The hunters' federation has urged its members to enjoy hunting turtle dove and contribute to its scientific research.

It issued its statement after a court dismissed a bid by BirdLife to stop hunting for the breed which, it argued, is at risk and whose hunting is banned by EU regulations.

The FKNK said hunting for turtle dove in Malta has only been made possible thanks to several scientific and technical documents with which it convinced the Malta Ornis Committee to recommend the lifting of the five-year turtle dove spring hunting moratorium. This documentation also served as the main support that the FKNK offered to the government and its legal team, and it helped persuade the court to dismiss BirdLife Malta's case.

The FKNK urged hunters "not to waste time and energy and to ignore void and empty statements that are at present being circulated by a particular entity which has neither the experience, nor the necessary European and International contacts, or the resources, both professional and financial, to do anything concrete in the present circumstances."

Instead, it said, hunters should now concentrate on enjoying the season and contributing to the FKNK Sustainability Index Exercise by compiling hunt information on a prescribed form.

"The eventual exercise result should add another sustainable tool for conservation of the turtle dove," it said.