Malta allows a quota of 500 European turtle doves to be hunted in autumn, which runs through the end of September, but Micallef said that number was reached soon after the storm, and the season was closed on Sept. 14. \u201cDespite the official closure, BirdLife Malta documented ongoing hunting of Turtle-doves in the hours and days that followed,\u201d Micallef said.<\/p>\n
Volunteers also reported hunters shooting at a flock of more than 150 little egrets (Egretta garzetta)<\/em> with two confirmed dead, and several injured birds, including a European bee-eater (Merops apiaster<\/em>), night heron and grey heron (Ardea cinerea<\/em>), according to BirdLife Malta. There were also three incidents of European rollers (Coracias garrulus<\/em>) being shot. On Sept. 16, two black storks (Ciconia nigra<\/em>), protected in Malta and the European Union, were also shot.<\/p>\n \u201cBetween 14 and 21 September alone, BirdLife Malta collected 21 protected birds with confirmed shooting injuries,\u201d Micallef said. \u201cRepeated illegal mortality adds another pressure to migratory species already facing habitat loss, climate change and other threats along their migration routes.\u201d<\/p>\n Hunting is a growing concern in the Mediterranean, where an estimated 25 million birds are poached each year for sport, taxidermy collections, social media \u2018trophies\u2019 and food, in addition to legal hunts. This is despite many of these birds being protected in the EU, and millions spent on conservation efforts.<\/p>\n Micallef said enforcement remains a challenge as \u201cenvironmental police resources were extremely limited compared with the number of hunters active across the islands.\u201d The Maltese government has also been lenient with poachers, conservationists say, issuing large-scale amnesties and allowing some banned hunters a chance to get their licenses.<\/p>\n \u201cProtected-species legislation only works if it is effectively enforced,\u201d Micallef said. \u201cThe continued shooting of protected birds, alongside limited enforcement capacity, undermines the protection intended by European law.\u201d<\/p>\n