According to an announcement by the Cyprus Avian Association, Egypt comes first in the ranking with 5,7 million illegal killings, followed by Italy with 5,6 million. Cyprus is fifth in the ranking with 2,3 million, while in the report, the island is described as a "treasure" for bird trappers.
Countries such as Syria and Libya are also high on the list, despite being hit by conflict.
Other European countries ranked among the ten with the highest average number of birds killed illegally each year are Greece with 700.000 birds, France with 500.000 birds, Croatia also with 500.000 birds and Albania with 300.000 birds.
Despite not being ranked in the top 10 countries with the most illegal bird killings, Malta with 108.000 illegal killings per year has the highest number of estimated birds killed illegally per square kilometer.
According to the study, Spinos is first on the list of species that are killed, with an estimate of 2,9 million each year.
It is followed by Ampelopouli with 1,8 cm, Quail with 1,6 cm and Tsikla with 1,2 cm. Number of species, such as Troullouria, which are listed as "Vulnerable" in the European Red List of the International Conservation of Nature (IUCN International Union for Conservation of Nature) are also at risk.
This study finally exposes some of the inhumane and illegal methods of killing birds used in the Mediterranean, such as poaching, the use of nets, rodents and sound imitators to lure various species into illegal trapping areas.
Source: Citizen