Plover) Regulations, 2025

L.N. 252 of 2025

ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION ACT

(CAP. 549)

Conservation of Wild Birds (Declaration on a Derogation for an

Autumn 2025 Live-capturing Season for Song Thrush and Golden

Plover) Regulations, 2025

IN EXERCISE of the powers conferred by articles 54 and 55 of

the Environment Protection Act, the Minister responsible for the

environment in conjunction with the Minister for Gozo and Planning

and after consultation with the Environment and Resources Authority,

and after taking into account the recommendations of the Ornis

Committee * 1 , has made the following regulations:-

The title of these regulations is the Conservation of Wild Citation.

Birds (Declaration on a Derogation for an Autumn 2025 Live-

capturing Season for Song Thrush and Golden Plover) Regulations,

2025 and these regulations shall be read in conjunction with the

Conservation of Wild Birds (Framework for Allowing a Derogation S.L. 549.74.

Opening an Autumn Live-Capturing Season for Song Thrush and

Golden Plover) Regulations.

(1) For the purpose of these regulations and within the Scope,

meaning of Article 9 of Directive 2009/147/EC of the European statement

reasons and

Parliament and of the Council of 30 November 2009 on the evidence

there is no other

conservation of wild birds, hereinafter referred to as the "Birds satisfactory

Directive", given that, in Malta, Golden Plovers and Song Thrushes solution.

neither breed in the wild nor in captivity, the Minister is hereby

ascertaining the absence of another satisfactory solution for the

acquisition of live specimens from these two (2) species other than by

means of live-capturing using clap-nets as the most selective method

of capture* ** 2 , in small numbers, and insofar as it is absolutely

necessary to replenish the limited stock of live-birds in captivity for

use as live-decoys during open hunting seasons.

(2) For the purpose of these regulations and within the

meaning of Article 9 of the Birds Directive, the Minister took into

* 1 The recommendations of the Malta Ornis Committee to open a live-capturing season for Golden

Plover and Song Thrush, and associated parameters, are available on the site: https://wbru.gov.mt/

en/the-department/ornis-committee/.

** * 2 A report on selectivity and mesh-size and how the clap-net system operates was presented by the

Wild Birds Regulation Unit to the Malta Ornis Committee on 31 July 2019 (included as Annex A to

the Committee minutes of the same meeting) and is available on the site: https://wbru.gov.mt/wp-

content/uploads/2024/03/oMinThirtstJul19.pdf.

consideration the favourable conservation status of the Golden Plover

and Song Thrush at both the European ("Stable" and "Moderate

Increase" respectively) and EU levels ("Secure"), and also took into

consideration their IUCN classification as "Least Concern"* * 3 .

The terms and expressions used in these regulations, unless

the context otherwise requires, shall have the same meaning assigned

to them in the Conservation of Wild Birds Regulations, hereinafter

referred to as the "Wild Birds Regulations", and in the Conservation of

Wild Birds (Framework for Allowing a Derogation Opening an

Autumn Live-Capturing Season for Song Thrush and Golden Plover)

Regulations.

For the purposes of these regulations, the Golden Plover

and Song Thrush are classified as non-breeding passage migrants in

Malta that qualify as huntable species under the Birds Directive (MT

Annex IIB). In this context, the "small numbers" requirement within

the meaning of Article 9(1)(c) of the Birds Directive shall be

understood as "a sample in the order of 1% of the total annual

mortality of the population in question". For the purposes of these

regulations, "population in question" shall be understood, with regard

to these migratory species, as the population of those regions within

the territory of the European Union from which come the main

contingents passing through the region to which the derogation applies

during its period of application, namely Finland and Sweden in the

case of the Golden Plover (Wetlands International, 2009) and Bulgaria,

Hungary, Romania and Slovakia in the case of the Song Thrush

(Cramp et al, 1988; Spina & Volponi, 2008), as detailed in the report

on the conservation status of the these two species which was

presented to and endorsed by the Ornis Committee*** 3 .

The 1% of the total annual mortality of Malta’s reference

population of Golden Plover and Song Thrush shall be calculated as

follows

Golden Plover (Pluvialis apricaria altifrons)

Minimum breeding success: 3.64 birds per pair (172,089 x 3.64)

= 626,404

Mortality rate of first year birds: (626,404 x 53.33%) = 334,061

Mortality rate of adult birds: (344,178 x 27%) = 92,928

* * 3 The August 2025 report on the conservation status of the Golden Plover (Pluvialis apricaria) and

Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos) was presented to the Ornis Committee on 6 October 2025, and is

available on the site: https://wbru.gov.mt/en/resources/reports-and-statistics/other-reports/.

Total annual mortality: (334,061 + 92,928) = 426,989

1% of total annual mortality: (426,989 x 1%) = 4,270

Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos)

Minimum breeding success: 4 birds per pair (664,306 x 4) =

2,657,225

Mortality rate of first year birds: (2,657,225 x 56%) = 1,488,046

Mortality rate of adult birds: (1,328,612 x 43.3%) = 575,289

Total annual mortality: (1,488,046 + 575,289) = 2,063,335

1% of total annual mortality: (2,063,335 x 1%) = 20,633

For the purposes of establishing the season for the live- Establishment

capturing of wild birds in Autumn in accordance with sub-paragraphs (ii) of the season.

and (iii) of the fourth proviso to regulation 10(6) of the Wild Birds S.L. 549.42

Regulations, and for the purpose of these regulations, the season for

the live-capturing of Song Thrush and Golden Plover for the year

2025, hereinafter referred to as "the Autumn live-capturing season",

shall be on the following dates

(a) live-capturing of Song Thrush between 20th October

2025 and 31st December 2025, both dates included; and

(b) live-capturing of Golden Plover between 1st

November 2025 and 10th January 2026, both dates included

Provided that the provisions of these regulations shall cease

to have effect and no live-capturing activity shall be permitted in the

event that the Minister orders, by notice in the Gazette or any other

notice, that the Autumn live-capturing season is to terminate

immediately or at a date as specified by the Minister.

For the purposes of these regulations, the Autumn live- Live-capturing

capturing season shall be in accordance with the provisions of the according

framework.

Conservation of Wild Birds (Framework for Allowing a Derogation S.L. 549.74.

Opening an Autumn Live-Capturing Season for Song Thrush and

Golden Plover), Regulations.

The Autumn live-capturing licence, which shall be issued Seasonal quotas

upon the payment of a nominal fee of fifty-five euro (€55), shall set the and

licence fee.

overall seasonal bag limit for the Autumn live-capturing season at five

thousand (5,000) for Song Thrush, equivalent to 0.242% of the total

annual mortality of the reference population, and seven hundred (700)

for Golden Plover, equivalent to 0.164% of the total annual mortality

of the reference population, as the total number of birds which may be

captured by means of live-capturing under the authority of all issued

licences taken together.

€0.36