Author: RaptorPersecutionUK

Chris Packham collects his CBE for services to nature conservation

Huge congratulations to Chris Packham, who yesterday collected his CBE for services to nature conservation.

[Chris with his partner, Charlotte Corney]

In the afternoon there was a reception at London Zoo where family and friends gathered to celebrate. But on a day that should have been all about Chris and his achievements, he made it a day about everyone else instead, telling stories about past adventures and name-checking all those who have helped him along the way.

There are lots of photos online from the ceremony at Buckingham Palace and Chris holding his medal for the cameras, but that’s the public Chris Packham – his TV persona, his natural defence strategy, protecting himself from the ills of this world.

Here’s the private Chris Packham – modestly, and uncomfortably, accepting the applause of his friends and family, cradling a box of private letters written from us to him, to counter the mountain of hate mail and abuse.

A national treasure? No doubt about it.

Congratulations, Chris, the reluctant superstar of nature conservation, and thank you for everything you do.

Another massive penalty for raptor poisoning in Spain

Once again, the Spanish authorities have shown their utter contempt for those who illegally poison birds of prey.

They have just handed out the country’s highest ever penalty in relation to the illegal poisoning of 138 raptors and 4 crows in 2012. The victims included red kites, black kites, marsh harriers, Egyptian vultures and Griffon vultures.

Two hunting ground ‘presidents’ and a guard have been sentenced to two years and eight months in prison AND a five year & four month disqualification from the management of hunting reserves and the right to hunt AND a fine of 67,538.65 Euros AND to been told to ‘take measures to recover the damage caused’.

According to this roughly translated report from SEO Birdlife, the authorities used ‘wiretaps’ to obtain some of the ‘incriminating evidence’, which is presumably why it took so long to secure the convictions.

[One of the poisoned kites, from SEO Birdlife]

This isn’t the first time that the Spanish authorities have come down hard on raptor poisoners. We’ve blogged about two previous cases (here and here) where custodial sentences, massive fines and an extended disqualification from hunting have all been part of the sentencing package.

As we’ve written before, Spain is one of several European countries way ahead of the game when it comes to tackling raptor persecution. Amongst other measures, they have a dedicated dog unit that utilises specialist sniffer dogs trained to detect poison and poisoned baits. These dogs are so good they can even detect the location where a poisoned bait has been laid previously but has since been removed. These dog units are not just deployed to a site of a suspected incident; they are routinely deployed to undertake spot checks wherever they want and whatever time they want. There’s none of this ‘you need landowner permission’, or ‘you need a warrant’ or ‘that video camera placed out in the middle of a remote grouse moor infringes the owner’s privacy rights’.

Now THIS is what ‘we’re taking raptor persecution seriously’ really means.

Please take note, Westminster & Scottish Environment Cabinet Secretaries and Ministers. Your constant fiddling around at the edges, undertaking review after review after review (Scotland), or just flat out denials that it’s a problem (England) just doesn’t cut it anymore.

Perhaps we should crowdfund to send Ministers Gove, Coffey, Cunningham and Gougeon on a fact-finding trip to spend time with their Spanish counterparts and see how it can be done.

Peregrine found suspected shot at Elton Reservoir in Bury

The RSPCA is appealing for information after the discovery of a dead peregrine at Elton Reservoir in Bury, Greater Manchester.

The bird was found by a member of the public on 7 May 2019, already quite extensively scavenged. Local media coverage claims that an x-ray demonstrates the bird was shot with an air rifle (e.g. here). To be honest, the x-ray isn’t very clear – it’s been taken from a side view rather than with the wings splayed, and this has distorted the radiograph. There may be shotgun pellets in the right wing but a further x-ray and/or post mortem would prove conclusive.

If anyone has any information about this incident please contact the RSPCA appeals line on 0300 123 8018.

Beccy Speight is RSPB’s new Chief Executive

RSPB press release (15 May 2019)

RSPB announces new Chief Executive

The RSPB has today announced that its new Chief Executive will be Beccy Speight, currently Chief Executive at the Woodland Trust.

She succeeds Dr Mike Clarke who announced he was stepping down late last year.

[Beccy Speight, photo from Woodland Trust]

Beccy joins us from the Woodland Trust, where she has been Chief Executive since 2014.  At the Woodland Trust Beccy successfully led a period of significant re-focus and expansion, growing income by over 35 per cent. Beccy oversaw the development and implementation of a ten-year strategy which has raised the profile of the Woodland Trust, built many new partnerships and developed a great leadership team, supported by more effective structures and a new culture.  Prior to this Beccy worked for the National Trust for 14 years, most recently as Director for the Midlands region.

As the RSPB’s Chief Executive, Beccy will provide the clear vision to drive the development and implementation of a strategy that will successfully deliver the RSPB’s charitable objectives and maximise its mission to save nature. Beccy will also be responsible for the operation and management of more than 200 RSPB nature reserves across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, which are visited by around 2.5 million people each year.

Commenting on her appointment, Beccy said: “I am really excited about joining the RSPB. The fight to save nature has never been more important and the RSPB is uniquely positioned to make a difference.  This is an interesting and challenging time for the charity and I’m looking forward to getting started in my role and helping to lead our great contribution.”

RSPB Chairman, Kevin Cox, added: “We are delighted to welcome someone of Beccy’s calibre to the RSPB. We’re at a key point in history for nature conservation in the UK when the natural world is coming under increasing threat. At this crucial time of change, the RSPB must evolve to respond to these threats, ensuring that we’re in the best possible shape to make a difference for nature.

The organisation has undergone a period of significant change over the past year and Beccy’s outstanding track record, personal qualities and commitment to the cause of nature conservation will ensure the charity continues to move forward with confidence.

I’d like to thank our outgoing CEO, Mike Clarke, who has been instrumental in driving significant growth in membership, while modernising our mission to ensure we remain relevant in a changing world and fostering a new era of collaboration on behalf of nature conservation. We all wish him the best in his future endeavours.”

The RSPB is the largest conservation organisation in Europe, with more than 1.2 million members, over 2,000 employees and around 12,000 volunteers.  It has over 200 nature reserves across the UK, wild havens where everyone can get closer to nature and home to 80 per cent of our rarest or more threatened bird species. The RSPB also works internationally and is a leading player in BirdLife International, a partnership of conservation organisations working to save nature across the world.

ENDS

It’s not clear from this press release when Beccy will take up her new role but obviously we congratulate her on her successful application. Tackling the illegal killing of raptors on driven grouse moors will be one of many issues crossing her desk and we look forward to finding out what her approach will be.

“The shooting industry has failed to show leadership” – SRSG on need for grouse moor licensing

Logan Steele, the Scottish Raptor Study Group‘s Communications Secretary, has written a guest blog for the RSPB on why a licensing scheme is urgently required for the grouse shooting industry.

Logan was one of several to represent the Scottish Raptor Study Group (SRSG) at a number of Parliamentary Committees a couple of years ago, presenting the case for the introduction of a licensing scheme for game-shooting estates (e.g. see here).

Since then, and following the findings of the Golden Eagle Satellite Tag Review which provided overwhelming evidence of continued golden eagle persecution, Environment Cabinet Secretary Roseanna Cunningham announced a review of grouse moor management. The review group’s chair, Professor Alan Werritty, is due to report this summer and we’re all keen to read his recommendations and whether the introduction of a licensing scheme is supported.

Logan has written two blogs – the first one (here) sets the scene to the SRSG’s work on this topic and the second one will be published next week, describing what SRSG workers hope to see in the Werritty Review.

Injured goshawk found in Peak District National Park had previously been shot

This has been reported a bit messily but essentially the bottom line is that an x-ray of an injured goshawk found in the Peak District National Park last winter has revealed it had been previously shot.

The bird, initially mistaken as a peregrine, was first reported injured by a Derbyshire Police Wildlife Crime Officer on social media in November 2018:

According to this news report, the x-ray didn’t reveal any problems and the cause of the bird’s wing injury was unknown. Although according to this blog from the Peak District Raptor Monitoring Group, the x-ray showed a small piece of shot, but with no entry or exit wound this was determined to have been the result of an earlier shooting at an unknown time and location.

Last week Derbyshire Police provided a further update on social media, six months on:

As we’ve previously reported (e.g. here), goshawks (and several other raptor species, especially peregrines and hen harriers) have been struggling in the Dark Peak area of the Peak District National Park for several decades due to on-going illegal persecution.

Chris Packham’s ‘penis hate mail’ raises £2,550 for Wild Justice!

For the benefit of those not on Twitter, you’ll be pleased to hear that the ‘penis hate mail‘ sent to Chris Packham has been successfully auctioned on Ebay and has raised a staggering £2,550.00 which will go towards Wild Justice’s next legal challenge.

Bravo, Chris, a masterclass in how to deal with those who seek to bully and threaten.

5 million blog views

The blog has passed another milestone this weekend, reaching 5 million views.

It’s gratifying that our audience keeps growing; we’re attracting approx one million views per year at the moment.

Why do we spend so much time writing it? That’s simple – to raise awareness about the continuing illegal killing of birds of prey and to influence policy that will help bring it to an end.

We post this photograph every time we reach another million views because it’s what motivates us to keep going. This is a golden eagle that was found dead in the Cairngorms National Park in 2006 (photo by RSPB). It had been illegally poisoned. It epitomises everything in its pitiful, poignant, senselessness.

Thank you to everyone who supports and contributes to this blog.

Onwards towards six million views!

Birds of prey celebrated at the Scottish Parliament

Scotland’s birds of prey were celebrated at the Scottish Parliament last night during a reception for the Scottish Raptor Study Group (SRSG), hosted by Andy Wightman MSP (Golden Eagle Species Champion).

[Andy Wightman MSP with Logan Steele, Communications Secretary SRSG. Photo by Ruth Tingay]

In addition to a number of cross-party MSPs, approx 50 guests attended the SRSG’s first ever parliamentary reception, representing a wide number of interests. These included the National Parks, Forestry & Land Scotland, Argaty Red Kites, SNH, Scottish Government, RSPB, South Scotland Golden Eagle Project, Mull Eagle Watch, National Trust for Scotland, Scottish Environment LINK, Wild Scotland, Scottish Wildlife Trust, Scottish Ornithologists’ Club and a number of SRSG members.

There were speeches from Andy and Logan and an especially heart-felt talk from Environment Minister Mairi Gougeon who enthused about the opportunities she’d had to see hen harriers (she’s the HH Species Champion) in the company of Scottish Raptor Study Group fieldworkers.

[Environment Minister Mairi Gougeon. Photo by Ruth Tingay]

Mairi spoke of her appreciation of the work of the SRSG and its hugely important contribution to the wider scientific literature, as well as the ground-breaking research involving satellite tagging and the subsequent report on the fate of satellite-tagged golden eagles, which revealed the extent of on-going illegal persecution in some grouse moor areas of Scotland. She was well aware of the on-going persecution issue, and referenced yesterday’s news of hen harrier Skylar’s disappearance next to a grouse moor near Leadhills. Tackling persecution was certainly on her agenda and she said she was looking forward to reading the recommendations of the forthcoming Werritty Review (due out this summer).

The reception was wrapped up with a stunning presentation from highly acclaimed wildlife photographer Laurie Campbell, who shared some of his images and told tales about the extraordinary lengths he’d had to go to to get them.

Many thanks to Andy Wightman for hosting this event and well done Logan and his team for putting in the work to organise such an enjoyable celebration.

Many of the attending MSPs, including the Environment Minister, already had a good understanding and appreciation of these species, having taken the time to attend SRSG conferences, Hen Harrier Day events and field visits.

Could we say the same of Westminster parliamentarians? Could anyone imagine Therese Coffey standing up to deliver a speech about her appreciation of birds of prey and her determination to tackle the ongoing persecution of these birds?

Hen harrier ‘Skylar’ disappears next to grouse moor in south Scotland

RSPB press release (7 May 2019)

ANOTHER HEN HARRIER DISAPPEARS IN SOUTH LANARKSHIRE “BLACK HOLE”

Skylar last recorded next to a grouse moor

RSPB Scotland is appealing for information from the public after a young hen harrier, fitted with a satellite transmitter, disappeared suddenly on a moor near Elvanfoot.

The female harrier, named Skylar, was being monitored by the RSPB as part of their EU-funded Hen Harrier LIFE project. She had been roosting overnight in an area of rushes and rough grassland fringing a grouse moor a few miles south of the village for several days before her tag abruptly stopped working on 7th February 2019.

[Hen harrier Skylar as a nestling in 2017, photo by RSPB]

The area where she disappeared has a history of similar cases and illegal bird of prey killings. A hen harrier and short-eared owl were shot and killed on a grouse moor in 2017, a few miles away from Skylar’s last known location. Another tagged hen harrier, Annie, was found shot nearby in April 2015 and two other tagged hen harriers vanished in the area, one in June 2014 and another, named Chance, in May 2016, after she had spent two winters in France.

Dr Cathleen Thomas, RSPB’s Hen Harrier LIFE Project manager said: “Skylar has been a fascinating bird to follow; we were amazed to see her make a brief, week-long sojourn to Ireland in autumn 2017 before she returned to winter in South Lanarkshire in 2017/18. She spent much of summer 2018 in Highland Perthshire, before returning to South Lanarkshire for the winter 2018/19 where she remained until she disappeared.

Her disappearance follows a depressingly familiar pattern. Her tag was working as expected, then suddenly stopped. There have been no further transmissions, and the bird’s body has not been located. Had she died of natural causes, we would have expected the transmitter to continue working allowing us to recover her body. Sadly, we’ll probably never know exactly what has happened to Skylar.”

Skylar was fitted with a satellite-tag in July 2017 just before she fledged from her nest in Argyll. Her mother, DeeCee, had previously been tagged as part of the LIFE project, allowing the project to easily locate the nest. Skylar’s brother Sirius was also tagged but died of natural causes in October 2017.

Ian Thomson, RSPB Scotland’s Head of Investigations said: “Yet again, a young harrier has disappeared close to a driven grouse moor, never to be seen or heard of again. This area of South Lanarkshire has been notorious for some years as a black hole into which protected birds of prey simply disappear.”

Skylar’s disappearance comes at a time when the Scottish Government has commissioned an independent enquiry into grouse shooting, including looking at options for greater regulation. A step change is now urgently required, as current laws and enforcement measures are proving inadequate to deal with such systematic criminality, and the negative cultural attitudes towards birds of prey that remains in many grouse moor areas. The most intensively managed “driven” grouse moors should be licenced, with sanctions to remove licences to operate, where the public authorities are satisfied that wildlife protection laws are being routinely flouted.”

Information about Skylar, or any illegal killing of birds of prey, can be reported to Police Scotland on 101 or the RSPB’s Raptor Crime hotline on 0300 999 0101.

ENDS

The last known location of this satellite-tagged hen harrier has been given as an area of rough grassland fringing a grouse moor a few miles south of the village of Elvanfoot. There are a number of grouse moors in this area, the nearest being the Leadhills Estate in South Lanarkshire.

[RPUK map showing the boundary of the Leadhills Estate and its proximity to Elvanfoot. Map data from Andy Wightman’s Who Owns Scotland website]

Skylar’s suspicious disappearance follows the well rehearsed pattern of young satellite-tagged hen harriers in the UK as laid bare in this recent scientific publication (here).

The investigation in to her disappearance will follow a similar, well-rehearsed pattern. There will be insufficient evidence to charge any individual with killing this bird (no body, no tag) so the police have nowhere else to go with it.

Just like the hen harrier and short-eared owl that were seen shot and killed on grouse moors in this area in 2017, the buzzard that was found shot and killed in the area in 2018, the hen harrier that was found shot and killed on a grouse moor in this area in 2015. In fact there have been over 50 confirmed wildlife crimes in this area since 2003 and only two of those have resulted in a successful criminal prosecution (gamekeeper convicted in 2004 for shooting a short-eared owl; gamekeeper convicted in 2009 for laying out a poisoned bait).

2003 April: hen harrier shot [prosecution failed – inadmissible evidence]

2003 April: hen harrier eggs destroyed [prosecution failed – inadmissible evidence]

2004 May: buzzard shot [no prosecution]

2004 May: short-eared owl shot [gamekeeper convicted]

2004 June: buzzard poisoned (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2004 June: 4 x poisoned rabbit baits (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2004 June: crow poisoned (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2004 July: poisoned rabbit bait (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2004 July: poisoned rabbit bait (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2005 February: poisoned rabbit bait (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2005 April: poisoned buzzard (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2005 June: poisoned rabbit bait (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2005 June: poisoned rabbit bait (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2006 February: poisoned buzzard (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2006 March: poisoned buzzard (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2006 March: poisoned pigeon bait (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2006 April: dead buzzard (persecution method unknown) [no prosecution]

2006 May: poisoned rabbit bait (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2006 May: poisoned rabbit bait (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2006 May: poisoned egg baits (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2006 June: poisoned buzzard (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2006 June: poisoned raven (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2006 June: 6 x poisoned rabbit baits (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2006 June: poisoned egg bait (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2006 September: 5 x poisoned buzzards (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2006 September: poisoned rabbit bait (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2006 September: poisoned rabbit bait (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2007 March: poisoned buzzard (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2007 April: poisoned red kite (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2007 May: poisoned buzzard (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2008 October: poisoned buzzard (Carbofuran) [listed as ‘Nr Leadhills’] [no prosecution]

2008 October: poisoned rabbit bait (Carbofuran) [listed as ‘Nr Leadhills’] [no prosecution]

2008 November: 3 x poisoned ravens (Carbofuran) [listed as ‘Nr Leadhills’] [no prosecution]

2009 March: poisoned rabbit bait (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2009 March: poisoned raven (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2009 April: poisoned rabbit bait (Carbofuran) [gamekeeper convicted]

2009 April: poisoned magpie (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2009 April: poisoned raven (Carbofuran) [no prosecution]

2010 October: short-eared owl shot [no prosecution]

2011 March: illegally-set clam trap [no prosecution]

2011 December: buzzard shot [no prosecution]

2012 October: golden eagle found shot (just over boundary with Buccleuch Estate) [no prosecution]

2013 May: shot otter found on estate [no prosecution]

2013 June: significant cache of pre-prepared poisoned baits found on estate [no prosecution]

2013 August: red kite found shot and critically-injured in Leadhills village [no prosecution]

2014 February: poisoned peregrine (Carbofuran) [‘Nr Leadhills’] [no prosecution]

2015 April: hen harrier ‘Annie’ found shot [Leadhills/Buccluech] [no prosecution]

2016 May: hen harrier ‘Chance’ ‘disappeared’ [Leadhills/Buccleuch] [no prosecution]

2017 May: walkers witness the shooting of a hen harrier [no prosecution]

2017 May: walkers witness the shooting of a short-eared owl [no prosecution]

2018 [pre-April]: buzzard found shot dead in Leadhills village [no prosecution]

Without evidence, it’s impossible to implicate any individual or estate that may have been involved in Skylar’s suspicious disappearance, but it’s crystal clear that raptor persecution has been taking place in the wider area for decades.

The Scottish Government is well aware of the history of illegal raptor persecution in this area. How much more evidence does it need? Why is this allowed to continue, without sanction?