by David Lindsay

The extremely rare lesser spotted eagle shot in Malta on 23 September as it migrated from Germany to Africa has undergone surgery in Berlin and is on the road to recovery, German veterinary surgeons said yesterday.

Sigmar, as the eagle has been dubbed by the German press, has caused something of a sensation in Germany - with the media closely following the shooting itself, the eagle's Air Malta sponsored trip back to Germany and its ongoing recovery.

The three-month old bird of prey, which was hand-reared as part of a EUR1 million (Lm430,000) breeding programme, was struck by six shotgun pellets and found by a walker in the vicinity of Birzebbuga.

German veterinary surgeons Kerstin Mueller and Helge Linzmann on Monday carried out a two-hour operation on a bone in one of the bird's feet, which had been splintered by pellets. The physicians healed the foot with three pins.

The bird will, however, still have to live with the remaining several pellets in its body. The surgeons had decided against removing any other pellets on Monday for fear of unduly lengthening the bird's time under anaesthetic. It was not yet clear yesterday whether the remaining pellets would have to be removed.

But Sigmar appears to be recovering well and was already eating once again, in small quantities, on the day of the operation.

The bird's shooting had sparked a considerable outcry in Germany, given the bird's rarity and the fact that it was one of just 15 of the species specially hand-reared in July as part of a EUR1 million EU life project carried out in the state of Brandenburg.

Just 30 breeding pairs of the species are known in Brandenburg and only between 90 and 115 breeding pairs of the dwindling species survive in the whole of Germany.

The bird had been released into the wild in time for the southerly migration season, only to be shot as it passed over Malta on its way to winter in Africa.

Ornithological and environmental groups blasted the shooting, as well as politicians. Brandenburg environment department head Dietmar Woidke had deplored the act and lamented the fact that the callous shooting had thwarted, to some extent, the conservation efforts undertaken to save the threatened bird commenting, "Uncontrolled bird hunting in Malta is countering our efforts to protect the species".

Brandenburg recently spent EUR 1 million (EUR430,000) on conservation efforts, which had seen chicks being taken from nests and hand-reared until old enough to be safely returned to the nest.

Sigmar, a male specimen, had been found shot in Birzebbuga on 23 September and was handed over to the authorities for treatment. Rings found on the bird enabled the authorities to trace the bird's origins back to the county of Oberhavel, and confirmed it had been one of the 15 successfully reared in July.

The bird was turned in to the authorities, who in turn handed it over to International Animal Rescue (Malta). Air Malta flew the injured eagle to Frankfurt where it was picked up by volunteers from the Committee Against Bird Slaughter, members of which were recently in Malta tracking migratory movements, who delivered the bird to the University of Berlin's Veterinary Medicine Department where it is undergoing treatment and recovery.