Shot taken on Maundy Thursday: While at Xlendi I saw this man with his pet barn owl. I had seen him the last time we were in Gozo and asked if I could take a photo of him but he didn’t appear keen to co-operate and I left it at that. On this second occasion, I sat on a bench on the opposite side of the road and took as many shots as I liked without him noticing me as he was engrossed with talking to some people.
Yesterday we had a referendum in Malta about bird hunting in Spring – hunting in Spring is permitted for dove and quail but with a shotgun in one’s hand a few hunters forget the rules and shoot at any two-winged creature they see. The referendum was forced by signatures collected by bird lovers and environment groups as subsequent governments had dragged their feet on controlling hunters because of the strong lobby the hunters have. A derogation to allow Spring hunting had been also obtained from the EU during accession negotiations. I am against the killing of any living being except when it is necessary to provide well-needed food. I therefore voted against. When the polls closed it was reported that 75% of eligible voters had cast their votes. Counting will commence today at 9.00am.
Joke: This guy decides to adopt a owl. His ambition was to make it learn to say a word or two. Every morning he called the owl from its nest and asked in a pleasant voice, "Can you talk?" This went on for weeks with absolutely no response from the bird. Finally one morning, totally fed up, he shouted, "CAN YOU TALK, YOU STUPID MORONIC BIRD? CAN YOU TALK?" The bird looked him in the eye and answered "I can talk, all right. Can you fly?"
Thank you very much for looking and for the lovely comments and fav's on yesterday's picture.
Great capture of the beautiful owl!
I wish they'd have a referendum on hunting here too - it's currently duck season, and every year hundreds of endangered birds are caught in the crossfire - not to mention the 'normal' ducks. :(
Awesome shot of this beautiful creature in flight! Love the sense of movement from your processing. Glad you were able to photograph freely! Good information regarding the hunting situation. Anxious to hear the results.
I wish they'd have a referendum on hunting here too - it's currently duck season, and every year hundreds of endangered birds are caught in the crossfire - not to mention the 'normal' ducks. :(
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