Saturday, 7th November 2009 - 11:52CET
Seminar to discuss alternatives to bird trapping - BirdLife
One of the topics of an international seminar on bird trapping, to be held in Malta next week, will be alternatives to bird trapping, BirdLife Malta said in a statement today.
A Belgian ex-trapper who shifted his hobby to captive finch breeding when Belgium banned finch trapping, will share his experience with the audience.
"The project does not aim to abolish finch trapping as this is already banned in Malta in line with EU Accession Treaty Agreement. This ban naturally created frustration among Maltese trappers as the reason behind it was not communicated to trappers by the Maltese government during the five-year phasing out period," BirdLife Malta Campaigns Coordinator Geoffrey Saliba said.
Mr Saliba referred to a statement issued yesterday by the hunters' federation, saying the federation was telling its members not to take part in any dialogue which would help trappers form their own opinion and divert their enthusiasm for birds to other hobbies.
The seminar is being organized by the EU LIFE+ Project on Bird Migration and Trapping. The participants will include Professor Bruno Massa, from the University of Palermo and Patrick Wegerdt from the Infringements Unit of the European Commission.
BirdLife said trapping is not permitted throughout the EU under the Birds Directive. When Malta joined the EU it negotiated a five year phasing out period for the trapping of seven finch species. This period ended in December 2008 and the finch trapping season did not open this year in line with the Accession Treaty agreement.
During the seminar a range of topics will be discussed, including finch migration and populations in the central Mediterranean islands, law enforcement relating to trapping and the legal situation regarding trapping in other EU member states.
RSS
Comments
Just another cheap scattering of salt in the wounds of thousands of Maltese trappers who were deceived and cheated out of their traditional pastime by the very negotiators appointed by Government to defend their hobby.
Trappers need no dialogue to form opinions about the likes of Birdlife Malta and its ultimate intentions. They formed their opinion a long time ago.
Same old Birdlife. 90% anti-hunting and trapping, and 10% pro-birds in most of what they say and do.
Bird species which are permitted to be hunted in Italy:
Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs
Brambling Fringilla montifringilla
Starling Sturnus vulgaris
Italian Sparrow Passer x italiae
House Sparrow Passer domesticus
Tree Sparrow Passer montanus
Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo
Collared Dove Streptopelia decaocto
Did your special advisers tell you this dear Government when we messed up our laws and disrupted our socio-cultural way of life of many Maltese and Gozitan families? Then it is true, we are second class EU citizens. A chaffinch (Sponsun) can be shot by an Italian but not even caught alive by a Maltese. Can some biased Ornis specialist explain that to us poor ex-colonial natives and second class EU citizens? Will Prof Bruono Massa expand on some 'Chaffinch' cooking receipe, during his forthcoming visit? What is the opinion of the shadow government?
What Exactly the project is aimed to do? if trappers cannot trap for finches, then is obviously abolished.
In Italy not only allowed to trap them but even allowed to shoot at them.
Another alternative for football is to play it on Playstation, is that what BLM means?
Can someone please enlighten me as to: "BirdLife said trapping is not permitted throughout the EU under the Birds Directive." Where is BLM's credibility?!
Here we go again, the same old KANTALINA.
Then how come in Italy, in the provinces of Brescia, Bergamo, Lecco-Sondrio, Como and Mantua, trappers are permitted to capture, by the use of nets, skylarks, fieldfares, blackbirds, song-thrushes and redwings
I think BLM wants to be proved wrong again by the ECJ
These persons ( bird trappers ) their only hobby is catching these birds but no breeding them so the only alternative there is, it's trapping itself.