Further to the news that 20 hen harriers have gone ‘missing’ in the last year (many of them on grouse moors in the Yorkshire Dales National Park), as well as the discovery of a mutilated hen harrier corpse, whose head and leg was ripped off whilst the harrier was still alive, also in the National Park (see here and here), the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority has published a statement:
Photo: Ruth Tingay
RESPONSE TO THE DEATH OF ‘FREE’, A NATURAL ENGLAND TAGGED HARRIER
Friday, 5th May 2023
David Butterworth, Chief Executive of the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority, said:
“It’s astonishing that 21 Hen Harriers have disappeared across Northern England in 12-months, and sickening to hear that ‘Free’, a Natural England tagged hen harrier has been found dead, headless and missing a leg in an area of moorland in the National Park.
“After so many years of illegal bird of prey persecution in the area you might think we would become more immune to this pathetic criminality. We never should.
“Locally, we have seen some tentatively encouraging results in recent years in terms of successful breeding of hen harriers, with the strong support of some land owners. However, that progress will be rendered utterly worthless if these attacks are allowed to continue.
“It is shameful that we still have individuals among our local communities who take part in these atrocities. I would strongly urge anyone with any information on this incident to come forward. This has to stop”.
Killing birds of prey is illegal. Anyone with concerns about a possible wildlife crime should call 101, and anyone witnessing a suspected wildlife crime should call 999 and ask for the Police.
A couple of weeks ago I blogged about the ‘disappearance’ of five more satellite-tagged hen harriers that had all vanished, in suspicious circumstances, on moorland in northern England between August and December 2022 (see here).
A week later I blogged about how Natural England and the Moorland Association had remained silent about those latest disappearances (see here).
Hen harrier. Photo: Ian Poxton
This morning, the RSPB has issued a press statement about a further 21 hen harriers, as follows:
RARE BIRD OF PREY FOUND MUTLILATED AS 20 OTHER INDIVIDUALS GO MISSING
One of the UK’s rarest birds of prey, a Hen Harrier, has been found dead and its body mutilated. Twenty other harriers, including 15 birds that were part of satellite-tagged tracking projects, have also disappeared across Northern England in the past year.
Hen Harriers are on the red list of birds of conservation concern in the UK, with the last national survey in 2016 recording 545 pairs in the UK – a decline of 13% since 2010. In England there were 34 successful nests in 2022, despite enough habitat and food to support over 300 pairs. In 2019, the Government’s own study found illegal killing to be the main factor limiting the recovery of the UK Hen Harrier population.
The story began in April 2022 when an RSPB satellite-tagged Hen Harrier named Pegasus vanished whilst on Birkdale – an area of driven grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park on the North Yorkshire/Cumbria border. This was followed shortly after by the discovery of a dead Hen Harrier in the same area – a Natural England tagged bird called Free. The bird was missing its head and leg, which had held a metal ring for identification. Expert veterinary assessment concluded the bird has been killed through traumatic removal of its head and leg, whilst alive – consistent with persecution. A month later, another hen harrier, NE tagged bird Harvey, vanished in this area. The police carried out a search warrant in connection with the incidents, but the ensuing investigation has failed to lead to charges.
However, since the investigation ended a further four satellite-tagged Hen Harriers (one from a RSPB project and three from a Natural England one) have disappeared in this same area, managed for driven grouse shooting.
During autumn 2022, two additional RSPB tagged birds vanished in Cumbria and Durham, both also on grouse moors.
These nine birds are separate to another seven Natural England satellite-tagged Hen Harriers recorded as missing, fate unknown, over the past year.
Finally, also in the past year, five (un-tagged) breeding male Hen Harriers have vanished, including two in the Peak District National Park in 2022 and, in April this year, one in Durham and two from the RSPB’s Geltsdale Nature Reserve in Cumbria: both these birds had active nests which have now been abandoned, one containing three cold eggs. Male harriers are known to hunt away from their nest sites, and this is not the first time that adult male harriers with active nests have vanished from Geltsdale in recent years.
All 21 birds were reported at the time by the RSPB and Natural England to the Police and the National Wildlife Crime Unit.
Commenting on the situation, the RSPB’s conservation director Katie-Jo Luxton said,“These 21 birds represent a significant proportion of the existing English Hen Harrier population. The Government’s own study found illegal killing to be the main reason preventing the recovery of this species, and these recent events indicate that the situation has yet to improve for this rare and beautiful bird.”
Natural England Strategy Director John Holmes said: “We are sickened by this evidence of persecution, which remains a serious issue and needs more focus and action from the police, businesses, landowners, and game management interests. Natural England will continue to work with partners on Hen Harrier recovery, and direct our resources towards science, monitoring, enforcement, and conservation management. We will continue all efforts to track down tags that stop transmitting, as our dedicated staff did in the case of Free, and to support the police in their role of bringing the perpetrators of these crimes to justice“
ENDS
There’s quite a lot to digest in this press release and I’m short on time today, but what is immediately obvious is the clear escalation in persecution incidents, and that they are all linked to driven grouse moors. North Yorkshire, and particularly the Yorkshire Dales National Park, is once again at the centre of the criminality.
The unspeakable barbarity inflicted on Hen Harrier ‘Free’, whose head and leg was ripped off while the bird was still alive, is shocking, but not at all surprising, especially given what we know happened to hen harrier ‘Asta’ (see here). I’ll write more about ‘Free’ shortly.
The RSPB has helpfully provided the following table showing the hen harriers confirmed as persecuted or missing between April 2022-April 2023:
I will need to go through this table and work out which of these harriers are already included in the 82 that we know have been confirmed as illegally killed or missing in suspicious circumstances since 2018 – see here. There will definitely be more to add to that shameful running total.
With this blatant, ongoing, and widespread criminal persecution, Natural England’s recent decision to extend its ‘partnership’ with the grouse shooting industry as part of the ludicrous hen harrier brood meddling scheme, warrants further scrutiny. I’ll come back to that.
UPDATE 6th May 2023: Post mortem reveals hen harrier’s cause of death was ‘head being twisted and pulled off while the body was held tightly’ (here)
The RSPCA is investigating after a female buzzard was found having being shot in the head with an airgun pellet.
The buzzard was found in the front garden of a house in Walpole St Peter near Wisbech in Cambridgeshire. Unfortunately there are no details about when this discovery was made.
Buzzard with head wound. Photo: RSPCA
The RSPCA said the bird was thin and weak and was taken to a vet in Ely where an x-ray revealed the buzzard had an airgun pellet lodged in her head. It was considered ‘a miracle’ that it had missed both the skull and the eye.
The charity said the wound was infected and as the bird was emaciated it was likely she had been shot some time ago.
The buzzard has been put on antibiotics and pain relief and may need an operation to remove the pellet.
Vets think the pellet may be interfering with her eyesight, but hope she will be strong enough to be released into the wild eventually.
Buzzard x-ray showing the airgun pellet. Photo: RSPCA
RSPCA inspector David Podmore said: “It is upsetting to think that this beautiful bird was deliberately targeted and shot. While we do not know where the shooting would have happened, this is an offence under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.
“We would urge anyone with any information about how this bird came to be harmed to call the RSPCA Inspector appeal line on 0300 123 8018 or the police.”
This news article was originally reported on the ITV website here.
At the end of March the RSPB issued a press statement about a shot red kite that had been found on a Durham grouse moor (see here).
An x-ray revealed multiple shotgun pellets in the kite’s body, resulting in a fractured wing. The kite was described as ‘fighting for its life’.
After several weeks of expert care and attention by the brilliant Jean Thorpe (Ryedale Wildlife Rescue) and her equally as brilliant colleagues at Battle Flatts Veterinary Clinic, today the red kite was successfully released back to the wild.
The RSPB has released this short video on Twitter:
Fantastic news! As of today a Red Kite found shot on a grouse moor in County Durham is flying free once more. Thanks to the member of the public who found it, and @jeanthorpeRR for her expert care – without which this bird wouldn't have had a chance. One of the lucky ones. pic.twitter.com/ON2d5egocC
Durham Constabulary is still appealing for information about the shooting of this kite.
If you have any information, contact Durham Constabulary’s Wildlife Crime Officer, PC Dave Williamson, by emailing david.williamson@durham.police.uk or calling in to Barnard Castle Police Station.
Alternatively, to share sensitive information in confidence, call the RSPB’s Raptor Crime Hotline on 0300 999 0101.
There’s a good opinion piece in the Press & Journal today by Max Wiszniewski, Campaign Manager for REVIVE, the coalition for grouse moor reform.
It’s reproduced below:
The systematic, illegal persecution of birds of prey has been a blight in Scotland’s countryside now for decades, so much so that it was described by former first minister, Donald Dewar, as a “national disgrace”.
Yet, on the same day that our new first minister was sworn into office, news broke that another bird of prey – this time a red kite – had been found dead on a grouse moor [Ed: see here]. The shooting industry is laughing in the face of the legislation it will be fighting tooth and nail to oppose.
The new bill proposes to licence the shooting of grouse. If the terms of that licence are broken – such as a licence holder indulging in wildlife crime – then it can be removed.
So far, it seems sensible. But, beyond the illegal destruction of our protected species, hundreds of thousands of foxes, stoats, weasels, crows and so-called “non-target species” like hedgehogs are killed on grouse estates every year, so more grouse can be shot for sport.
Will this unsustainable practice be addressed by the new bill? The answer is: somewhat.
All legal traps will require a “licence”, serial numbers and, presumably, regular checking. Scottish Government oversight of the monitoring of the many thousands of traps on grouse moors to ensure legality will be no easy feat, and it would be expensive to do effectively. Should we be jumping through hoops just so a few people can shoot more grouse for sport?
Bill is an important intervention that should go further
Some big changes in muirburn could be brought about, though. On grouse moors, burning heather shapes the landscape to make it more suitable for grouse – so more of them can be shot.
About 40% of muirburn for grouse has taken place on deep peat, which is an internationally important carbon sequestration resource. Much of it lies in a degraded state on grouse moors, and continued burning is stopping it from regenerating and from rewetting and, therefore, actually emits carbon.
The Wildlife Management and Muirburn Bill proposes an effective ban on peatland burning but, once again, effective monitoring of huge land areas will be difficult and expensive.
Muirburn may still continue under licence in areas with no deep-peat, but should we be dishing out licences when the purpose is increasing grouse numbers for sport shooting? Scotland shouldn’t be pandering to the needs of this cruel, unsustainable and intensively managed industry.
By creating a circle of destruction around huge areas of our land, biodiversity and more diverse economic opportunities are missed for Scottish people and communities.
Overall, this bill as it stands is an important intervention. With a bit more courage to take on large estates and landed interests, it could become the very intervention Scotland’s people, wildlife and environment desperately need.
Police Scotland have arrested a 56-year old man as part of their investigation into the shooting of a red kite on a grouse moor on Lochindorb Estate earlier this week.
A rough estimation of Lochindorb Estate boundary at the edge of the Cairngorms National Park
It’s hard to keep up with all the raptor persecution news this week, but this is the red kite that members of the public witnessed being shot on the grouse moor on Monday 27th March 2023 at around 11.15am. The Scottish SPCA attended the scene along with Police Scotland but unfortunately the kite’s injuries were so devastating that the bird had to be euthanised (see here).
Police Scotland issued a very fast appeal for information on Tuesday, saying they were particularly interested in finding witnesses who might have seen quad bikes or off-road vehicles in the area on Monday morning.
Yesterday afternoon (Friday 31st March 2023) Police Scotland issued the following short statement:
Arrest after bird of prey shot near Grantown-on-Spey
A 56-year-old man has been arrested and released pending further investigation after a bird of prey was shot near Grantown-on-Spey.
Officers received a report of a bird being shot around 11.15am on Monday, 27 March, 2023, at the Lochindorb Estate.
ENDS
Great work by Police Scotland. Let’s hope they find sufficient evidence to charge someone for this latest shooting.
The RSPB has just issued the following press release:
RED KITE FOUND SHOT ON GROUSE MOOR IS ‘FIGHTING FOR ITS LIFE’
The protected bird of prey was found grounded on a grouse moor in County Durham, in March 2023
An X-ray revealed multiple pieces of shot within the bird’s body
Durham Police and the RSPB are appealing for information
A Red Kite – a species protected by UK law – was found in Edmundbyers, County Durham in a stricken condition, peppered with shot and is currently fighting for its life in a bird hospital.
A member of the public noticed the bird at the side of a public footpath along Burnhope Burn on 17 March 2023 and reported it to the RSPB. Arriving on the scene, RSPB Investigations Officers found the Red Kite hiding in bracken, alive but unable to fly.
It was taken to a wildlife rehabilitator and looked over by a vet. An X-ray revealed the bird’s entire body was peppered with shot including pieces that had broken its wing.
All birds of prey are legally protected, making it a criminal offence to intentionally kill or injure one, punishable by an unlimited fine or jail.
Red Kites were historically persecuted in the UK but are making a comeback thanks to official reintroduction programmes in recent decades supported by Government. However these birds take a long time to spread out, and illegal killing is preventing the species expanding and gaining a foothold in areas where they were formerly found before they were driven to extinction in England around the late nineteenth century.
This incident comes in the same week when news of another Red Kite was found shot in Grantown-on-Spey, [Ed: see here] in the Scottish Highlands, also in March 2023. Sadly, it had to be euthanised due to the extent of its injuries.
This area of County Durham inside the North Pennines AONB has a history of raptor persecution. In 2021, another red kite was found dead near Edmundbyers, Co Durham having been illegally poisoned. Police-led searches in the area followed last year, however no one was prosecuted.
The link between driven grouse shooting and the illegal killing of birds of prey has been well documented. The RSPB’s latest Birdcrime report showed that 71% of all confirmed incidents of raptor persecution were in connection to gamebird shooting.
Jack Ashton-Booth, RSPB Investigations Officer, said:
“The kite is currently receiving the best care, and we understand it has been hopping up onto a perch and feeding itself. However it’s still not out of the woods. We are incredibly grateful to the diligent member of the community who noticed and reported the bird, and urge anyone else who finds a dead or injured bird of prey in suspicious circumstances to do the same. It could save a bird’s life and help us identify a raptor killer at large. We are also hugely grateful to Jean Thorpe, who is caring for the bird, as she has done so many others.
“It’s unlikely this Red Kite will have flown far from where it was shot. If you have any information about who might have done this, or know of anyone shooting birds of prey in this area, please get in touch.”
Friends of Red Kites (FoRK), a voluntary monitoring and community engagement organisation based in the North East, commented:
“We are sickened to hear that yet another Red Kite has been found on the moorlands of the North Pennines suffering from illegal persecution. Since the re-introduction of Red Kites to the North East of England in 2004, a number of birds have been found dead on or adjacent to these moorlands which are managed for grouse shooting. After nearly 20 years the population of breeding kites has barely advanced above 20 pairs. By comparison, populations of kites in other areas where they have been released, like the Chilterns, are booming. It is a sad indictment on parts of society that the people of the North East are denied seeing these beautiful birds gracing our skies more widely.”
If you have any information, contact Durham Constabulary’s Wildlife Crime Officer, PC Dave Williamson, by emailing david.williamson@durham.police.uk or calling in to Barnard Castle Police Station.
Alternatively, to share sensitive information in confidence, call the RSPB’s Raptor Crime Hotline on 0300 999 0101.
ENDS
UPDATE 12th April 2023: Shot red kite found on a Durham grouse moor is successfully re-habilitated and released back to wild (here)
Further to yesterday’s news that a member of the public witnessed the shooting of a red kite on Lochindorb Estate on Monday morning (see here), I’ve been looking to see how the game-shooting industry has responded to Police Scotland’s appeal for information.
You’ll recall that this is the game-shooting industry whose organisations routinely state they have a ‘zero tolerance’ policy towards raptor persecution, in which case you’d think they’d be quick to condemn this latest crime and call on their members to assist the police in any way they can.
So far, I haven’t found any statements of condemnation on the websites of the Scottish Gamekeepers Association, BASC, or the Countryside Alliance.
I did find a statement on the website of Scottish Land & Estates (SLE), the grouse moor owners’ lobby group, as follows:
It’s good to see a prompt response from SLE (their statement was published yesterday) and it’s also good to see SLE urging its members and readers to assist with the police investigation.
Although I couldn’t help but notice that Lochindorb Estate isn’t named, and nor is the fact that Police Scotland is particularly interested in receiving information relating to quad bikes and off-road vehicles seen in the area at the time of the shooting.
If anyone does have information, please contact Police Scotland on 101, quoting incident number 1760 of Monday, 27 March, or make a call anonymously to the charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
A member of the public witnessed the shooting of a red kite on the Lochindorb Estate yesterday morning. It was recovered by the Scottish SPCA but unfortunately its injuries were so severe it had to be euthanised.
Police Scotland has issued the following appeal for information:
APPEAL FOLLOWING BIRD OF PREY SHOT NEAR GRANTOWN-ON-SPEY
Officers are appealing for information after a protected bird of prey was shot near Grantown-on-Spey.
We received a report of a red kite being shot around 11.15am on Monday, 27 March, on the Lochindorb Estate, Grantown-on-Spey.
It was recovered with the assistance of the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SSPCA) but had to be euthanized as its injuries were not recoverable.
Community Police Inspector Craig Johnstone said: “The red kite is a protected species and under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 it is illegal to kill them.
“I am asking anyone in the local community who may be able to help with our enquiries to come forward. If you were walking in the area on Monday then please let us know if you saw anything.
“In particular, if you saw quad bikes in the area or off road vehicles, then get in touch as even the smallest bit of information could assist with our investigation.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact Police Scotland on 101, quoting incident number 1760 of Monday, 27 March, or make a call anonymously to the charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
ENDS
I applaud this very fast public appeal for information by Police Scotland. It’s in stark contrast to their 19-month silence about a poisoned red kite that was found in the same region in 2021 (see here) and for which they received much deserved criticism.
All credit to them for responding so quickly this time and for naming the estate on which the shooting was witnessed. Bravo.
UPDATE 29th March 2023: Game-shooting industry’s response to news that red kite was shot on grouse moor (Lochindorb Estate) here
UPDATE 1st April 2023: Arrest made in relation to red kite shooting on Lochindorb Estate grouse moor (here)
Suffolk Police have arrested a man in connection with their ongoing investigation into the illegal shooting of five juvenile goshawks that were found dumped in a car park next to Kings Forest near Thetford in January.
The 70-year-old man from the Brandon area was arrested yesterday on suspicion of killing/taking a schedule 1 wild bird, possession of a schedule one wild bird and breach of firearms licence conditions.
He was taken to Bury St Edmunds Police Investigation Centre for questioning and subsequently released under investigation, pending further enquiries.
Let’s hope the police investigation leads to someone being charged and convicted. There’s currently a £16K+ reward available to anyone who provides information leading to a successful prosecution. The reward fund comprises £5K from the RSPB (here), £5K from Wild Justice (here), and £6K+ from a crowd funder set up by Rare Bird Alert (here).
Here’s a press statement from Suffolk Police, published yesterday afternoon:
Man released in connection with bird shooting – Wordwell
A man arrested in connection with the shooting of five birds in Wordwell near to Bury St Edmunds has been released under investigation.
The male in his 70s and from the Brandon area was arrested yesterday (Monday 27 March) on suspicion of killing/taking a schedule 1 wild bird, possession of a schedule one wild bird and breach of firearms licence conditions.
The five birds of prey were found on Monday 16 January, having been left in a parking area just off from the B1106 in Kings Forest, near Wordwell. X-rays were undertaken which showed all five birds had suffered injuries from multiple pieces of shot.
Officers from Suffolk’s Rural and Wildlife Policing Team were assisted by Norfolk police colleagues, as well as officers from the RSPB Investigations team and the National Wildlife Crime Unit.
The man was taken to Bury St Edmunds Police Investigation Centre for questioning and subsequently released under investigation, pending further enquiries.
All birds of prey are protected by law, and to kill or injure one could result in jail and/or an unlimited fine.
ENDS
UPDATE 7th June 2023: Man charged in relation to 5 shot goshawks found dumped in a forest carpark in January (here)
Raptor Persecution UK 