After referring to multiple instances which happened in the past, FKNK continued to say that thanks to its proposals last year, the Malta Ornis Committee recommended the lifting of the moratorium and the opening of a 14-half-day season for hunting turtle doves in April of the same year with a national bag limit of 1,500 turtle doves.

“Before the hunting season opened in the spring of 2022, BirdLife Malta submitted a mandate of inhibition in court similar to the one it submitted this year in order to prevent the spring hunting season from opening.”

FKNK continued to thank the court for rejecting the mandate, through which the moratorium was lifted and the spring season of 2022 was opened as had been recommended by the Malta Ornis Committee.

During the last meeting of the Malta Ornis Committee, the FKNK also submitted several documents with its proposals for the opening of the hunting season for this spring 2023 with the following details, as quoted:

1. During the turtle dove autumn hunting seasons of September 2021 and 2022, the FKNK collected statistics of the harvested turtle doves divided between juveniles and adults, the results of which clearly indicated a positive measure of the sustainability of hunting the species. One should also be informed that this type of survey was proposed by the European Commission itself, and the FKNK undertook it with the voluntary participation of its members.

2. During the turtle dove hunting season of spring 2022, through a scientific study, the FKNK arrived at what is called a positive “Sustainable Index” of 0.703, which basically indicates that 70% of the turtle doves, which could possibly have been taken by hunting, were not taken. Once again this study was possible with the voluntary participation of members from the FKNK.

3. A turtle dove from the FKNK respective project, which was harnessed with a satellite transmitter and released into the wild in 2021 ended up in Bulgaria, while two other turtle doves, also harnessed with a transmitter each, were released into the wild in 2022, completed their journey once again in Bulgaria and Kosovo.

These two countries, where according to BirdLife International (2017), every year, from 35,000 to 100,000 pairs of turtle doves nest, until now were not part of the so-called “reference population countries”, that is those countries where the turtle doves that migrate through the Maltese islands nest, and on which collective number of nesting pairs the national bag limit of how many turtle doves can be taken by hunting is worked out. However, despite this increase in the “reference population countries”, for this year the FKNK did not request an increase on last year’s quota of 1,500.

4. The FKNK turtle doves’ project also achieved one of its primary objectives, the “compensatory measure”.  This is because, from 2017 (when the project was launched) until 2022, the official figure of how many turtle doves were taken by hunting in the Maltese islands amounted to 2,134, while the amount of turtle doves that were released into the wild thanks to the project in the same period is 2,800.

Based on all this, the Malta Ornis Committee voted in favour of recommending the proposals of the FKNK for turtle dove hunting on 14 half-days on and between 17th and 30th April 2023 with a national bag limit of 1,500 turtle doves.

“In consideration of all this, as briefly explained above, the FKNK cannot help but feel disgusted by the boundless arrogance, the deception through unsupported allegations, and the lack of respect of BirdLife Malta and their friends, in the face of the government, the courts of Malta as well as Europe and the will of all the Maltese and Gozitan people.”

“On the other hand, the FKNK will await and respect the outcome of the court in the case which will be heard today at 2pm, and where a delegation from the council of the FKNK will be present.”

What do you make of the FKNK’s statement?