LOCAL VOLUNTEERS
CHRIS CACHIA ZAMMIT
MALE
19 YEARS OLD
Chris has been interested in bird-watching since he was a small child, with a passion for sea-birds such as gulls and gannets. He helped with ringing Storm Petrels in Malta, and this year is his third time volunteering for Raptor Camp. He enjoys this activity very much, as identifying high-flying raptors can be quite a formidable challenge. One of his favorite birding memories is getting spectacularly close views of a quite rare migrant, a short-toed eagle, during last year’s Raptor Camp. However, unfortunately this bird was not so lucky as it was shot down by hunters as it passed over Malta; a not so uncommon occurrence.
Chris also did some migration watching in Sicily where one can see large concentrations of raptors on spring migration to Italy, most notably honey buzzards. However, when it comes down to it, it’s always the autumn migration in Malta that captivate and fascinate him due to the good numbers of birds of prey seen up close.
INTERNATIONAL VOLUNTEERS
LARS ULRICH
MALE
DENMARK
Lars joined Raptor Camp for the third time this year as he enjoys watching bird migration on this small island. He’d like to come down in spring to see red-rumped swallows, but at that time of year, he is busy ringing raptors back home in Denmark. Lars started a new job recently but made sure to emphasize when applying for it that he’d need two weeks off in September to participate in Raptor Camp, which obviously shows his dedication to Malta‘s migration.
One of the species Lars really wanted to see in Malta was Eleonora’s Falcon, and he was successful last year, but only for about 10 seconds. That is how long it took for a hunter to target the same bird and shoot it down. Although according to Lars’ experience, hunting in some places in Malta decreased over the past few years, this episode is one of the reasons why Raptor Camp teams will have to keep coming back to help prevent illegal hunting.
PETRI TEMIMEN
MALE
FINLAND
Petri’s main reason for joining Raptor Camp for the second time this year after first coming in 2007 is helping to protect birds of prey and getting great views of them. Back home, he can watch a different set of raptors migrate, mostly common buzzards and sparrow hawks. His initial feeling was that there was less shooting going on now compared to two years earlier, but as his time progressed at Raptor Camp, he realized the situation was just as bad. During his time here, black storks, a peregrine falcon, an Egyptian vulture and a lesser spotted eagle were shot at - all of which are protected birds.
Petri’s worst Raptor Camp memory is watching a flock of flamingoes fly over whilst in Gozo when suddenly three guys on a boat who’d been fishing quietly only seconds earlier dropped their lines and shot one down. The best moment, on the other hand, was getting really close views of an adult male pallid harrier - and it wasn’t being shot at!
CHRISTIAN ZISSEL
MALE
GERMANY
Christian is a German birdwatcher who came across Raptor Camp on the internet. He has been birding in many different locations, but it’s his first time watching birds in the eastern Mediterranean and he loves adding new species to his list. The most important thing, however, is to help conserve the wildlife he likes to watch so much.
During one of his first forays in Camp, his team came across a huge illegal enclosure where a trapper kept waders such as stone curlews and greenshanks. It was a very depressing sight to see these amazing birds with their wings clipped, as everybody on camp prefers to watch birds in their natural condition free in the wild. He does however appreciate that if it wasn’t for the work that Raptor Camp volunteers do then places like this would not be found so easily.