In December 2025, I blogged about a Hen Harrier that had been found poisoned on a grouse moor somewhere in North Yorkshire, 11 months earlier in January 2025.
There hadn’t been any media coverage of this illegal killing at all – no press releases or appeals for information from North Yorkshire Police, no comment from the National Wildlife Crime Unit’s Hen Harrier Taskforce, nothing from anyone.
I found out about the poisoning by scrutinising a Health & Safety Executive database, which had the following spreadsheet entry:
HSE Ref number 107/913. Confirmed poisoning, North Yorkshire, January 2025. Chemicals Bendiocarb, Carbofuran, Isophenphos, Alphachloralose. Notes: ‘A dead Hen Harrier was found on a grouse moor. Residues of Bendiocarb, Carbofuran, Isophenphos and Alphachloralose were found in the samples analysed, which is an abuse of these compounds. Case closed as passed to the Police‘.
Given the toxic combination of poisons, often referred to as the ‘Nidderdale Cocktail’ due to its frequency of use in the area, I mused that this Hen Harrier was likely to have been poisoned in Nidderdale, although it wasn’t conclusive evidence as in more recent years the Nidderdale Cocktail has also been detected in other parts of the country, perhaps indicating a gamekeeper moving from this region to work in another.
News then emerged in an RSPB press release in January 2026 that this Hen Harrier was a young female named Ataksak (named after an Inuit Goddess, the ‘ruler of the sky’) and she was carrying a satellite tag, fitted by the RSPB in Bowland in 2024.
It turned out that Ataksak was the Hen Harrier that gamekeeper Racster Dingwall and his accomplices had discussed shooting and killing as it came in to a roost site on Grassington Moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park one evening in October 2024, but they then chose instead to “fleg it” (scare it off with warning shots) because they deduced it was wearing “a box” (a satellite tag) and killing it would draw unwanted attention from the authorities to their grouse moor.
The RSPB’s press release included details of the area where Ataksak had been found poisoned but still didn’t name a location:
‘The area where Ataksak’s body was found is recognised as a bird of prey persecution hotspot. In the last ten years 25 confirmed bird of prey persecution incidents have been recorded in this area, including Ataksak. These included four Hen Harriers, 13 Red Kites and five Buzzards. A satellite tagged Hen Harrier also disappeared in this area in 2024‘.
When I first wrote about this poisoned Hen Harrier in December 2025, I said I’d submitted a number of Freedom of Information requests about the Police investigation, some 11 months after she’d been found poisoned.
First, here’s a redacted post mortem report on Ataksak from FERA (Food and Environment Research Agency). It’s pretty conclusive:
The PM report gives the location as ‘Fountains Earth’ in North Yorkshire, and a four-figure grid reference SE1371. This places Ataksak’s death in Nidderdale, a well known raptor-poisoning hot spot:
Given the high toxicity of the chemicals used to poison her, I’d think it quite likely that Ataksak was poisoned very close to the spot her corpse was found.
The PM report is dated 28 April 2025, some three months after Ataksak was poisoned.
So what progress had North Yorkshire Police made with its investigation in to this crime?
Well, apparently very little.
According to my sources, as of January 2026, a full year after Ataksak’s body had been found, and nine months after the conclusive post mortem report, North Yorkshire Police hadn’t even bothered to conduct a search, despite being encouraged to do so by the National Wildlife Crime Unit and Natural England.
And therein lies the problem. The responsibility for investigatory decision-making lies entirely with the local police force. Experienced officers from the National Wildlife Crime Unit (including specialists involved with the Hen Harrier Taskforce) and specialist poisoning experts from Natural England can only offer their assistance; if the local police force chooses not to accept those offers of help, for whatever reason, there’s nothing they can do about it.
How bonkers is that? Hen Harrier persecution is a national wildlife crime priority, there’s a national Taskforce that’s being funded (with tax payers’ money) to deal with it, but it doesn’t have the authority to investigate these crimes unless the local police force agrees to it.
This isn’t a problem in some areas, where local police forces are only too happy to accept specialist help and support, but it is definitely a problem in North Yorkshire (e.g. see here), and in several other counties in northern England where raptor persecution is known to take place, particularly on driven grouse moors.
I submitted Freedom of Information requests to the NWCU and to Natural England about the status of the investigation into the poisoning of Ataksak but surprise, surprise, both refused to release any information, stating the information has been withheld by exception, citing regulation 12(5)(b)(g) — Course of justice, inquiries & fair trial.
There is no ‘course of justice’ in this case, because North Yorkshire Police has been sitting on its hands for over a year. Rather than holding them to account, these agencies are simply providing them with cover.
Raptor Persecution UK 
And the local MP also turns a blind eye whenever he’s asked to support increased (or any) efforts by NYP to tackle raptor persecution. The police and crime commissioner doesn’t seem to engage either. No wonder it’s a persecution hotspot with numerous birds of prey disappearing in the North Yorkshire moorland version of the Bermuda Triangle! The fact that the Nidderdale Cocktail can harm children/people/pets/other wildlife doesn’t seem to bother them either. Will a child have to die before something is done by North Yorkshire Police?
An utter joke! These agencies should be hanging their heads in shame. Regulation and red tape is aiding the cruel perpetrators of these sickening raptor crimes. An excellent point about the risk of children being poisoned. If god forbid it happens to a child we will hear the authorities shout, “How could this child’s death happen, we need an enquiry and changes to see it never happens again”! Better idea……let’s see it sorted now instead for the sake of children and raptors.
The use of this foul very Illegal cocktail very poisonous cocktail goes back way further than 2018, having myself found a Red Kite on 12/05/2012 in the same parish. The boundaries of Fountains Earth Moor are somewhat less than the boundary of the parish and the grid ref given is not on that moor but on the next ownership, although of course we have no idea who laid the bait. The moors concerned have a very long history of raptor intolerance particularly harriers and peregrines. Very surprised at and disappointed by the lack of action by NYP they were until recently quite proactive in the area. Perhaps residents of North Yorkshire should be encouraged to ask awkward questions of the police authority about their total inaction relating to a very dangerous mix of chemicals. Sadly however I’ll not be holding my breath.
What ever happened to North Yorkshire Police celebrated “Operation Owl” initiative. This was lauded far and wide by them and other agencies as the way forward for wildlife policing. Oh they got rid of the inspector who was trying to do a far too good a job, if I remember correctly.
Nidderdale, as a clear historical wildlife crime hotspot, is a relatively small area to police. Should have been a police priority for many years now.
The whole thing stinks like a keepers pit…
If you browse the websites of those organisations and groups that consistently deny, obfuscate and in general pump out PR bullshit to distract from the elephant in the room = raptor persecution, you will notice that they are always calling for the Police to be the only bodies that are entitled to look into such crimes. The case of Ataksak is a typical example of exactly why they insist on this. Because they know more often than not it just doesn’t get investigated and it doesn’t get the input of specially trained people. Which is exactly the status quo that they are desperate to preserve!
Funny by contrast that RSPB Investigations had been investigating the goings on down the road at Grassington and were able to document Ataksak’s earlier (I’ll not say ‘firstly’, because I bet there were previous times) very close brush with death, when she would have likely been “biffed” that evening had not the satellite tag been noticed.
Investigatively, to me this shows you get results in this type of crime only through determined hard work and a very particular field of expertise. And without those two elements you have not even a million to one chance at getting a result, and nothing happens in these cases. Which is exactly what some people want – and what some Police seem content to oblige.
So basically the RSPB investigations team is “the only show in town”.
Perhaps we all need to show our support for them unequivocally if we want to see perpetrators bought to justice.
How very depressing.
I would like to see the National Wildlife Crime Unit calling out regional forces that aren’t engaging properly with wildlife crime. Whilst they can’t investigate in NYP’s jurisdiction they can embarrass them in the court of public opinion. And they should
NYP has a poor reputation and I recall was criticised over the failure to act in the grooming gangs cases. It may well be connected to the influence of Yorkshire Rite Freemasonry which has a powerful impact on policing there.
I think the grooming gang stuff was West and South Yorkshire police. NYP used to be very good on wildlife crime in the recent past but something changed very badly when Matt Hagen went and I doubt it is anything to do with the funny handshake brigade but you never know. What I find appalling about the Nidderdale cocktail which long precedes this case is the lack of will on the part of the current NYP as previously they appeared close to getting to grips with it. Who is the supplier/holder of it because it appears there have been several users. It is so dangerous a mixture I’d have thought that any use or victim would result in some heavy handed police ( with expert help) searches. It has been used elsewhere in the past and that might give intelligence a few clues to follow up but if local police don’t under the current ludicrous system nothing happens. NYP need to be hauled over the coals on this one or embarrassed into action or otherwise prompted into action even if the local (Tory) MP is disinterested.
“NYP need to be hauled over the coals on this one or embarrassed into action or otherwise prompted into action even if the local (Tory) MP is disinterested.”
As far as I can tell, the North Yorkshire Police area covers eight Parliamentary constituencies, four of which are currently Labour, three Tory and one Lib Dem.
The role of the Police and Crime Commissioner for the North Yorkshire Police was transferred to the elected Mayor of York and North Yorkshire, and since May 2024 that person has been David Skaith of the Labour Party.
Organised Crime Group. North Yorkshire:-(
https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/help-us-stop-the-criminal-killing-of-birds-of-prey?source=direct_link&