressure on political stakehold- ers – at national and EU level. In 2022, the European Commission pub- lished a proposal for a new regulation on the sustainable use of pesticides (SUR), which aims to cut the use of pesticides in the EU by 50% by 2030 to protect nature, pollinators and human health. This proposal has been met with fierce resistance from the agroindustry and their political allies, using the dramatic situation in Ukraine to get rid of it. We can't let it happen! EU citizens must mobilize and once again remind decision makers of their responsibility to support strong and ambitious pesticide phase out plans: for the bees and other pollinators, for long-term food security, and for our farmers and society at large. Victor Falzon, Aron Tanti www.birdlifemalta.org Green idea of the week 762: Join our campaign and send an email to your representatives via the link https:// foemalta.org/our-campaigns/food-agriculture-biodiversity/beecause/petition/ Visit Friends of the Earth's website for more information about our work, as well as information about how to join us. You can also support us by sending us a donation – www.foemalta.org/donate Don't miss this Santa Maria Villa Affair 15 August Place: Villa Blanche the perfect recipe on Santa Maria for the eight consecutive year running On Tuesday 15th August join Miss Roberta and her dazzling crew as they reign over their yearly favourite Villa. Online Tickets at 15 out now.. get your crew together as this one is a yearly must. Give nature a voice. Become a BirdLife member Out Of The Darkness 21-23 September Place: Valletta Campus Theatre Out of The Darkness is a riveting production incorporating stunning visuals, great acting and a story that transports audiences to the small town of Jackson Falls 1986, where we find a group of teenagers in a quest to save the town after a mysterious girl arrives during a devastating storm. Her arrival sets off a chain of events that awakens a malevolent spirit, intent on destruction. A GOOD WEEK Good Week/Bad Week A BAD WEEK An independent music festival that was cancelled last summer will take place in Bedfordshire this weekend. Ampthill festival event kicks off with AmpRocks, headlined by Clean Bandit, Kula Shaker and Black Honey. Hollywood actors have joined a strike by screenwriters in the industry's biggest shutdown for more than 60 years. Some 160,000 performers stopped work at midnight in Los Angeles, bringing to a halt most US film and TV productions. The organisers of the volunteer-run event said they "didn't get quite the right line-up" in 2022 and struggled with a spike in production costs. The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) wants streaming giants to agree to a fairer split of profits and better working conditions.