Monday, March 9/2015

Poised as it is between Africa and Europe, Cyprus is a half way spot for migrating birds, most notably the flamingos that stop and feed in the shallow salt lakes, particularly the one near the Larnaca airport. The latest news about Cyprus's bird population is much less pleasant, though. Stories broke first in the British press and are now being taken up by the local media, describing the killing of up to two million songbirds, last fall, many of them in the British sovereign base area - though no one suspects the British. Cypriots are not naturally attuned to environmental protection, and the birds are a delicacy still served secretly at many Cypriot restaurants. Illegal, of course, as are the methods of trapping them - namely sticks covered with lime and fine nets.