A year-long crackdown on illegal bird poaching at a British military base in Cyprus has resulted in a “huge” drop in the number of poachers operating inside the base’s territory, authorities said.

There has also been a 70% reduction in the trapping of blackcaps over the same period, officials said.

Small migratory birds are considered a delicacy by some Cypriots and trapping feeds a multimillion-euro illicit trade.

The police chief of the British military base gives instructions to a bulldozer driver (Petros Karadjias/AP)
The police chief of the British military base gives instructions to a bulldozer driver (Petros Karadjias/AP)

Authorities used a road roller to crush bird-calling devices and other trapping paraphernalia.

They also seized irrigation pipes used to water acacia trees that conceal nets.

Dhekelia British base police chief Jon Ward said combating poachers remains a priority and that a 12-person anti-poaching unit will expand its use of drones and hidden cameras to enforce the law.