A seagull with a buoy around his neck has been spotted flying over the Salina Nature Reserve.
A photo of the burdened bird, which stopped at the Salina Nature Reserve two weeks ago, has been doing the rounds on social media.
A spokesperson for BirdLife said the bird has not yet been captured for rescue and re-release.
BirdLife volunteers noted that the bird is “still flying at Salina Nature Reserve in spite of the buoy,” and they have not had the opportunity to help the seagull out.
Photo: Joseph GrechBirdLife spokesperson Nathaniel Attard used the occasion to highlight the problems associated with "ghost fishing", an all too common scenario birdwatchers often have to deal with.
“Ghost fishing is when discarded or lost fishing gear remains at sea and continues capturing sea creatures,” he explained.
“This goes beyond fish and also affects birds as well, such as this Mediterranean gull which ended up with fishing line wrapped around its body and attached to a large float hanging from it,” Attard added.
The Mediterranean gull, nicknamed ‘Buoy’ on social media, has attracted the attention of birdwatchers since it stopped over at the reserve two weeks ago.
Attard appealed to the public to avoid discarding old or used fishing gear at sea, and asked anyone who might encounter such gear to retrieve it.
Buoy is one of many gulls currently preparing for the breeding season. Salina’s nature reserve, run by BirdLife, serves as a stopover for different varieties of gulls.
As seen in the footage recently shared by BirdLife, gulls change the colour of their feathers before the breeding season in preparation for their migration towards colonies in northern Europe.