BirdLife Malta has strongly criticised the government’s decision to reopen applications for General Trapping Licences, calling it a major step backward for Malta’s environmental obligations under the European Union. Finch trapping, which was supposed to be phased out after Malta joined the EU in 2004, is now being actively regenerated, despite repeated legal rulings against it. The European Court of Justice declared Malta’s recreational finch trapping illegal in 2018 and rejected the “scientific research” framework in 2024.
The NGO warns that issuing new licences will intensify trapping across the countryside, including protected Natura 2000 sites, causing further habitat destruction and limiting public access to wildlife. “Malta’s countryside and nature are not a bargaining chip in an election campaign,” said BirdLife Malta CEO Mark Sultana, highlighting the shared European value of these migratory birds.
Enforcement is already weak, with the Environmental Protection Unit under-resourced and Gozo effectively without environmental police. Illegal trapping continues during closed seasons, and the demand for live bird decoys fuels cross-border smuggling.
BirdLife Malta calls the government’s decision a pre-election tactic to gain trapper support at the expense of law, ecology, and Malta’s reputation. The organisation urges immediate withdrawal of the licences and a redirection of policy toward full EU compliance, proper enforcement, habitat protection, and genuine scientific research that does not rely on large-scale capture of wild birds.
A map of active trapping sites in 2025 illustrates the scale of the problem, showing the urgent need for decisive action to protect Malta’s wildlife and natural heritage.
Photo credits: Birdlife Malta.
Journalist
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