RSPB Illegal Bird Trapping – BirdLife Cyprus
The RSPB and BirdLife Cyprus work with local communities and the police and through education and political lobbying to fight illegal bird trapping in Cyprus. It is estimated that 2.8 million songbirds were killed in mist nets and on limesticks across Cyprus in 2011, a figure that, though it represents a decrease on the number of birds killed annually before the campaign started in 2002, underlines the still pressing need to tackle the problem. Since the start of 2012 there has been a welcome reduction in mist-netting activity, with field surveys showing a decrease by 66% since 2011, largely as a result of the campaign, which has resulted in increased enforcement efforts by the authorities and landmark prosecutions of restaurant owners trapping and selling wild birds (ambelopoulia). In 2012 Cyprus’ Presidency of the Council of the European Union represented a great opportunity to lobby and influence the Cypriot government, especially in the call for greater action to protect Cypriot wildlife.
Grants given:
2002-2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022
