Yorkshire-based sculptor Mark Butler and writer Gregory Norminton have collaborated to create a powerful piece of art to highlight the illegal killing of Hen Harriers on UK grouse moors, paying particular attention to those killed in Yorkshire.
‘Ghost sky dance’ by Mark Butler
Gregory chose to write about eight ‘sightings’ of Hen Harriers and pays tribute to 57 named and satellite-tagged Hen Harriers of the 147 known to have ‘disappeared’ or to have been illegally killed, on or close to grouse moors, since 2018.
Mark then chose eight of those Hen Harriers (ones that had vanished / been killed close to his home in the Yorkshire Dales) and created a ‘ghost sky dance’ sequence, routing a silhouette and painting it gold on burnt pallet wood, each with its own memorial plaque detailing the fate of the named harrier.
Mark with his memorial plaque for Hen Harrier Asta, whose wings were ripped off by ‘someone’ in the North Pennines (photo by Ruth Tingay)
I’m not sure if I can persuade you with words alone of just how evocative this work is. I was really taken by both the idea and the photographs alone, but actually seeing and touching the wood, as well as smelling the acridity, made the piece come to life (ironically).
I’m also secretly pleased that Gregory and Mark both say they used this blog as inspiration for their creativity. There’s no better compliment.
The work sits within a wider project focusing on local species that are under threat, all chosen from the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority’s Nature Recovery Plan. It’s still a work in progress but the entire exhibition will be going on tour around Yorkshire from February 2027. If you get a chance to visit it, it’ll be time well spent.
For more information about the creation of the ghost sky dance, visit Mark’s website here and Gregory’s website here.
A new three-part documentary was released on Netflix last week as part of a new series called, ‘Should I Marry a Murderer?’
At first sight, this is perhaps not what you’d expect to read about on a blog about the illegal killing of birds of prey in the UK, but this programme was brought to my attention by a high number of visits, especially from the United States, over the last few days, and my blog stats were showing that visitors were looking at specific pages relating to the Auch Estate in Argyll.
Long-term blog readers will be familiar with the Auch Estate. It first featured here in relation to the illegal poisoning of a Golden Eagle, found by walkers on the estate in 2009. Auch Estate farm manager Tom McKellar was later convicted in 2012 for possession of the banned poison Carbofuran that had been found in three separate containers and in a syringe at his house (here). He also managed to swerve a mandatory five-year custodial sentence for illegal possession of two hand guns that were found in his loft during the police search for poisons; for unexplained reasons, he was instead given a 300 hour community service order (here).
Headline from The Guardian newspaper in 2009
Auch Estate was back in the news in 2023 after Tom McKellar’s twin sons, Alexander (Sandy) and Robert were convicted at the High Court in Glasgow for their roles in knocking down charity cyclist Tony Parsons and burying his body in a stink pit on the estate in 2017 (here).
A BBC documentary, aired two years later in August 2025, chartered the police investigation into the disappearance of Tony Parsons and followed the criminal trial of the McKellar twins (see here – still available to watch on iPlayer for another 3 months). The documentary provided a fascinating insight into the difficulties of investigating serious crime on a remote rural estate and the parallels with investigations into illegal raptor persecution in these glens will not have been lost on blog readers. The ease with which the McKellar twins could hide their appalling crimes for so long was sobering.
The latest documentary, ‘Should I Marry a Murderer’, currently available on Netflix, covers the case from the perspective of Dr Caroline Muirhead, who worked as a forensic pathologist in Glasgow and happened to be in a relationship with Sandy McKellar whom she’d met on a dating app. McKellar confessed his crime to Muirhead and it was her evidence, including surreptitiously leaving a can of Red Bull to mark the spot on the vast estate where Tony Parsons was buried, that secured the twins’ convictions.
Dr Caroline Muirhead with Alexander (Sandy) McKellar. Photo from Netflix
The documentary includes commentary from a former local police officer who knew the McKellar family well, and he speculates about how a life surrounded by guns and animal-killing may have desensitised the twins and influenced their callous attitude towards the death of Tony Parsons and the disposal of his body.
There’s also commentary and some police footage in relation to the search for illegal poisons at Tom McKellar’s estate house back in 2009. It reveals that not only did Tom McKellar have unlawful possession of deadly poisons and two hand guns, but that his other firearms and shotguns, which presumably were licensed, were left strewn around the house, including in the bedroom of one of the twins, instead of being locked away in a gun cabinet as the licence requires.
This Netflix documentary has already reached ten million views only a week after its release. It’s well worth watching.
Job advert from the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO)
Scottish Raptor Monitoring Coordinator
Location: Stirling, Scotland Salary: £29,130 per annum Contract: Fixed term contract (2 years) Hours: Full time, 5 days per week Benefits: 11% employer pension contribution, flexible working
Closing date for applications: Sunday 17 May 2026 at 23.59hrs
The Scottish Raptor Monitoring Scheme (SRMS) is a collaborative partnership established in 2002 that monitors the abundance, distribution and breeding success of Scotland’s raptors (Golden Eagle and Raven, photo by Ronnie Gilbert)
The Scottish Raptor Monitoring Scheme is seeking a people-person who is keen to share their passion for raptors and raptor monitoring, to take a coordinating role within the Scheme on behalf of all its partners and keep SRMS data contributors informed and engaged with our work. The successful candidate will promote, organise and deliver face-to-face and online training to existing and new audiences, in areas such as raptor monitoring survey techniques and online data entry. They will be responsible for continuing to build and nurture a community of engaged and motivated volunteers who deliver data to inform the conservation of Scottish raptors. This will be a full-time (5 days per week) and fixed term contract (for 2 years in the first instance).
This position is based at BTO Scotland office in Stirling, although you will be able to work from home part of the time on a hybrid working regime, and flexible start and finish times can also be accommodated to ensure a good work-life balance.
Further information is available on the BTO website, here.
Closing date for receipt of applications is 23:59 Sunday 17th May and interviews will be held in Stirling on Wednesday 27th and Thursday 28th May. If you have any questions, please contact recruitment@bto.org
Statement from Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire & Northants Wildlife Trust (30 April 2026).
A well known peregrine falcon which nested on a Cambridge nature reserve for many years has died.
The female bird of prey raised many chicks at Cherry Hinton Chalk Pits and has been seen by thousands of visitors over the years. The death is being investigated by the National Wildlife Crime Unit.
She was found in Cambridge sick and unable to fly, and was taken to a vet. She was examined and with very low chances of survival the only option was for her to be euthanised.
The examination revealed she had been hit with shotgun pellets at some point in the past – although this has not been confirmed as the single cause of death. Records show she was ringed as a chick in Brighton in 2009 which means she was 17 years old – an advanced age for a peregrine.
Matt Jackson, Wildlife Trust BCN Director of Conservation, said: “This bird made her home on the chalk quarry face at Cherry Hinton for many years and was much loved by local residents, bird watchers, staff and volunteers. It is very sad news.
“We will await the outcome of the National Wildlife Crime Unit investigation before commenting on what happened to her, but we do know that wild birds of prey are still at risk of persecution and despite hundreds of wildlife crimes being reported each year only a handful end up in court.
“We will protect this site and the wildlife it is home as best we can, and hope that the habitat remains healthy enough for another peregrine to take up residence in the future. To help us achieve this we would like to remind all visitors to respect the reserve, keep dogs on a lead at all times, stick to paths and do not pick wildflowers“.
A four-day trial against two Scottish gamekeepers has been extended after the court ran out of time to hear all the evidence.
Head gamekeeper Graeme Rankin and assistant gamekeeper Steven Hague appeared at Aberdeen Sheriff Court this week charged with offences relating to the alleged shooting of Red Kites in the Cairngorms National Park in February 2025.
The trial was scheduled to run for four days, between Monday 27 – Thursday 30 April 2026, but the case was adjourned on Thursday and will continue at a later date, still to be decided and dependent upon witness availability.
NB: Comments are turned off as legal proceedings are still live.
Raptor Persecution UK 