News – Page 32 – Raptor Persecution UK

Game-shooting industry tries another approach to disrupt impending snare ban in Scotland

Regular blog readers will know that the Scottish Parliament voted through a complete ban on the use of all snares (and so-called ‘humane cable restraints’) as part of the Wildlife Management & Muirburn Scotland Act 2024 earlier this year (here).

It was recently announced that the ban will commence with immediate effect on 25 November 2024.

A snared fox on a grouse moor that will have suffered a slow, tortured death. Photo from a report by OneKind and League Against Cruel Sports entitled, *Cruel and Indiscriminate: Why Scotland Must Become Snare-Free*

Those who have followed the long campaign to bring regulation to the grouse shooting industry’s activities will also be well aware of that industry’s outright hostility to even the concept of a potential grouse moor licensing regime, dating back many years (e.g. here, here, here and here).

The amateur dramatics continued in 2020 (here) when the Scottish Government finally announced its response to the Werritty Review and told the world that grouse moor licensing would definitely be introduced, largely down to the continued illegal persecution of raptors on many driven grouse moors.

The subsequent hysterical scaremongering from the industry included declarations that grouse moor licensing would ‘threaten’ and ‘damage’ the rural economy; an oft-used but wholly unsubstantiated claim by this lot, e.g. on land reform, see here; on the removal of an exemption on business rates, here; and on the introduction of vicarious liability to tackle raptor persecution crimes, here.

Has the rural economy fallen flat on its arse as a result of these measures? Not according to the grouse shooting industry, which is still declaring itself indispensable to the Scottish economy (a claim strongly contested by others, e.g. see here).

It’s no surprise then to see the industry wheel out the so-called ‘negative financial effect’ claim once again, this time on the eve of the snare ban commencement.

A consortium of the usual suspects (Scottish Land & Estates, Scottish Gamekeepers Association, Scottish Countryside Alliance, BASC Scotland, Scotland’s Regional Moorland Groups and the Scottish Association for Country Sports), joined this time by the National Farmers Union of Scotland, has written an overly-dramatic letter to the Convenor of the Scottish Parliament’s Rural Affairs & Islands Committee to complain about the commencement of the ban.

They’ve written to the Convenor because this committee is due to consider the The Wildlife Management (Consequential Amendments) (Scotland) Regulations 2024 (which is the formality by which the snare ban will be commenced) at a meeting on 6th November 2024.

Here’s the hyperbolic letter:

SSI Wildlife Management SLE Download

I’m not sure what they’re on about in paragraph 2, suggesting that the principles behind the snare ban “were not afforded the customary levels of parliamentary scrutiny, which is extremely regrettable“. Eh?

Actually, the subject of snares has been debated repeatedly in the Scottish Parliament over many, many years (at least 15 yrs). It has also been the subject of public consultations, and there was a full parliamentary evidence session at Stage 1 of the Bill to which several of these organisations contributed (here). Christ, the grouse shooting industry was even given extra time to submit more evidence, as a gracious gesture by the then Environment Minister, Gillian Martin, so all this portrayal of themselves being victims of procedural unfairness is hilarious.

Their letter reveals their latest ploy to disrupt the will of Parliament – to complain that Ministers haven’t conducted a Business & Regulatory Impact Assessment prior to the commencement of the snare ban, and they strongly suggest that this should afford a delay to the commencement of the snare ban.

I’m sure that in a strictly technical sense, they may have a point, although my understanding of BRIAs is that they are not compulsory and should be proportionate to the new regulation being proposed, but the absurdity of this latest complaint is hard to ignore.

The snare ban doesn’t prevent gamekeepers from continuing to kill foxes. And the foxes they are killing (e.g. 200 per year on one estate whose gamekeeper gave evidence to the Bill committee) are probably at such high densities thanks in large part to the availability of unnaturally-high levels of gamebirds that create an over-abundance of prey that will attract foxes to the estate. Its a problem of the industry’s own making.

To suggest that an estate might face financial ruin if gamekeepers can only shoot foxes in the face rather than asphyxiate them with a wire noose reveals an awful lot about the mindset of these so-called ‘guardians of the countryside’.

Imagine arguing against a ban on a device that causes so much unnecessary suffering to any poor animal unfortunate enough to be caught in it, let alone suggesting that your business can’t function without being able to inflict such cruelty. If that’s the case, they shouldn’t be in business at all.

The Convenor of the Rural Affairs Committee, Finlay Carson MSP (who, along with his fellow Conservatives voted against the Wildlife Management Act) has responded to the letter of complaint by writing his own letter, on behalf of the Committee, to Minister Jim Fairlie (gosh, it’s almost as if this was all pre-planned). Here’s the Convenor’s letter to the Minister:

SSI Wildlife to the Minister 7 October 2024 Download

It’ll be interesting to see how the Minister responds. One to watch.

UPDATE 4th November 2024: Rural Affairs Committee to consider attempts to disrupt impending snare ban in Scotland (here)

UPDATE 25th November 2024: A landmark day in Scotland as snare ban commences (here)

Scottish court orders convicted Peregrine launderer Lewis Hall to pay back thousands under Proceeds of Crime Act

In February this year, part-time gamekeeper Timothy Hall, 48, and his son Lewis Hall, 23, were sentenced after they’d pleaded guilty to the illegal laundering of wild peregrines that had been stolen from nest sites across southern Scotland and were sold on to falconers in the Middle East (see here).

*Young peregrines at a nest site in Scotland. Photo (taken under licence) by Ruth Tingay*

Despite their offences passing the threshold for a custodial sentence, Timothy Hall was only ordered to complete 220 hours of unpaid work and Lewis Hall was only ordered to complete 150 hours. These sentences were considered to be staggeringly inadequate given the extent of the Halls’ offending (see here).

Lewis Hall leaving court in February, before being prosecuted under the Proceeds of Crime Act. Photo screen-grabbed from BBC Reporting Scotland footage.

However, the Crown Office reported at the time that Lewis Hall would also be subject to action under the Proceeds of Crime Act, where profits from criminal activity can be confiscated.

At a court hearing in June, it was revealed that prosecutors were seeking to recover £164,028.80 from Hall (here) and the Sheriff allowed Hall additional time to provide evidence from a forensic accountant to challenge this amount.

Following a hearing at Selkirk Sheriff Court today (10 Oct 2024), Lewis Hall accepted that he benefitted from “general criminal conduct” by £110,000.

The court ordered he repay £27,182 (based on an amount the court deemed was available) and he is likely to have to pay this within six months.

That leaves £82,981 unrecovered. However, the Crown has the power to apply to the court to extend the order to seize money and any assets Hall acquires in the future to pay back the full amount he made from his crimes. I hope the Crown pursues this.

Police Officer Suzanne Hall, who was cleared of involvement in the peregrine laundering crimes, is reportedly facing a separate charge of alleged fraud relating to almost £10,000, to which she has pleaded not guilty. Her trial is due to begin on 19th November 2024 (see here).

Please note – as Suzanne Hall’s case is still active, no blog comments about it will be posted on this blog until proceedings finish. However, as Lewis Hall’s case has now concluded, comments about his case are now accepted. [UPDATE 12 October 2024: I’ve received an unconfirmed report that the case against WPC Suzanne Hall has been dropped. I’m seeking confirmation of this and will report in due course. Comments about her case remain switched off until confirmation is received from the prosecuting authorities].

This is a significant and relatively rare result for a wildlife crime case in the UK. It doesn’t excuse the pathetically inadequate sentences handed down in February to Timothy and Lewis Hall for the serial offending they committed over a long period of time, but it does provide gratification that they haven’t escaped justice entirely. It should also act as a meaningful deterrent to others. I also hope it provides some satisfaction to the investigatory team behind Operation Tantallon who put in several years of painstaking work to get these criminals in to court.

The Crown Office has released the following statement about Lewis Hall’s case:

Man convicted of illegally selling peregrine falcon chicks agrees to repay £27,000

A man convicted of possessing and selling wild peregrine falcon chicks for large sums of money has agreed to pay back more than £27,000 in a Proceeds of Crime confiscation action.

Lewis Hall, 24, was ordered to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work over 15 months and banned from possessing or having under his control any bird of prey for five years after being sentenced in February at Jedburgh Sheriff Court.

He had earlier pled guilty at Selkirk Sheriff Court to acquiring for commercial purposes, keeping for sale, and selling the chicks between 2020 and 2021.

Hall, of Berwick-Upon-Tweed, has now agreed to repay £27,182 under Proceeds of Crime legislation following a hearing at Selkirk Sheriff Court. The figure is based on an amount which the court deems as being available.

Court records show that Hall accepted he benefited from “general criminal conduct” by £110,000.

The Crown has the power to apply to the court to extend the order to seize money and any assets Hall acquires in the future to pay back the full amount he made from his crimes.

Sineidin Corrins, Deputy Procurator Fiscal for specialist casework at the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS), said: “The sale of peregrine falcons has become an extremely lucrative business.

“Lewis Hall took advantage of that for his own financial gain and to the detriment of the wild peregrine falcon population in the South of Scotland.

“However, even after a conviction was secured in this matter, the Crown commenced Proceeds of Crime action to ensure the funds Hall obtained illegally were pursued.

“Prosecution of those involved in financial crime does not stop at criminal conviction and sentencing.

“The funds recovered from Lewis Hall will be added to those already gathered from Proceeds of Crime, to be re-invested in the community by Scottish Ministers through the CashBack for Communities programme.”

The court heard how in April 2021 a member of the Lothian and Borders Raptor Study Group alerted police to suspicious failures of peregrine falcon nests in the Berwickshire area which had previously been productive.

Officers later investigated two nesting sites and discovered they had been disturbed and a number of eggs were missing from both locations.

A police search of Lewis Hall’s father’s home in Berwick-Upon-Tweed subsequently found a total of seven peregrine falcon chicks as well as a number of other birds of prey.

Further enquiries concluded that none of the chicks were captive-born and had been taken from the wild.

Under legislation, selling captive-bred peregrine falcons is legal but possessing or selling wild birds is unlawful.

ENDS

Peregrine found shot in notorious grouse moor area in Angus Glens

Appeal for information from Police Scotland (10th October 2024)

APPEAL FOLLOWING DEATH OF PEREGRINE FALCON IN ANGUS

Wildlife officers are appealing for information following the death of a peregrine falcon in the Angus area.

On Tuesday, 3 September, 2024, the injured bird was found in distress by a member of the public in the Glen Esk area near to Tarfside. The SSPCA was called, and the bird taken to the wildlife resource centre in Fishcross for treatment. Due to the severity of the injuries, the bird had to be euthanised on Wednesday, 11 September, 2024.

Following further investigations, it was established that it had been shot and police were contacted.

Constable Craig Savage, Wildlife Crime Officer, said: “Peregrine falcons are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act and it is illegal to kill any protected species.

“Since this matter was reported to police, we have been carrying out enquiries and working with our partner agencies to establish the full circumstances.

“We would appeal to anyone with any information that may assist our investigation to please contact us. Your information could be vital in in establishing what has happened. If you were in the Glen Esk area around Tuesday, 3 September and saw anything suspicious or have any information about shooting activity in the area, please come forward.

“Anyone with information is urged to contact Police Scotland on 101 quoting reference CR/0368615/24.”

ENDS

RSPB has responded with this:

Ian Thomson, RSPB Scotland’s Head of Investigations said “The news of this crime comes only a few weeks after an Osprey was shot in an adjacent glen [Ed: see here] but hearing about ongoing raptor persecution incidents in the Angus Glens will come as no surprise to anyone with an interest in the fortunes of Scotland’s birds of prey.

There has been a catalogue of cases of poisoning, shooting and illegal trap use in this area dating back decades. As with many previous cases, there will be very few people in the local area who have the motivation, access, requisite firearms and opportunity to shoot and fatally injure one of our most iconic bird of prey species.

We trust that if this latest crime is found to be linked to local grouse moor management, that NatureScot utilise the powers give to them by the Wildlife Management and Muirburn Bill to impose the most robust sanctions possible.”

ENDS

I’ll comment on this case shortly, in relation to Scotland’s new grouse moor licensing scheme.

Moorland Association prematurely claims hen harrier brood meddling trial “a remarkable success story” & wants it rolled out as annual licence

The Moorland Association, a lobby group for grouse moor owners in England, has jumped the gun and prematurely declared the 7-year hen harrier brood meddling trial “a remarkable success story” and says its Board has decided to apply to Natural England for what it describes as a ‘conservation licence’ to permit continued hen harrier brood meddling on an annual basis now that the trial has ended (see Moorland Association blog here).

For new blog readers, the hen harrier brood meddling trial was a conservation sham sanctioned by DEFRA as part of its ludicrous ‘Hen Harrier Action Plan‘ and carried out by Natural England between 2018 – 2024, in cahoots with the very industry responsible for the species’ catastrophic decline in England. In general terms, the plan involved the removal of hen harrier chicks from grouse moors, they were reared in captivity, then released back into the uplands just in time for the start of the grouse-shooting season where many were illegally killed. It was plainly bonkers. For more background see here and here.

I’ve written a bit about hen harrier brood meddling this year, including the news that no hen harriers were brood meddled in the trial’s final year (2024) and possible reasons why that might have been (here) and the news that one of the project partners, the Hawk & Owl Trust, has recently withdrawn from the project now the trial has ended (here).

We also know that Natural England is “currently reviewing and analysing the data” [from the brood meddling trial] and that this is “a process which will be concluded later this year. These findings will play a critical role in informing Natural England’s judgement as to the effectiveness of brood management as a conservation technique“.

As a reminder, the brood meddling trial, initially set up as a five-year trial and later extended for a further two years, was supposedly designed to test two specific objectives:

The practicalities of brood management: can [hen harrier] eggs or chicks be taken from the wild and raised in captivity, can those chicks be released back in to the wild and the implications for their subsequent behaviour and survival;
Changes in societal attitudes by those involved in upland land management to the presence of hen harriers on grouse moors with a brood management scheme in place.

It’s quite clear that objective 1 has been answered by the trial – although chicks rather than eggs have been brood meddled due to concerns about transporting the eggs from the nests over rough terrain, but that’s no big deal in terms of assessing the viability of the objective.

But what about objective 2? It seems pretty clear to me that apart from the handful of estates involved in the brood meddling trial (whether they be ‘donor’ or ‘receptor’ sites), that a high level of illegal hen harrier persecution continues amongst the wider grouse moor industry (128 hen harriers reported as ‘missing’/illegally killed so far since the trial began in 2018, including at least 30 brood meddled hen harriers) and the killing is on such a scale that the police have had to set up a new Hen Harrier Taskforce, designed to use techniques usually seen when dealing with serious and organised crime, to address the ongoing criminality.

It’s obvious then that attitudes towards hen harriers from within the wider grouse shooting industry have not changed as a result of the trial, so the Moorland Association’s claim of the trial being “a remarkable success story” is unsubstantiated nonsense.

Incidentally, Natural England has already produced an interim report (in April 2022) on the social science aspect of the brood meddling trial, which is hilariously bad, but I’ll write about that separately as it deserves its own blog post.

Back to the Moorland Association’s premature announcement that it intends to apply to Natural England for a (currently non-existent) ‘conservation licence’ to continue hen harrier brood meddling, the MA states that, “This approach fits with global guidelines on wildlife conflict resolution, produced by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN)“.

On the contrary, those IUCN guidelines are quite clear that animal translocations (in the context of human/wildlife conflict, as opposed to translocations for conservation purposes) should not take place if the perceived ‘problems’ caused by that species at the original location (in this case, on driven grouse moors) would simply be transferred to the new location(s). We’ve already seen that removing hen harrier chicks from a few grouse moors and releasing them somewhere else does not fix the problem – hen harriers are still not tolerated on other grouse moors and continue to be killed.

It’s also interesting that the Moorland Association’s blog details what it claims to be “the format of the conservation licence“, when that licence doesn’t even exist, let alone any details of its format/content! The Moorland Association claims the format includes, “A single release site” [for brood meddled hen harriers], presumably to get around the problem of there not being sufficient receptor sites willing to take the brood meddled harriers, and, “No further requirement for satellite tags“, presumably because the data from current satellite-tagged hen harriers have been so very effective at revealing the devastating extent of ongoing hen harrier persecution (e.g. see here and here). Awkward!

My guess is that the Moorland Association has made this announcement now, knowing full well that Natural England is still in the process of evaluating the success/failure of the brood meddling trial and the MA is using this announcement as a way of piling on the pressure on Natural England.

I’m really looking forward to Natural England’s full evaluation of the brood meddling trial, apparently due by the end of this year. And maybe by then it’ll also provide updates about the current ongoing police investigations into hen harriers that have died/gone ‘missing’ this year.

UPDATE 14 April 2025: Natural England / DEFRA turns down licence application for hen harrier brood meddling in 2025 (here)

Translocation of white-tailed eagles to Cumbria – public consultation opens & ill-informed hysteria begins

A proposal to translocate white-tailed eagles to Cumbria that has been in development for a number of years (see here) has reached the public consultation stage.

The Cumbrian White-tailed Eagle Project is being overseen by a steering group comprising the University of Cumbria, Cumbria Wildlife Trust, The Lifescape Project, RSPB, the Wildland Institute, the Lake District National Park Authority alongside local estate owners and managers.

According to the steering group, research has indicated that Cumbria has sufficient suitable habitat to support a population of white-tailed eagles and the county is considered an important strategic location to encourage links between other populations in Scotland, Ireland and Northern Ireland and the south of England.

The group is now engaging with the public to listen to views on bringing back this species to Cumbria and has begun a series of drop-in sessions, meetings and workshops (details here).

Unsurprisingly, this news has triggered the usual idiotic fear-mongering hysteria about white-tailed eagles based on ignorance and a persistent Victorian attitude to raptors, led, of course, by The Telegraph:

This is just lazy journalism. Had The Telegraph bothered to undertake any research at all, it would know that a series of scientific studies have shown that white-tailed eagles are generalist predators with a broad diet, and the most recent study from Scotland (here) shows that lambs are not an important food source for this species but marine prey is. This finding is also supported by a recent dietary study from the WTE Isle of Wight Reintroduction Project (here), which also concluded “there have been no cases of livestock predation since the project began“.

The hysteria was continued by this tweet from Mark Robinson, a farmer in North Yorkshire whose Twitter bio says he’s also the Reform Party spokesperson for the Thirsk and Malton Constituency (having failed to get elected in June). According to Farmer Robinson, the eagles will be ‘snatching up babies’ -:

It sounds like Farmer Robinson has been reading the discredited guff of the Scottish Gamekeepers Association, who has previously written to the Scottish Government about concerns that white-tailed eagles might eat children (here).

UPDATE 23 October 2025: Should White-tailed Eagles be reintroduced to Cumbria? Another questionnaire seeks your views (here)

Lincolnshire man summonsed to court in relation to poisoning of red kite & buzzards

Statement from Lincolnshire Police, 30 September 2024:

A 40-year-old man has been summoned to court for offences relating to killing or taking birds of prey.

John Bryant, of West Ashby, Horncastle, has been summoned to court following an investigation into reports of three birds of prey, a red kite and two buzzards, being poisoned and killed over a five year period between 2017 and 2022.

He will appear at Boston Magistrates’ Court on 16 October 2024.

ENDS

No further details are available yet.

NB: As this case is live comments are turned off until criminal proceedings have concluded.

UPDATE 17 October 2024: Lincolnshire man in court facing charges relating to poisoning of red kite and buzzards (here)

UPDATE 24 November 2024: Lincolnshire man faces trial in relation to poisoned red kite and buzzards (here)

UPDATE 12 March 2025: Lincolnshire gamekeeper guilty of multiple offences in relation to deaths of red kite and buzzards (here)

Trial date set in relation to dumping of dead raptors & hares outside Broughton Community Shop, Hampshire

James Kempster, 37, of Bury Brickfield Park, Totton made a second appearance at Southampton Magistrates Court on 23 September 2024 to face charges in relation to the dumping of approximately 50 hares, a shot barn owl and a shot kestrel outside Broughton Community Shop near Stockbridge, Hampshire in March this year.

*The shot kestrel and shot barn owl had been impaled on the shop door handles and blood & guts had been smeared over the windows. Photo: Broughton Community Shop*

Hampshire Police charged Kempster in August with possessing live/dead Schedule 1 wild bird or its parts, possessing live/dead non-Schedule 1 wild bird or parts, and causing £5,000 worth of criminal damage to the shop window.

He had first appeared in court on 10th September but the case was adjourned. Appearing again in court on 23rd September, Kempster pleaded not guilty to all charges and a trial date has been set for 7 May 2025.

Kempster was released on bail on condition that he doesn’t enter the village of Broughton.

Previous blogs on this case here, here, here, here and here.

As this case is live, comments are turned off until criminal proceedings have concluded so as not to jeopardise the case.

White-tailed eagles: First breeding pair confirmed in Northern Ireland in over 150 years

Press release from Northern Ireland Raptor Study Group:

White-tailed eagles: First breeding pair confirmed in Northern Ireland in over 150 years

White-tailed Eagles have bred in Northern Ireland for the first time in more than 150 years in Co. Fermanagh.

News of the discovery was welcomed by the Northern Ireland Raptor Study Group (NIRSG) and RSPB.

White-tailed Eagles, a native component of Irish wildlife, were reintroduced to Ireland by the Golden Eagle Trust (GET) and National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) between 2007 and 2011, with the aim of establishing a viable population following extinction from Ireland in the late 19^th century.

White-tailed eagle photo by Dr Marc Ruddock

From 2007 to 2011, 100 eagle chicks were brought from Norway and were released in Killarney National Park, Co. Kerry. Phase 2 of the reintroduction, by NPWS, continued in 2020 with more young individuals released at a number of sites across Ireland to bolster the population. Released birds were wing-tagged, with tag colours relating to their year of birth and codes to identify individuals, and many were fitted with satellite tags to provide accurate details of their locations.

The pair that have bred in Northern Ireland are only four years old and were released on the shores of Lough Derg, Co Tipperary in 2020, having been brought from Norway in phase 2 of the Irish reintroduction programme. It is an incredible achievement that this pair of first-time breeders, have successfully fledged one chick. The success of this pioneering couple confirms that the wetlands, woodlands and farmlands of Co. Fermanagh provide ideal habitats for this species.

The White-tailed Eagle, or ‘sea eagle’, is the UK’s largest bird of prey, standing at almost 1 meter tall, with a huge wingspan of up to 2.4 metres and a distinctive white tail, as their name suggests. The wings are very broad, and the birds are often described as a ‘flying barn door’.

Young White-tailed Eagles often roam widely in their first few years of life, before finding a breeding territory and a mate. They are found near open water, either coastal or fresh. They can live to over 20 years of age, and usually begin breeding at 5 years old. They depend on the availability of large, mature trees in undisturbed areas in which to build their nests and good quality foraging and fishing habitats.

Dr Eimear Rooney from NIRSG said “The confirmation of this eagle species breeding in Northern Ireland corrects a multi-generational absence, symbolising the restoration of a once extinct species and highlighting the importance of wetlands, woodlands and farmland habitats on which many of our raptors depend”.

“From reviewing satellite data provided by NPWS we had an idea that the birds were nesting, but with young eagles nothing is guaranteed. I can’t describe the adrenalin rush the moment I saw the chick earlier this year and confirmed that the birds were not only nesting but had successfully reared a chick” she said.

The well camouflaged WTE chick on the nest. Photo: NIRSG

Dean Jones, Investigations Officer from RSPB NI said: “The return of breeding White-tailed eagles to Northern Ireland is a true testament to the power of conservation and really showcases the awe-inspiring resilience and adaptability of our natural world. The poisoning of the two White-tailed eagles in Glenwherry in May 2023 was devastating, however, to have this pair breeding successfully, under the protection of a caring local farmer, really illustrates how humans and birds of prey can exist in harmony.”

Dr Marc Ruddock, from the NIRSG said “We had been anticipating this for a few years and the reintroduction programmes, has resulted in real conservation successes across the Island of Ireland. It’s a great result for the dedication and hard work of many individuals for many years and testament to the resilience of nature and wildlife in its capacity for restoration and renewal if given the space and habitats to thrive.”

Gregory Woulahan, Operations Director from RSPB NI praised the efforts of the local farmer whose actions to keep the site private and minimise disturbance no doubt created the conditions for these young birds to rear their first chick. It is hoped this chick will reach adulthood and return to breed in 4-6 years boosting the population of these birds alongside creating tourism opportunities for the rural economy and the implementation of further efforts to boost and restore spaces for nature.

ENDS

Hawk & Owl Trust withdraws from hen harrier brood meddling sham

Blimey! I wasn’t expecting to hear this, but according to an article posted on the BirdGuides website (here), the Hawk & Owl Trust has finally decided to walk away from the hen harrier brood meddling sham.

I haven’t been able to find anything published about it on the Hawk & Owl Trust website but as Chief Operations Director Adrian Blumfield is quoted in the BirdGuides article we can assume there’s more substance to it than just rumour:

“While the Hawk and Owl Trust has supported the Brood-Management Trial to foster co-operation and dialogue between conservationists and land managers, it has always maintained a position that any approach must be guided by robust scientific evidence.

“As the licence comes to a natural conclusion, we believe it is the right time to redirect our efforts toward other conservation initiatives where we can continue to make a meaningful impact.

“The challenges facing Hen Harrier are indicative of broader issues impacting birds of prey and other wildlife across the UK. Looking ahead, the Hawk and Owl Trust remains dedicated to working collaboratively with partners and stakeholders, developing practical, long-term solutions that protect our most vulnerable wildlife species while balancing the interests of the people who share their environment“.

Many of you will remember the Hawk & Owl Trust’s shocking decision in 2014-2015 to get in to bed with the grouse shooting industry in support of hen harrier brood meddling (here). It not only got into bed with them, it pulled up the duvet and stuck in some heavy duty ear plugs, refusing to be budged.

It cost the Trust dearly, as their President (Chris Packham) resigned, a load of members cancelled their subscriptions, and the charity’s credibility has never recovered in conservation circles. Much of the Trust’s decisions seemed to be led by the then Chair, Philip Merricks, but Trust statements at the time claimed that the decisions had the full backing of the Board of Trustees (at least two of whom were directly involved with the brood meddling trial, which seemed a bit questionable).

The Trust claimed to have several ‘immoveable conditions’ attached to its participation in brood meddling, not least that it would pull out ‘if any member of the moorland management organisations were found to have illegally interfered with or persecuted a hen harrier on their moors’ (here). We later learned that the ‘immoveable conditions’ were actually very moveable indeed (see here) and weren’t worth the paper they’d been printed on.

Needless to say, persecution continued and even when one of the hen harriers (called Rowan), satellite-tagged by Natural England in association with the Hawk & Owl Trust, was found dead with clear shotgun injuries to its leg, the Trust did all it could to avoid admitting the bleedin’ obvious (e.g. see here, here, here).

Even when the shotgun injuries were proven on Rowan, the Hawk & Owl Trust continued its charade (see here, here and here).

So whilst the Hawk & Owl Trust’s withdrawal from the brood meddling sham doesn’t appear to be based on principle per se (if it was, they should have left years ago when it was obvious that illegal persecution was continuing), nevertheless their withdrawal will be seen as a blow to the grouse moor industry because they often used the Hawk & Owl Trust’s involvement as a signal that ‘raptor conservationists’ were supportive of the sham trial.

As I mentioned a couple of days ago (here), Natural England is currently ‘reviewing and analysing the data’ from the hen harrier brood meddling sham before making a decision about whether or not to roll out brood meddling as an annual so-called ‘conservation licence’. The findings of that review will apparently be available by the end of this year.

UPDATE 21 November 2024: More detail on Hawk & Owl Trust’s withdrawal from hen harrier brood meddling sham (here).

Wild Justice lodges formal complaint to Competition & Marketing Authority about Marks & Spencer & Waitrose falsely claiming their gamebirds have not been shot with toxic lead ammunition

Press release from Wild Justice (26 September 2024):

Environmental campaign group Wild Justice has lodged a complaint to the Competition and Marketing Authority about false claims made by Waitrose and Marks & Spencer in relation to selling game meat contaminated with toxic lead shot.

Maximum legal lead levels are set for meats such as beef, pork, chicken etc. but not, utterly bizarrely, for game meat, even though the Food Standards Agency warns that, ‘Eating lead-shot game regularly can expose you to potentially harmful levels of lead. Those who eat lead-shot game should be aware of the negative health effects and try to minimise exposure.

Exposure to lead can harm the developing brain and nervous system. Minimising the amount of lead-shot game eaten is especially important for children, pregnant women and women hoping to conceive’.

Nevertheless, with a nod to growing concerns about the impact of toxic lead ammunition on public health, wildlife and the environment, in recent years both Waitrose and Marks and Spencer have stated publicly that they no longer stock gamebirds (Pheasants and Red-legged Partridges) that have been shot with lead ammunition.

However, research undertaken by Wild Justice during the last gamebird shooting season (1 September 2023 – 1 February 2024) shows that some of their products still contain high levels of lead contamination that would exceed the legal limit stipulated for other (non-game) meat, in some cases more than five times above the legal limit (Marks & Spencer’s Pheasants – here) and over 65 times above the legal limit (Waitrose’s game casserole mix – here).

Game meat products contaminated with toxic lead shot and ironically branded under Waitrose’s ‘*No.1 The Best*‘ range, on sale in January 2024. Photo: Ruth Tingay

The Competition and Marketing Authority (CMA) has a ‘green claims code’ that provides guidance for businesses making environmental claims about their goods and services. Wild Justice has provided evidence to the CMA that the claims being made by Waitrose and Marks and Spencer about no longer stocking game meat that has been shot with lead ammunition breaches the CMA guidance requiring marketing claims to be ‘truthful and accurate’ and ‘substantiated’.

Wild Justice said: “It is clear from our lab testing results that the repeated claims made by both Marks and Spencer and Waitrose that they no longer stock game meat that has been shot with lead ammunition are neither truthful or accurate.

“Our results also suggest that neither supermarket has undertaken independent testing to substantiate their claims that they no longer stock lead-shot game meat. Instead they appear to have relied upon assurances from their suppliers that the products are lead-free, and in the case of Waitrose this irresponsibility has continued even after we have made them aware of our results over a number of years.

“Marks and Spencer has now sold lead-contaminated game meat for two seasons since claiming to have gone lead-free and Waitrose has sold it for three seasons since making the same claim.

“Customers of these major supermarkets expect honesty and transparency about the products they buy, including the environmental impact of their purchases. They also expect not to be deceived about the risks to their health and that of their children by consuming poisonous meat.

“We look forward to the consideration of our findings by the CMA”.

ENDS

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