EU ruling

Malta bans spring bird hunting after EU ruling, from AFP:

Malta on Friday banned spring bird hunting and trapping after the European Court of Justice issued a temporary ruling against the practice in the tiny Mediterranean state.

The ECJ issued the interim decision late Thursday to prohibit hunting of turtle dove and common quail, migrating species that stop in Malta on their way back to Europe to breed. "It is for this reason that the hunting season for turtle doves and common quails in spring will not be opened," the government said in a statement.

The island nation, which joined the EU in 2004, is the only member state that has allowed spring hunting in recent years of the two species, both of whose populations are declining rapidly in Europe. A final ECJ ruling is not expected for two or three years.

Reacting to the interim decision, Joseph Mangion, president of Birdlife Malta, said in a statement that "the overwhelming majority of the Maltese are against spring hunting and they want to see their government protect our common European heritage." He urged the government to step up policing against illegal bird shooting and trapping to enforce the ban...