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Raven hysteria grows, aided by BBC

Last month we blogged about calls to add Ravens to the Scottish General Licence, which would allow the indiscriminate killing of this species (see here).

Our blog was tongue-in-cheek, illustrated by a picture of a raven carrying off a polar bear cub, to highlight the ridiculousness of the hysteria. (Illustration by Jackie Morris, from The Ice Bear)

raven carrying polar bear cub

Since then, the frenzy has been ramped up somewhat, culminating in an appallingly biased report on last night’s BBC Reporting Scotland (available to view here, but only until 7pm tonight. Piece starts at 10.10 mins).

In a nutshell, Ravens can currently be killed, on individual licences issued by SNH, where they are considered to pose a threat of ‘serious damage’ to livestock. However, farmers and gamekeepers are saying these individual licences are too restrictive and they want Ravens to be added to the General Licence so they may be killed indiscriminately, in the same way crows are killed. A petition has been launched but so far has only attracted 2,684 signatures, despite being widely publicised by the farming community as well as by the game-shooting community.

In contrast, a petition calling for SNH to maintain the protected status of Ravens in Scotland has reached 28, 453 signatures (see here).

At the heart of the calls from the farming and game-shooting communities is a distinct lack of factual evidence. Where are the post-mortem results of these “hundreds of lambs” that farmers are claiming have been killed by Ravens? Just because they see a Raven (well-known for being quick to exploit scavenging opportunities) pecking at a dead sheep doesn’t mean the sheep has been killed by the Raven.

Other lack of factual evidence (more like an old wives’ tale) about the supposed impact of Ravens on waders was put forward last year by Doug McAdam, CEO of Scottish Land & Estates. This was ably torn to shreds, using scientific data, by Ian Thomson of RSPB Scotland (have a read here).

Last night’s BBC report opened with the line: “In scenes that are more Hitchcock than Countryfile, hundreds of young lambs are being killed by attacks from Ravens”. The report didn’t improve, with phrases like “Wreaking havoc”, “Carnage”, “Images of the slaughtered lambs are too gory to show you”, “Hundreds of losses”, “Raven numbers have exploded over the past year”, and “Birds of darkness”.

Birds of darkness?! Come on BBC, how on earth does this resemble objective, impartial broadcasting!

The BBC report included interviews with individuals who were all pro-Raven-killing but there wasn’t one representative from any conservation organisation to challenge the so-called ‘facts’.

Not only did the BBC report exclude any commentary from a conservation organisation, it also excluded information about the counter-petition to maintain the Raven’s protected status, it excluded any discussion of Raven foraging behaviour (i.e. scavenging vs actual predation), it failed to mention that the Scottish Raven population is still recovering from persecution – it’s doing well in some areas but is still absent in other areas and is still subject to illegal persecution, notably from poisoning, it failed to discuss the husbandry practices of sheep farmers in an area with the harshest climate in Britain and how those practices may impact on lamb deaths, and it failed to mention the population status of Ravens and sheep:

The current breeding population for Ravens in Scotland is estimated at 6,000 pairs.

The current population of sheep in Scotland, according to Scottish Government stats, is 6.7 million sheep.

Perhaps the worst aspect of the BBC report was the accompanying footage. There was footage of a few Ravens at the beginning, but then inexplicably it switched to footage of Rooks! And not just Rooks flying around above some sheep, but it included footage of a rookery – a large cluster of nests in a few trees, which would mislead any viewer who can’t differentiate between a Rook and a Raven into thinking that Ravens are so common they’re nesting in colonies next to lambing fields!

There was a brief interview with Robbie Kernahan of SNH who said that Ravens would be considered for inclusion on the General Licence at a forthcoming meeting. We understand that meeting is due to take place on Monday 16th May.

Last year it is understood that SNH issued 120 licences to kill Ravens, resulting in 560 shot birds. There is absolutely no scientific justification whatsoever to add the Raven to the General Licence, which would undoubtedly result in thousands of unregulated deaths, especially when the Raven population is still in recovery.

If you want to sign the petition to send a clear message to SNH that Ravens should NOT be added to the General Licence but should remain a protected species, please sign HERE.

If you want to complain to the BBC about their chronically biased reporting, please email: haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk

Statement from Cairngorms National Park Authority re: shot goshawk

mon-15-june-copyGrant Moir, Chief Executive of the Cairngorms National Park Authority, has today issued a statement about the recent shooting of a goshawk (here) on land within the National Park:

“We are incredibly frustrated to again be putting out a statement condemning the shooting of a raptor in the National Park. We must ensure such crimes become a thing of the past. We will be working with the new Minister for Environment to consider what else we can do in the National Park, building on public support for our wildlife and finding ways of getting more eyes and ears on the ground. We encourage anyone with information relating to this incident to contact the police by calling 101”.

The condemnation is good and is the least we should expect. However, the bit about “We will be working with the new Minister for Environment to consider what else we can do….” shows good intent, but in reality amounts to little more than a PR soundbite.

Remember the Cairngorms Nature action plan, aimed at restoring raptor populations & managing mountain hares for the benefit of golden eagles within the Cairngorms National Park (CNP), launched with great fanfare in May 2013 (see here)?

A resounding failure, as evidenced in May 2013 by the mysterious ‘disappearance’ of a young sat-tagged golden eagle on a CNP grouse moor (here); in May 2013 by the alleged ‘coordinated hunting’ and subsequent shooting of a hen harrier on a CNP grouse moor (here); in April 2014 by the mysterious ‘disappearance’ on a CNP grouse moor of East Scotland’s first fledged white-tailed eagle in ~200 years (here); in May 2014 by this video of masked armed gunmen attacking a goshawk nest within the CNP (here); in October 2015 by the publication of a scientific study documenting the long term decline of breeding peregrines on grouse moors in the eastern portion of the CNP (see here); in February 2016 by the publication of a scientific study documenting the catastrophic decline of breeding hen harriers in the eastern portion of the CNP (here); in March 2016 by the discovery of a dead hen harrier ‘Lad’, suspected shot, found on a grouse moor within the CNP (here); in March 2016 by the news that mountain hares were being massacred on grouse moors within the CNP (here); and again in March 2016 by news that further mountain hare massacres were taking place on grouse moors within the CNP (here); and now in May 2016 by the news that a goshawk was shot on an estate within the CNP (here).

And also remember, the CNPA has already met with the (now former) Environment Minister in January 2015 to discuss the issue of raptor persecution and moorland management within the NP – we blogged about that meeting here. The Environment Minister said afterwards that she ‘welcomed the positive collaboration shown between the CNPA and landowners and looked forward to seeing a real difference on the ground‘.

What is the point of the CNPA having further discussions with another naive Environment Minister? It’s utterly pointless. The grouse moor managers within the Cairngorms National Park are running rings around the Park Authority, and have been doing so for years: Golden eagles poisoned, golden eagles ‘disappearing’, white-tailed eagles ‘disappearing’, hen harriers being shot, breeding hen harriers in catastrophic decline, goshawks being shot, goshawk nests being attacked, breeding peregrines in long-term decline, mountain hares massacred. All within the Cairngorms National Park, the so-called ‘jewel’ of Scottish wildlife. It’s scandalous.

What we need, urgently, from the CNPA is action, not more hand-wringing and platitudes. For a start, the CNPA could be looking at the Sandford Principle (see here and here). There’s an excellent blog called Parks Watch Scotland that has also suggested some courses of action the CNPA could take: see here and here.

The CNPA CEO said today he was ‘incredibly frustrated’. We all are, but the difference is the CNPA has the power to do something about it.

Actually, we do have some power, albeit more indirect than the powers of the CNPA. We have the power to blog about the rampant and persistent persecution of wildlife within the National Park and by doing so, raise awareness amongst an unsuspecting general public of just what is happening to THEIR wildlife within the boundary of THEIR National Park. We’re pretty sure that as more people get to hear about it, the vast majority will be outraged and will join the call for further action to be taken against those grouse moor estates.

Please sign the petition and join 35,000+ calling for a parliamentary debate on the banning of driven grouse shooting: HERE

Goshawk shot on sporting estate in Cairngorms National Park

A goshawk has been shot on an Aberdeenshire sporting estate inside the Cairngorms National Park.

The shooting was witnessed by a man walking his dogs in the Strathdon area in April. The bird was shot approx 30 yards away by an unseen gunman.

The witness took the bird to the New Arc wildlife sanctuary where an examination revealed severe damage to the lung and shoulder. The goshawk was euthanised.

Police Scotland are apparently investigating this crime. The name of the estate where the shooting was witnessed has not been released.

Article in P&J here

This part of the Cairngorms National Park is no stranger to illegal raptor persecution, and indeed goshawks have been targeted here before (see here). The situation is so bad in this region that in 2014 the Convenor of the Cairngorms National Park Authority wrote to the Environment Minister to warn that continued incidents of dead and ‘disappearing’ raptors threatened to undermine the reputation of the National Park as a high quality wildlife tourism destination (see here).

Land management within the Cairngorms National Park (notably driven grouse moors) has recently come under fire following the continuing mass slaughter of mountain hares (see here and here) and the discovery of a dead hen harrier, suspected to have been shot (see here).

Please sign the petition to ban driven grouse shooting HERE.

UPDATE 10th May 2016: Statement from Cairngorms National Park Authority here

Goshawk Bart x ray

Guidance for deployment of gas guns on grouse moors – still waiting

A year ago in May 2015, someone sent us some photographs of three propane gas gun bird scarers that had been deployed on the grouse moor at Leadhills Estate, South Lanarkshire (see here).

Bird scarer 1 - Copy

These gas guns are routinely used for bird scaring on agricultural fields – they are set up to produce a periodic booming noise to scare pigeons, geese etc away from crops. The audible bang can reach volumes in excess of 150 decibels. We wondered why they were being used on grouse moors in the height of the breeding season?

A month later in June 2015, Mark Avery published photographs of gas guns that had also been deployed in the Peak District National Park and on an unnamed grouse moor in the Scottish Borders (see here).

We were interested in the deployment of these bird scarers in relation to (a) their proximity to Schedule 1 (and in Scotland, Schedule 1A) bird species [and thus any potential disturbance to these specially protected species] and (b) their use in designated Special Protection Areas [and thus any potential disturbance caused].

We assumed that the deployment of these gas guns would be subject to guidance and rigorous licensing controls by SNH and Natural England (as they are the licensing authorities for the Wildlife & Countryside Act (as amended)), particularly in relation to the hen harrier, which, as a Schedule 1A species (in Scotland only), is “protected from harassment [including disturbance] at any time“, not just when it’s trying to breed (see here).

So an FoI was sent to SNH to find out if anyone had requested a licence to use a gas gun on a grouse moor in the previous two years. It turned out nobody had.

An FoI was also sent to Natural England – no licence applications there either. It also emerged that NE had received a report in June 2015 of a gas gun being deployed on a SSSI on an estate in the North Pennines, without formal consent. In July 2015 a warning letter was sent to the estate asking them to remove the gas gun. The estate apparently complied and no further action was taken.

In September 2015, we encouraged blog readers to contact SNH and Natural England to ask for urgent guidance to be issued on the use of gas guns in protected areas and in close proximity breeding birds, particularly raptors (see here).

SNH responded quickly and said they would investigate, and depending on their findings, they may provide guidance (see here).

Natural England responded a short time later and said they recognised the need for guidance and that they were in the middle of drafting such guidance, which would be made available prior to the start of the 2016 breeding season (see here). In fact, Alan Law, Chief Strategy & Reform Officer at Natural England said: “I will arrange for you to be sent this guidance as soon as it becomes available, which will be in advance of next year’s breeding season“.

Well, the 2016 breeding season is already underway but we haven’t seen any formal guidance. Have you?

Let’s remind SNH and Natural England of their stated commitments and ask them to produce the following:

Emails to:

Andrew Bachell, Director of Policy & Advice, SNH: Andrew.Bachell@snh.gov.uk

Dear Andrew, Last September you said SNH would investigate the deployment of propane gas gun scarers with regard to the law, and specifically with regard to the recent guidance you issued on Schedule A1 and 1A species under the Wildlife & Countryside Act. You also said, depending on your findings, SNH would issue guidance if it was felt appropriate to do so. Please can you provide the results of your investigation and advise whether you intend to issue any formal guidance or not? Thanks.

And

Emails to:

Alan Law, Chief Strategy & Reform Officer, Natural Engand: alan.law@naturalengland.org.uk

Dear Alan, Last September you said Natural England was drafting formal guidance on the deployment of gas gun bird scarers within Special Protection Areas and their potential impact upon Schedule 1 birds. You also said this guidance would be available in advance of the 2016 breeding season. Please can you direct me to the location of this guidance document, or better still, please send me a copy, as you said you would. Thanks.

Shot buzzard successfully rehabilitated and released

Last month we blogged about a buzzard that had been found with shotgun injuries in North Frodingham, East Yorkshire (see here). Vet Mark Naguib pinned the buzzard’s wing and the bird spent four weeks in the expert care of wildlife rehabilitation specialist Jean Thorpe.

Buzzard shot Driffield April 2016 Jean Thorpe

Two days ago, Jean was able to release the buzzard back to the wild:

Chxf07BWUAA02lP

Just a few weeks earlier, we blogged about Jean’s work to successfully rehabilitate and release a shot red kite (see here).

Thanks, again, Jean Thorpe, for the incredible work you do.

If anyone wants to support Jean’s efforts, please consider making a donation here.

More raptor poisonings in Co Antrim, Northern Ireland

Peregrine GlenwherryLast month we blogged about a dead peregrine that had been found at a well known persecution hotspot on 11th April 2016 (see here). Laboratory tests have now confirmed this peregrine was poisoned with the banned pesticide Carbofuran.

A further two poisoned raptors have now been reported in Co Antrim: a buzzard found in woodland in Glenarm on 15th March 2016 (lab results confirm Carbofuran poisoning) and a second buzzard, also found near Glenarm on 29th March 2016 (lab tests confirm Alphachloralose poisoning).

Media coverage here, here, here.

Well done to PSNI Wildlife Liaison Officer Emma Meredith, who pressed for a quick turnaround on these lab results. This is a major step forward in the fight against raptor persecution in Northern Ireland, where previous lab results and subsequent police appeals have taken far, far too long (e.g. see here).

A further step forward in tackling raptor persecution in NI was announced in March (here) with the launch of a multi-agency initiative, Operation Raptor. With the news of these latest three poisoning victims, they’ve got their work cut out.

Aileen McLeod out – Andy Wightman MSP in!

Scotland will be getting a new Environment Minister as former MSP Dr Aileen McLeod has lost her seat.

While it’s sad when someone loses their job, we’re not sorry to see Dr McLeod go. Her record as Environment Minister was wholly unimpressive, at least on the ‘wildlife’ aspect of her portfolio. Her inaction since she took the post in November 2014 has earned her the nickname ‘Dr Doolittle’ amongst regular blog commentators.

Notable failures include:

Her failure to make a decision on whether to grant additional investigative powers to the SSPCA, even though the public consultation ended 20 months ago in September 2014 (see here).

Her failure to make a decision on whether beavers should receive legal protection, even when she knew pregnant beavers were being shot by landowners (see here).

Her claim that red grouse killed on driven grouse moors are healthy (they’re not), natural (they’re not) and sustainable (they’re not) (see here).

Her claim that the Scottish Gamekeepers Association has helped ensure the Scottish Government implements ‘best practices of conservation and wildlife management’ (yes, really!) (see here).

Her claim that Community Pay Back Orders are an effective alternative to custody for those convicted of wildlife crime, even though there is no evidence to support this (see here).

Her repeated (and perhaps most infuriating) rhetoric, rolled out after every incident of raptor persecution, that action was being taken to combat the criminals (e.g. see here and here). Yes, action was being taken but not nearly enough and not nearly fast enough.

There was one notable success – her acceptance of the recommendations made by the Wildlife Crime Penalties Review Group calling for tougher penalties (see here).

We wish her well in whatever she does next.

The issue now is who will Nicola Sturgeon put in to the role of Environment Minister?

Weds 3rd June CopyIn other election news, we’re delighted to see that Andy Wightman has been elected to Holyrood as a Scottish Greens MSP. Best known for his long-term research and outspoken campaigning on land reform issues, his new role probably won’t be welcomed by many of the country’s large estate owners or their representative bodies because there is nobody better informed (and now well placed) to hold the SNP to account over their land reform measures. Andy is also extremely well-informed about the environmental and social problems associated with the intensive management of driven grouse moors, as he demonstrated as senior author on a report on this issue last year.

Congratulations Andy, we can’t wait to see what you’ll accomplish in this role!

Red kite shot & killed on nest in West Yorkshire

Red kite shot Eccup April 2016 Doug SimpsonOn 21st April 2016, a new red kite nest was discovered in woodland near Alwoodley Lane in the Eccup area of Leeds, West Yorkshire. Hanging in a tree next to the nest was the corpse of a dead kite.

A veterinary examination revealed the bird had suffered shot gun injuries and was most likely killed while on the nest, incubating eggs.

Short article in Yorkshire Evening Post here.

This is the latest in a number of illegally killed or illegally injured red kites reported in recent weeks. Others include this one in North Yorkshire, this one in North-east England, these two in Oxfordshire and another one in North Yorkshire.

Photo of the latest shot red kite in Leeds by Doug Simpson.

Pigeon racing man fined for storing banned poison Carbofuran

A Cumbrian man from the world of pigeon racing has been convicted for the illegal storage of the banned poison Carbofuran.

Keith Mingins, 58, of Main Street, Frizington, Cumbria, pled guilty at Workington Magistrates Court on 29th April 2016, following the discovery of Carbofuran at his pigeon lofts during a police raid in April 2015.

Mingin’s defence was that he had been given the poison by his father in law (who has since died), he didn’t know what it was but he used it anyway, to poison rats, apparently.

He was fined £300 for the illegal storage and ordered to pay costs and a victim surcharge amounting to £115.

Article in North West Evening Mail here.

It’s an interesting one. We wonder what triggered the police raid in the first place? (They would have to have grounds to justify a search of his premises, they can’t just turn up on a whim). And how many times have we heard the defence that someone who was in possession of a banned poison had been given it by someone who had since died? And just how plausible is it that someone gives you a poison, you don’t bother to find out what it is, but decide to use it all the same?

The pathetic fine makes us wonder whether the court received any background information about Carbofuran (banned 15 years ago in 2001) and how it is still commonly used to poison birds of prey and how some pigeon racing men are known to target birds of prey? We are in no way suggesting that’s what Keith Mingins did, but a wider perspective in these cases should help inform the magistrate prior to sentencing.

Frizington has been a hotspot for the attempted poisoning of peregrines over the years. At least twice in 2009, and also in previous years, live pigeons smeared with banned poisons (Carbofuran and Aldicarb) have been found tethered at a quarry (a known peregrine breeding site) at Rowrah, Frizington (see here). In 2010 a peregrine was found dead in ‘suspicious circumstances’ at an allotment in Frizington, although the cause of death is not known (see here).

Let’s hope the publicity of Keith Mingins’ conviction (if not his lame punishment) for storing a banned poison will act as a deterrent for anyone else in the area who may have some Carbofuran or another banned poison stashed away and who may be thinking about using it.

Well done to Cumbria Police, NWCU and Natural England for a successful prosecution.

General Licence Restriction suspended on Raeshaw Estate while judicial review underway

Regular blog readers will recall that in November 2015, SNH served two General Licence Restriction Orders on the Raeshaw Estate and Burnfoot Estate in response to alleged raptor persecution crimes (see here). This was the first time these GL restriction orders had been used since they became available on 1st January 2014.

The alleged offences on Raeshaw Estate, a grouse moor near Heriot, Scottish Borders, related to ‘the illegal placement of traps’. The alleged offences on Burnfoot Estate, a grouse moor in Stirlingshire, related to ‘the poisoning of birds of prey and illegal use of traps’. No criminal prosecutions were brought for any of these offences.

The GL restriction orders were due to run for three years, from 13th November 2015 to 12th November 2018, and would restrict the killing of certain ‘pest’ species (e.g. crows) that are usually permitted under the General Licence.

However, the restriction orders initially only lasted for six days because the estates appealed the decision (see here).

On 3rd February 2016, SNH reinstated the restriction orders after dismissing the estates’ appeals (see here).

On 7th February 2016, both estates denied any wrongdoing and indicated that they would try for a Judicial Review of SNH’s decision (see here).

It now appears that one of these estates (Raeshaw) has successfully applied for a Judicial Review, which is set to be heard on 20th May 2016. A Judicial Review is not about whether the principle of applying a General Licence restriction order is fair or unfair per se, but is more about the process underlying SNH’s decision. Did SNH act lawfully and follow the right procedures when it made the decision to apply GL restriction orders to these two estates? That’s what the court will have to decide. Obviously, the result of the Judicial Review, whichever way it goes, will have implications for the future use of the GL restriction order.

Meanwhile, in another twist, the GL restriction order on Raeshaw Estate has once again been suspended while the Judicial Review is underway. It’s not clear to us who instigated this suspension. The Estate may have applied for a temporary suspension to enable the killing of ‘pest’ species at this crucial time of year. Or, SNH may have decided to temporarily suspend the restriction order for fear that, if the Judicial Review goes against them, they may be subject to a lawsuit by the Estate for loss of earnings.

SNH temp suspension of GL - Copy

The Burnfoot Estate does not appear to be directly involved in the Judicial Review, which makes sense because the decision from the Raeshaw judgement will be equally applicable to Burnfoot so two Judicial Reviews on the same subject would be a waste of money. So consequently, the General Licence restriction order on the Burnfoot Estate is still in place – they are not permitted to kill ‘pest’ species as they would have done under the General Licence. We know from a recent FoI that SNH has not received any applications for an individual licence that would permit individual gamekeepers to carry out ‘pest’ control on this estate.

Let’s hope the Judicial Review for Raeshaw on 20th May results in a timely decision and that we don’t have to wait for months on end for a pronouncement. We’re pretty sure that there are other potential General Licence restriction orders for other estates sitting in SNH’s ‘pending folder’ (at least there should be) but, understandably, SNH may be reluctant to begin proceedings while this Judicial Review is still underway.