EPAA officers fine bird poachers during a recent raid. EPAA

UAE authority fines bird poachers Dh40,000 in Sharjah

The Environment and Protected Areas Authority in Sharjah (EPAA) has imposed a total of Dh40,000 in fines for illegal bird hunters and poachers. The authority confiscated 755 illegal devices that poachers used to lure migratory birds that they would then capture. A total of 10 migratory birds were rescued in a recent operation. According to EPAA, the fines were issued in four separate incidents during the wild bird migratory season. In Sharjah, it is illegal to hunt wild and migratory birds. Sharjah has also banned trading, selling, possessing, using, and importing devices that produce the sounds of wild birds. “Specialised teams patrol various regions to detect and prevent poaching and confiscate illegal devices and equipment used to carry out these inhuman acts,” said Hana Saif Al Suwaidi, chairperson of the EPAA. The EPAA teamed up with police to arrest poachers in the Khedira region on March 2 and fine them Dh10,000. The next week, bird call devices were seized in the Al Blaidah region and a fine of Dh10,000 was imposed. On March 21, police and EPAA raided a farm in Suhaila region, where officials seized more bird call devices and imposed a Dh10,000 on violators. Also on that day, authorities rescued endangered migratory seabirds in Al Khudaira area and imposed a Dh10,000 fine on bird poachers. ICA/Expat Media
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