Murgulītis

It hasn't taken that long for yet another Osprey (Arpa) to fall victim to the ongoing hunting season of illegalities. This afternoon an #Osprey with visibly dangling legs and colour rings was observed over Buskett. The bird, after being shot somewhere in the vicinity, attempted to settle on one of the trees near Buskett. Unable to use its legs, the bird tried hard holding onto a branch until it eventually tumbled down the tree to the ground. Environmental Protection Unit (EPU) police officers on site reached the bird with the help of birdwatchers and took the bird immediately to the veterinary clinic. The diagnosis was clear. Lead pellets had shattered both legs beyond any chance of recovery. The bird is a juvenile one that started its life some months ago in Latvia, on its first journey to Africa for winter. Its journey has however been cut short as a direct result of the state of impunity that hunting is in. Years back a 3pm curfew protected these birds from being hunted down as they arrive to Malta to rest for the night. Yet currently most of the hunting that is witnessed in the afternoon is simply on such protected species. This is the second illegally shot Osprey recovered in less than a week following the Osprey recovered by our staff at Għadira Nature Reserve after the bird landed injured on one of the islands within the reserve, succumbing to its injuries on Sunday. Most of these birds originate from Baltic and Scandinavian countries where intense conservation efforts are expended to help this species thrive. Current government policies are wasting away such European efforts simply to appease a hunting lobby to kill more of such species.