Author: RaptorPersecutionUK

Yet another satellite-tagged hen harrier goes ‘missing’ in suspicious circumstances

The RSPB has issued a press release this morning announcing the suspicious disappearance of two more satellite-tagged hen harriers over a two week period in May.

One of them, called ‘Rush’, is the harrier whose suspicious disappearance Lancashire Police mentioned on their Facebook page a couple of weeks ago (here).

The suspicious disappearance of a second harrier, called ‘Wayland’, has not previously been reported.

Here is the RSPB’s press release:

MORE HEN HARRIERS DISAPPEAR IN SUSPICIOUS CIRCUMSTANCES

*Two satellite tagged birds disappeared over two weeks in May, in Lancashire and North Yorkshire: the latest in a succession of similar incidents.

*The RSPB recently reported that 21 Hen Harriers had been either killed or disappeared in the North of England in the past year.

*Hen Harriers are rare birds on the red list of conservation concern, with illegal killing the key factor limiting their recovery.

Two Hen Harriers have vanished in suspicious circumstances in just two weeks within the Bowland Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and nearby North Yorkshire.

The birds were fitted with satellite tags, which are fitted to gather information about this rare and persecuted species.

Rush, an adult male bird, had been spending time in Mallowdale, in the Forest of Bowland, throughout the spring until his tag unexpectedly stopped transmitting on 4 May. The tag’s last fix put him over a grouse moor. Lancashire Police and the National Wildlife Crime Unit carried out a search of the area but found no sign of the bird or its tag.

Hen harrier ‘Rush’. Photo: RSPB

On 17 May, another tagged bird, Wayland, vanished in the Clapham area of North Yorkshire, just north of the Bowland AONB, where the land is a mix of farmland with gamebird shooting. Its tag had also been functioning normally until that point.

Hen harrier ‘Wayland’. Photo: RSPB

These two birds are in addition to the 21 Hen Harriers that were reported as either killed or missing across Northern England in the last year, including one found dead in the Yorkshire Dales National Park with its head pulled off.

Hen Harriers are rare breeding birds in the UK, known for their acrobatic ‘skydancing’ courtship display which they perform above upland moors in spring. In England there were 34 successful nests in 2022, despite a previous independent government report finding that there is enough habitat and food to support over 300 pairs. Illegal killing continues to be the main factor limiting the recovery of the UK Hen Harrier population.

A scientific study published in the journal Biological Conservation found that survival rates of Hen Harriers were ‘unusually low’, and illegal killing was identified as a major cause. Using data from the largest GPS tracking programme for Hen Harriers globally, the authors discovered that individuals tracked by the project were typically living just 121 days after fledging. The risk of dying as a result of illegal killing increased significantly as Hen Harriers spent more time on areas managed for grouse shooting. Previously, a 2019 Government study concluded that Hen Harriers suffer elevated levels of mortality on grouse moors, most likely as a result of illegal killing.

The RSPB’s Birdcrime report found that, of the 108 confirmed incidents of bird of prey persecution in 2021, 71% were in connection with gamebird shooting and, since 1990, 67% of those convicted of raptor persecution offences were gamekeepers.

Howard Jones, RSPB Senior Investigations Officer, said:

“To have two more Hen Harriers disappear this spring is a huge blow for a struggling species where every nest counts. These latest disappearances are being treated as suspicious by the police. From Wayland’s tag data, it appears that the tag stopped mid-transmission – cutting out abruptly as it was sending data through to us – which strongly suggests human interference.

“We hope the otherwise tragic news of these birds sends a clear message that licensing of driven grouse shooting estates must be implemented to ensure all are operating within the law, and to protect birds like Hen Harriers from persistent persecution. Clearly self-regulation has failed, as evidenced by this spate of disappearances. How many more birds must vanish from the breeding population before action is taken?”

ENDS

Hen harrier ‘Wayland’ is the 9th hen harrier to ‘vanish’ this year and the 95th hen harrier to have been either illegally killed or gone ‘missing’ in suspicious circumstances since Natural England’s insane brood meddling trial began in 2018. I understand there are more, still to be publicised.

I’ll be updating and publishing the running tally of illegally killed / ‘missing’ hen harriers shortly…

BBC’s Springwatch to feature raptor persecution this week, starting tonight

Keep an eye out for BBC’s Springwatch programme this week.

Starting this evening, there’ll be a feature film from the RSPB’s Geltsdale Reserve in Cumbria introduced by the BBC’s Frank Gardner, who takes a closer look at hen harrier persecution on driven grouse moors.

You’ll recall that last month, the RSPB reported that two hen harrier nests on Geltsdale had yet again been abandoned after the breeding males ‘vanished’ whilst away hunting on nearby moors (see here).

Then on Tuesday evening Frank will introduce another film, this time from the RSPB’s Lakenheath Fen Reserve, where he’ll chat with Mark Thomas from the RSPB’s Investigations Team about the wider issue of raptor persecution.

Well done to the producers at Springwatch who made the decision to make these films. After years of carefully avoiding the raptor persecution scandal, it’ll be great to finally see it featured and discussed on the country’s premier TV nature programme, reaching millions of new viewers.

BBC 2, 8pm and available on iPlayer afterwards.

UPDATE: The episode is now available on iPlayer – well worth a watch here

Scottish Parliament urged to use new Wildlife Bill to ban snares after new footage emerges of trapped badger

Press release from REVIVE coalition partner League Against Cruel Sports (5th June 2023):

ANIMAL WELFARE CHARITY RELEASES FOOTAGE EXPOSING THE GRUESOME REALITY OF SNARING

Scottish Parliament urged to use Wildlife Management and Muirburn Bill to ban cruel traps

The League Against Cruel Sports Scotland has released footage exposing the grim reality of snaring. The footage shows a dead Badger with a snare around its abdomen just a short distance from a stink pit full of rotting animal carcasses surrounded by thin wire snares.

The snared Badger. Photo: League Against Cruel Sports

The charity says the footage highlights the urgent need for a ban on snaring under the new Wildlife Management and Muriburn (Scotland) Bill which last week began its stage 1 evidence sessions. Although perfectly legal, the footage illustrates that even when used lawfully, snares inflict severe cruelty and suffering.

The video footage was filmed just last week on moorland near Coulter, South Lanarkshire by the League’s field investigators. Commenting on what is seen in the film, Robbie Marsland, Director of the League Against Cruel Sports, Scotland said:

“Although we can’t be clear of the exact circumstances surrounding this Badger’s death, what is in absolutely no doubt is that this animal suffered a slow, painful and traumatic death.

“The last hours and possibly days of this creature’s life would have been spent in fear and agony as it tried to free itself from a primitive, indiscriminate trap before eventually succumbing to its injuries.

“No amount of regulation will stop snares from being cruel and indiscriminate traps which is why only a ban will stop animals suffering. This footage, which shows a scenario which is perfectly legal under the existing regulations, proves that regulating snares is simply regulating cruelty.”

The Scottish Parliament’s Rural Affairs and Islands Committee is currently taking evidence on the Scottish Government’s proposed wildlife management legislation. Robbie Marsland added:

“The Scottish Government’s Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Bill is an opportunity to rid our countryside of these deadly traps once and for all. The Government has explored this issue several times in recent years but always stopped short of an outright ban. Now is the opportunity to be bold, and put animal welfare first.

“The scope of the Bill has the potential to end a number of unpalatable practices which go on in our countryside to sustain sport shooting such as the use of stink pits to lure unsuspecting animals into deadly traps. This type of activity has no place in modern society and we hope as the Bill progresses and undergoes further scrutiny these opportunities won’t be missed.”

The covered ‘stink pit’ contained rotting carcasses. The stench is used to draw in mammals to the site, which is surrounded by snares. Photo: League Against Cruel Sports
The inside of the stink pit. Photo: League Against Cruel Sports

Scotland currently has the most stringent regulations on snare use, but despite this, protected species such as Badgers are regularly caught and killed by snares. Dr Elspeth Srirling from Scottish Badgers said:

“Badgers are strong animals and fight to escape, resulting in severe injuries where the wire noose cuts through skin and muscle tissue and into the body cavity leaving the badger to endure prolonged agonies, pain and a lingering death. Scottish Badgers has attended several incidents in recent years where multiple snares were used year after year to trap Badgers.

“Snare-users have had decades to demonstrate a willingness to do the right thing by avoiding positioning snares where Badgers are present, but they stubbornly resist. Banning their use and manufacture outright is the only option.”

A recent field study of ground predator control by the League found that 57,000 killing devices are deployed each day in Scotland representing the equivalent of over 10,000,000 active trapping and snaring days per year, with nearly half of animals killed being non-target species such as Hedgehogs, Dippers and Mistle Thrush.

ENDS

Gratuitous display of wildlife killing on Moy Estate

Blog reader Andy Amphlett went for a walk on Moy Estate last weekend.

Moy Estate will be familiar to regular blog readers as it’s featured here many times over the last 13 years. Most recently, the estate has been sanctioned with a three-year General Licence restriction, imposed by NatureScot after the discovery of a poisoned red kite and ‘incidents in relation to trapping offences‘ (see here). And in March this year, estate gamekeeper Rory Parker was convicted for shooting a sparrowhawk on Moy (see here).

Victorian attitudes appear to persist at Moy Estate, as Andy discovered last Saturday when he found 14 dead moles hung by their snouts on a barbed wire fence:

Photo: Andy Amphlett

This disgusting activity isn’t illegal, and was once a common sight on UK shooting estates when victims would be hung on what was known as a ‘gamekeeper’s gibbet’ to demonstrate to the landowner that ‘vermin control’ was taking place.

It’s hard to believe though that anyone still thinks it’s appropriate or acceptable to brag about how much wildlife has been killed. What purpose does it serve? And why are moles still being killed anyway?

Without any sense of irony, this is the sign at the entrance to Moy Estate, just a few hundred metres away from the strung-up moles:

Photo: Andy Amphlett

Yeah, wildlife is present but a lot of it’s quite likely to have been killed.

And I’m pretty sure that this sign might be in contravention of the Scottish Outdoor Access Code, which does not insist that walkers ‘keep to tracks’ except in certain circumstances. It just makes me question what an estate might be wanting to keep from public view…

See here and here for two excellent blogs written by Nick Kempe about Scottish access signs and what is/isn’t permissible for those exercising their access rights and those controlling that access.

A report has been made to Highland Council about the Moy Estate sign.

8 more mannequins & a gas gun on another grouse moor in Yorkshire Dales National Park

Yesterday I blogged about the recent appearance of a mannequin (a sort of scarecrow) that had been placed on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park where a pair of hen harriers had been seen nest prospecting in April (see here).

Today, another blog reader has provided information about another eight mannequins (at least), and an active gas gun (a bird-scaring device designed to ‘boom’ intermittently), that have been placed out on another grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park.

These photographs of one of those prominently-placed mannequins and the gas gun were taken this morning:

The blog reader will be reporting these to Natural England; it’s believed the same estate was reported for using a gas gun last year and was forced to remove it.

The presence of at least eight mannequins (the fieldworker believes there may be more over the hill) will, in my view, obviously deter hen harriers from settling to breed on this grouse moor, although it’d be difficult to prove the landowner/gamekeeper’s intent. There was another case of this happening at a peregrine nest site on a Northumberland grouse moor a few years ago (see here) but the gamekeeper in that case claimed he’d installed scarecrows to try to reduce predation of red grouse chicks by large gulls. His story wasn’t believed but the CPS decided there was insufficient evidence to secure a conviction so the landowner was just issued with a warning by Natural England and the scarecrows were removed.

If the use of these ‘scarecrows’ is as common as it seems, it’s no wonder that so few grouse-shooting estates have so far actively participated in the hen harrier brood meddling trial. Natural England hasn’t yet released the actual number of estates involved, they’ve just provided an overview of the number of brood meddled nests in each year of the trial. However, the most number of nests brood meddled in one year was four (in 2022), so assuming each brood was on a separate estate, that’s a grand total of four estates involved, out of a total of approximately 150 grouse moors in England. After five years, it’s hardly a resounding success, is it?

Data provided by Natural England in March 2023: Hen Harrier brood meddling ‘overview’

Potential criminality aside, the presence of these additional eight mannequins and the gas gun on another grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park is, in my view, a 16-fingered salute to Natural England’s ludicrous hen harrier brood meddling trial.

With these mannequins, in addition to the 94 hen harriers confirmed illegally killed or ‘missing’ on or close to grouse moors since the trial began, how on earth can Natural England still claim to have ‘insufficient evidence’ to ‘test attitudes’ towards hen harriers amongst members of the grouse shooting industry that aren’t yet participating in the trial (i.e. most of them)?

It’s blatantly obvious to everyone and Natural England just looks more ridiculous by the day.

UPDATE 19th June 2013: Another mannequin (hen harrier scarer), this time on a grouse moor in Peak District National Park (here)

UPDATE 19th June 2013: More gas guns positioned on another grouse moor in Yorkshire Dales National Park (here)

Another attempt to deter breeding hen harriers on a grouse moor in Yorkshire Dales National Park

In April this year, a blog reader (who wishes to remain anonymous) was watching a pair of hen harriers showing great interest in a moorland hillside in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. The harriers’ behaviour, as well as the time of year, was indicative that this pair was nest prospecting. Our harrier-watcher also noted that someone else was watching the hillside from inside a white pick-up truck.

The blog reader returned to the moorland a few days ago to check on the status of the harriers and found that ‘somebody’ has installed a mannequin on the same hillside:

It’s not even subtle.

Stand by for claims from the grouse shooting industry that this is a welcoming committee, rather than yet another tactic for deliberately disturbing hen harriers and preventing them from breeding, in a so-called National Park.

Meanwhile, Natural England has extended the insane hen harrier brood meddling trial while it pretends it doesn’t have sufficient evidence to ‘test attitudes’ towards hen harriers amongst members of the grouse shooting industry that aren’t yet participating in the trial (i.e. most of them).

Apparently, the 94 illegally killed / ‘missing’ hen harriers since the trial began don’t count.

UPDATE 31st May 2023: 8 more mannequins & a gas gun on another grouse moor in Yorkshire Dales National Park (here)

UPDATE 19th June 2013: Another mannequin (hen harrier scarer), this time on a grouse moor in Peak District National Park (here)

UPDATE 19th June 2013: More gas guns positioned on another grouse moor in Yorkshire Dales National Park (here)

Timetable announced for evidence sessions on Wildlife & Muirburn (Scotland) Bill

The Scottish Parliament’s Rural Affairs & Islands Committee has announced the timetable for hearing stakeholder evidence as part of its Stage 1 scrutiny of the Wildlife & Muirburn (Scotland) Bill.

For new blog readers, this is the Bill that has been introduced by the Scottish Government in response to the recommendations made in the 2019 Werritty Review and is designed to bring in licensing for grouse moor management and attempt to put an end to the illegal killing of birds of prey on grouse moors.

The Committee hasn’t yet publicised who has been called to give evidence (other than the Scottish Government Bill Team on 31st May, members of the Werritty review group on 14th June and the Cabinet Secretary Mairi Gougeon on 28th June) but presumably other contributors have been selected from amongst those who submitted written evidence during the Committee’s recent review period (see here).

The evidence sessions will be held in public and will be live-streamed on the Scottish Parliament’s TV channel. Recordings will be available for those unable to watch live proceedings.

The first evidence session will take place this Wednesday (Scottish Government Bill Team, which includes Hugh Dignon, Head of Wildlife Management Unit, Leia Fitzgerald, Team Leader, Wildlife Legislation Team, Norman Munro, solicitor, and Sam Turner, Team Leader, Wildlife Management Team) and you’ll be able to watch it live here. (Search for the link to the Rural Affairs Committee).

UPDATE 13th June 2023: Transcript & video from first evidence session available here

Job vacancy: RSPB Investigations Liaison Officer (maternity cover)

The RSPB is recruiting for an Investigations Liaison Officer (maternity cover).

Poisoned red kite. Photo: RSPB

Job description:

Expiry date:23:59, Sun, 11th Jun 2023
Location:Flexible in UK
Salary:£30,940.00 – £33,215.00 Per Annum
Benefits:Pension Scheme, Life Assurance Scheme, 26 days’ Annual Leave
Duration:Maternity Cover

Are you a skilled communicator with a passion for driving change? The RSPB’s Investigations Team is looking for a creative and versatile Liaison Officer to heighten awareness of the illegal killing of birds of prey and help advocate for change to secure a more just future for these protected birds.

You will act as a bridge between Investigations Officers and the general public, digesting and distilling complex subjects and turning them into eye-catching press releases, blogs, social media videos and other forms of communication – while ensuring factual accuracy at all times. Every last word or image must stand up to scrutiny, so an understanding of the challenges facing the RSPB in relation to this work is a must.

You will also be the point of contact between Investigations and other internal communications teams (eg media, social media, and supporter communications) across the UK’s four countries, as well as with the police and other partner organisations.

Day-to-day work is often reactive, and would suit anyone accustomed to working at speed, to tight deadlines. However you will also be responsible for project managing the team’s prestigious and hard-hitting annual report, Birdcrime, which requires good planning and meticulous attention to detail. Depending on experience, you may also be invited to front media interviews.

Essential skills, knowledge and experience:

  • Degree in science/journalism and/or equivalent relevant experience.
  • Sound ornithological knowledge.
  • Thorough and proven understanding of issues surrounding raptor persecution and other crimes against wild birds.
  • Knowledge of wildlife protection legislation.
  • Proven written, listening, verbal and telephone skills.
  • Out of the box, creative thinker, able to maximise the output of investigations work, often under direct and intense scrutiny by individuals/organisations with contrary views.
  • Proven attention to detail, ensuring media content is accurate, up to date and scientifically sound in order to protect the society.
  • Proven use of Microsoft Office software and digital media platforms including Twitter, Facebook, blogs, and YouTube.
  • Strong social and interpersonal skills with the gravitas to influence internal and external stakeholders.
  • Excellent planning and prioritisation skills, combined with the ability to meet tight deadlines and handle unanticipated workloads.
  • Experience of working with media professionals in writing copy, blogs, press releases and verbal interviews especially focussing on bird conservation issues.

Desirable skills, knowledge and experience:

  • Experience of managing projects.
  • Experience of working with statutory agencies, media, or the law enforcement arena.
  • Knowledge of UK and International wildlife and conservation issues.
  • Passionate, confident and determined

This is a Permanent, Full-Time role. We are looking to conduct interviews for this position on 19th June 2023 at our Headquarters in Sandy, Bedfordshire. For further information please contact mark.thomas@rspb.org.uk

As part of this application process you will be asked to complete an application form including evidence on how you meet the skills, knowledge, and experience listed above.

To apply, please click here

A message from Chris Packham after his libel victory in the High Court

Following Chris Packham’s libel victory in the High Court on Thursday (see here), he’s issued a statement on his Twitter account.

You can watch it here:

UPDATE 28th May 2023: The transcript of Chris’s video message is now available, as follows:

Every day many thousands of innocent people are victims of online abuse and hate crimes. This can be racially, religiously or politically motivated. It can be generated in regard to gender politics, environmental beliefs, body shaming.

This vile part of modern life ruins lives, livelihoods, reputations, it disrupts young peoples educations, causes incalculable mental health problems and tragically causes people to take their own lives.

As it stands the criminal law is simply not there to protect us from such hate – something that must change. The current governments ‘Online Safety Bill’ is plodding along. In the meantime a tiny minority of victims are able to take civil action.

I have won my defamation case and been awarded costs and substantial damages.

Who are the defendants?

Dominic Wightman is the editor of Country Squire Magazine. His friend and business associate is a former director of the Countryside Alliance. He claims to be or have been variously an expert on Islamic extremism and terrorism, a gold dealer, the owner of a bank, to have been working for right-wing think tanks and a search engine optimisation expert.

Nigel Bean has a keen interest in fox hunting, having ridden to hounds for thirty five years. He writes the pro hunting ‘The Aldenham’ blog.

Paul Read is the proof reader for some of the defamatory articles for Country Squire Magazine and retweeted the links to them. The court dismissed the claims against him.

At the outset of this litigation the Country Squire website carried the British Association for Shooting and Conservation logo and still carries the logo of Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust, The Scottish Gamekeepers Association and Baileys – the Hunting Directory.

Mr Wightman and Mr Bean are representatives of the ‘field sports’ fraternity.

In the offending articles and tweets they accused me of defrauding the public to raise money to rescue tigers from circuses, defrauding the public by promoting a crowd-funder during the COVID epidemic, lying about the burning of peat during COP26, writing a death threat letter to myself, and elsewhere of bullying, sexual misconduct and rape. They also accused me of faking an arson attack at my home and repeatedly called upon the BBC to sack me.

In a full and frank vindication of my innocence the court has found that “Mr Packham did not lie and each of his own statements was made with a genuine belief in its truth.”

Wightman and Bean had argued that publication of the allegations was in the public interest. This defence failed “by some margin.” The Court has said “rather than approaching the task with an investigative mind, these Defendants targeted Mr Packham as a person against whom they had an agenda.”

The articles published by Mr Wightman and Mr Bean “gave way… to increasingly hyperbolic and vitriolic smearing of Mr Packham, with further unsubstantiated allegations”. Several articles and tweets made offensive references to my autism.

The Court has accepted that this campaign “would have misled and agitated vocal and sometimes violent groups”, who “posted threatening and vile material about Mr Packham and his family online.”

Most egregiously all three defendants had advanced an allegation that I had forged a death threat letter to myself, an allegation that they managed to disseminate to the mainstream media, it was covered twice in The Times and widely elsewhere.

The Court has held that I did not write the death threat letter, concluding that “even a cursory examination of the handwriting in the death threat and comparison with a true sample of Mr Packham’s handwriting demonstrates obvious differences between the two.” The handwriting experts employed by the defendants were discredited and the accusation was withdrawn during the trial by their counsel.

However, the defendants stated under oath that they still believed I wrote it. Indeed when asked what they would do should they lose the case they said, and I’m paraphrasing, that they would ‘carry on’.

I would like to thank my excellent legal team, barristers Jonathan Price and Claire Overman and Carol Day and Tessa Gregory and their team from Leigh Day. They have been steadfast throughout despite often appallingly offensive abuse from the defendants. Thank you.

I would also like to thank Dr Ruth Tingay for setting up a Crowdfunder to help cover the costs of this long and expensive litigation.

And lastly, my followers. Thank you for your unswerving support and belief in my honest crusade to make the world a better place for wildlife , people and the environment.

ENDS

UPDATE 2nd June 2023: Chris has been asked to clarify some aspects of his statement of 27 May concerning his successful libel claim against Dominic Wightman and Nigel Bean, which he is of course happy to do.  To be clear, the Judge found in his judgment that it was Mr Wightman who disseminated to other media organisations the allegation that he forged his own death threat, and Mr Wightman who said he’d carry on making that allegation to the police and professional bodies regardless of the outcome of the proceedings.

ENDS

Update from Lincolnshire Police on discovery of raptor body parts found in ditch

In January 2023, Detective Constable Aaron Flint from Lincolnshire Police’s Wildlife Crime Unit appealed for information after the discovery of various body parts from three barn owls, one tawny owl and one red kite were found dumped in a ditch near Sleaford (see here and here).

Photo by Lincolnshire Police

Today, DC Flint has provided an update on the investigation: