Category: News

Last ditch attempt by grouse moor lobby to water down Scottish Government’s proposed ban on snares

Yesterday, Scottish Environment Minister Gillian Martin MSP gave evidence to the Rural Affairs Committee on the Government’s proposed ban on snares and an extension of powers to the SSPCA as part of its Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Bill (here).

The video recording is available to watch here and a transcript should be available in the next day or so. [Update: transcript now available at foot of this blog post]

It was an assured and confident performance by the Minister and I admired her patience in dealing with thinly-veiled, repeated attempts by some Committee members to portray the Government’s proposals as an ‘attack’ on the countryside, and especially on gamekeepers.

The Minister was clear – the use of snares, even those cynically re-named as ‘humane cable restraints’, is inherently cruel, no matter who is deploying the snare and no matter for what purpose.

It became apparent during the Minister’s evidence that following a meeting with stakeholders from the grouse moor management sector in September, they had wanted to propose an alternative to a complete ban on the use of snares and instead had ideas about a licensing scheme for their use. The Minister, in all fairness, invited them to submit their proposals in writing for her consideration.

The Minister told the Committee yesterday that she’d received the licensing proposal late on Monday evening (30 October 2023) and that she hadn’t yet had chance to review it but would do so this month, and in time for the Committee to consider her decision for their Stage 1 Report, which is due towards the end of November.

The snare-licensing proposal from the grouse moor lobby has now been published on the Rural Affairs Committee’s website, as follows:

wildlife-bill-retention-of-humane-cable-restraints-under-licence-sleDownload

What’s immediately apparent about the grouse moor managers’ proposed licensing scheme is that they pretend to be proposing “a narrow range of licensable purposes” [for the continued use of snares] but in fact what they propose is the continued use of snares for all the same purposes they currently use snares, i.e.

(i) preventing, or reducing the risk of, predation causing harm to wildlife or gamebirds,
(ii) preventing serious damage to livestock, foodstuffs for livestock, crops,
vegetables or fruit;
(iii) preventing, or reducing the risk of, disease in people or animals;
(iv) conserving, restoring, enhancing or managing the natural environment; and
(v) for scientific, research or educational purposes.

Fundamentally, they have failed to grasp the underlying argument against the use of snares, and that is, as the Minister made clear yesterday, that they are inherently cruel, whether they’re called ‘snares’ or ‘humane cable restraints’ (see here). There’s nothing in the grouse moor managers’ proposed licensing scheme that will end the indiscriminate suffering of animals caught in a snare, and nothing in there that should change her mind against a total ban on the use of all snares with no exceptions, as the Welsh Government has recently enacted.

Given the preliminary analysis of the responses made to the Scottish Government’s recent public consultation on the use of snares, it is also very clear that the public supports a ban on the use of all snares and does not support any exceptions to the ban:

Importantly, the public consultation did not ask the specific question about whether a licensing scheme for the use of snares should be considered (although question 4 comes close and the public responded with a resounding 73% ‘no’) so if the Minister is minded to give any credence to the grouse moor managers’ proposed licensing scheme, I think the Government would be obliged to consult on that specific option.

Accepting a last-ditch attempt by the grouse moor managers to water down the Government’s proposed legislation, without providing an opportunity for the public to comment, would be wide open for a legal challenge and I dare say there’d be a number of organisations prepared to take up such a challenge.

UPDATE 4th November 2023: The transcript from the evidence session on 1st Nov is now available:

officialreport-rural-affairs-islands-committee-1nov2023-1Download

UPDATE 9 November 2023: Scottish Environment Minister proposes full ban on all snares (here)

Environment Minister to give evidence on snare ban & extending investigatory powers of SSPCA

Scottish Environment Minister Gillian Martin MSP will give evidence tomorrow morning (Wednesday 1 November 2023) to the Rural Affairs & Islands Committee as part of the Committee’s continued Stage 1 scrutiny of the Wildlife Management & 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 introduce measures to put an end to the illegal killing of birds of prey on grouse moors.

The Minister’s previous appearance before the Committee in June 2023

The Minister will be joined by some specialist civil servants from the Government’s Wildlife Management Unit who have been responsible for drafting this Bill.

The focus of tomorrow’s evidence session will be on the Government’s proposed ban on snares and on extending the investigatory powers of the Scottish SPCA.

A further evidence session will take place next week (Weds 8 November) where stakeholder groups will be providing evidence on these two issues. I’ll provide more detail about that nearer the time.

The Stage 1 debate, where the whole of the Scottish Parliament has an opportunity to discuss/accept/challenge the Committee’s Stage 1 report in the main Chamber, is scheduled for Wednesday 29 November 2023.

The clerks to the Rural Affairs Committee have prepared some helpful background notes to tomorrow’s meeting for those who may be new to the subject:

rural-affairs-committee-notes-for-1-nov-2023-mtgDownload

You may recall that the Scottish Government recently held (yet another!) public consultation on its proposal to ban snares and its proposal to extend the investigatory powers of the SSPCA. That consultation closed on 3 October 2023 and I know that many of you participated (thank you!).

In preparation for tomorrow’s hearing, the Environment Minister today wrote to the Rural Affairs Committee with a preliminary analysis of those 5,289 consultation responses.

The headline news from that analysis is that a significant majority of respondents support the Government’s proposals to ban snares and so called ‘humane cable restraints’ (70% in support, compared to just 29% against), and a significant majority of respondents support the Government’s proposals to extend the investigatory powers of the SSPCA (71% in support, compared to just 26% against).

Here is the Minister’s letter to the Committee:

wmm-bill-consultation-analysis-update-snares-sspca-consultation-31oct2023Download

Tomorrow’s hearing begins at 9am and can be watched live on Scottish Parliament TV (here). A video recording will also be available for those who can’t watch the live proceedings and of course there’ll be a transcript of the session which I’ll post here as soon as it becomes available (usually a couple of days afterwards).

UPDATE 2nd November 2023: Last ditch attempt by grouse moor lobby to water down Scottish Government’s proposed ban on snares (here)

UPDATE 4th November 2023: The transcript from the session is now available:

officialreport-rural-affairs-islands-committee-1nov2023Download

UPDATE 9 November 2023: Scottish Environment Minister proposes full ban on all snares (here)

‘No case to answer’ – Hampshire Police close ridiculous ‘Chris Packham sniffed a goshawk’ investigation

Chris Packham has ‘no case to answer’ says Hampshire Police, who have now closed their investigation into alleged goshawk disturbance earlier this summer.

It was a story that the right wing, pro-shooting press seized upon with glee in August – the news that Chris Packham was being investigated by Hampshire Police after a ‘shooting enthusiast’ reported him after watching Chris sniffing some goshawk chicks during a clip filmed for The One Show in June (see here and here).

The lurid headlines were so tediously predictable – ‘Chris Packham faces six months in jail if found guilty’ and ‘Chris Packham investigated for wildlife crime’, in my opinion all written with the express intention to stir up even more anti-Packham rhetoric amongst those too stupid to think for themselves, as evidenced by comments on social media by Packham-haters that “Any bad publicity is good” (see here).

The great irony is that many of those complaining about the alleged ‘disturbance’ to those goshawk chicks belong to an industry that consistently and criminally targets and kills goshawks because they’re seen as a threat to their gamebird stocks. It’s strange, isn’t it, how that same industry remains silent when actual crimes against goshawks are uncovered and publicised or when yet another gamekeeper is convicted for killing birds of prey.

This case has been the latest assault in a long-running, relentless and malicious hate campaign against Chris (e.g. see here, here, here, here, here, here and here), often curated by the hunting/gamebird shooting industry that despises him for his outspoken criticism of their activities and in many cases, their crimes. More fool them though because ordinary, rational members of the general public can see straight through it as evidenced by the support Chris received when he took two libel actions recently (see here), one of which Chris has already won (here) and the other (here) will continue at the High Court on 6th November 2023.

The news that Hampshire Police have closed their investigation has been reported in The Telegraph as follows:

The naturalist Chris Packham did not commit a criminal offence when he sniffed goshawk chicks on television because he was behaving in a “purely instinctive” way, police have concluded.

The BBC Springwatch and Earth presenter was reported to police after he appeared on The One Show inspecting three of the birds of prey in the New Forest this summer.

It was feared that the “sniffing incident” amounted to a “disturbance” of the wild chicks, which are a protected species, because they were out of their nests.

At the time, the environmental campaigner wrote on social media that he was appearing on the show and would “get up close and very personal with some New Forest goshawks”.

Officers from Hampshire Police launched an investigation amid claims the presenter, 62, had breached the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 when he was filmed celebrating the return of goshawks to the Hampshire national park.

Mr Packham later told The Telegraph no harm had come to the birds and he was simply smelling them to detect their “characteristic scent or perfume” while they were weighed, sexed and ringed in line with a licence issued by the British Trust for Ornithology.

Under the licence goshawks may be removed from their nests for scientific and conservation purposes, including ringing and recording various biometrics. Ringers are also permitted to photograph the birds as long as it does not disturb or harm them.

Hampshire Police has written to the man who complained – an amateur shooting enthusiast who does not want to be named – to say that no charges will be brought and the case has now been closed.

The email said officers concluded the birds did not suffer any harm during the four-minute and 30-second television clip seen by millions of viewers.

The investigating officer, part of the force’s specialist rural crime unit, said: “The bird in question has not appeared to have been caused any harm and nothing was done with intent to harm any birds or act recklessly.”

He added that Mr Packham’s decision to sniff the birds “were purely instinctive”, adding that “we have received no other complaints about this matter and this will not be in the public interest to take it any further”.

The officer, who said he saw the programme when it was broadcast in June, added that the “evidential threshold test for any prosecution” had not been met.

Mr Packham on Friday welcomed the police decision and accused the fieldsports lobby of targeting him and wasting police time.

“The anonymous idiot who made this ludicrous and vindictive complaint should be sorry that even a nanosecond of police time was wasted,” he told The Telegraph. 

“Once again the fieldsports community has blasted themselves in the foot trying to put my nose out of joint.”

A Hampshire Police spokesman said: “The footage has been viewed and no criminal offence was identified. The investigation has been filed.

“Any issues relating to an alleged breach of licence would be dealt with by the organisation who issued that licence, not the police.”

The BBC has always insisted that protocols were followed during the filming at all times.

After it emerged that Mr Packham had been reported to police over the “sniffing incident” experts warned amateur ornithologists not to sniff wild birds amid fears it could spread avian flu.

ENDS

Scottish Raptor Study Group holds Parliamentary reception to discuss details of grouse moor reform Bill

The Scottish Raptor Study Group (SRSG) was generously hosted at the Scottish Parliament earlier this week by John Mason MSP, for a drop-in reception to discuss the Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Bill, which is currently at Stage One of its progress through Parliament.

SRSG Chair Keith Duncan and John Mason MSP. Photo: SRSG

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 introduce measures (such as a revoked licence) to put an end to the illegal killing of birds of prey on grouse moors.

MSPs in attendance at the reception included Edward Mountain (Conservative), Findlay Carson (Conservative), Rachael Hamilton (Conservative), Colin Smyth (Labour), Rhoda Grant (Labour), Jim Fairlie (SNP), Bob Doris (SNP), Elena Whitham (SNP), John Mason (SNP) and Ariane Burgess (Green).

The SRSG viewed the event as a valuable and productive meeting, attracting cross-party MSPs and discussions focused on the following key themes:

  • The raptor persecution data that underpin the Scottish Government’s decision to bring in the Bill;
  • Whether or not the proposed licence period should be greater than one year;
  • Issues around white tailed sea eagles, ravens and sheep;
  • How the licensing regime should operate and the amount of administration involved;
  • How any revocation or suspension of a licence might happen and discussion of the existing General Licence restrictions and what evidence NatureScot would be looking for when considering a sanction on a grouse-shooting estate;
  • Concern around potentially vexatious claims;
  • In which specific areas birds of prey are being persecuted or ‘disappearing’ in suspicious circumstances;  
  • Change to burning dates (finishing earlier than the current regulations allow);  
  • And how the Bill is now encompassing more areas (i.e. SSPCA powers and snaring).
Ian Thomson, Kelvin Thomson, Keith Duncan, Logan Steele & Duncan Orr-Ewing. Photo: SRSG

The Scottish Raptor Study Group was represented by Kelvin Thomson (Advocacy Officer, SRSG), Keith Duncan (Chair, Highland Raptor Study Group & current Chair of the SRSG’s National Management Committee), Logan Steele (Communications Secretary, SRSG) and Duncan Orr-Ewing (Chair, Central Raptor Study Group). Also in the delegation was Ian Thomson, Head of Investigations at RSPB Scotland.

The Bill is currently still with the Rural Affairs & Islands Committee (and interesting that a number of Committee members attended this reception) as they continue to prepare their Stage One report, which will then be debated in Parliament.

The date of that Stage One debate keeps being put back, mainly to accommodate the most recent consultation (the latest in a long, long line!) on proposed new powers for the SSPCA and a proposed ban on snaring, which the Rural Affairs Committee would like to include in its report.

It is currently anticipated that the debate will take place in mid-late December, prior to the Xmas recess (which begins on 23 Dec 2023), but don’t hold your breath!

Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust begins 100-year rewilding project on former grouse shooting estate in Cairngorms National Park

Press release from Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust (25 Oct 2023)

Durrell Reveals Major New Scottish Rewilding Project

An 18,500-acre estate in Perthshire is set to be the home of a 100-year rewilding project managed by Durrell.  

The Trust has secured the lease for Dalnacardoch Estate, which sits entirely within the Cairngorms National Park, halfway between Blair Atholl and Dalwhinnie.  

 This will be Durrell’s first project in Scotland. 

Dalnacardoch Estate. Photo: Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust

The team has a long-term vision to revive the estate by applying its proven techniques to restoring habitats and ecological processes, as well as recovering iconic missing species such as the capercaillie, which is currently facing extinction in Scotland.   

Durrell’s scientific approach combines hands-on species management with habitat restoration while working alongside local communities and training conservationists.   

Significant ecological audits of the site, to establish the geography, species and habitats, are already taking place. These surveys will be ongoing and continue to inform the long-term strategic vision for rewilding the estate in line with the interests of the wider community and the requirements of being in a national park.  

Durrell’s CEO, Dr Lesley Dickie, said: “This is a transformational moment in the Durrell story. The UK is one of the most nature-depleted countries on Earth with a multitude of diminished species and missing ecological functions. We are proud to be a British charity and we have been looking for a landscape-scale restoration project in the UK for several years.  

“Leasing the Dalnacardoch estate offers an incredible opportunity to demonstrate our approach to conservation and transition this estate to a nature-positive landscape that will benefit both local people and wildlife.”   

Durrell’s intention is to have a managed transition away from Dalnacardoch’s historic use as a sporting estate. Instead moving towards a diversified range of activities that will provide economic, social and environmental benefits. 

The team’s immediate focus is on engaging with neighbouring estates and potential partners.  

 Grant Moir, Chief Executive of the Cairngorms National Park Authority, said: “We’re delighted to be working with the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust on the long-term restoration of Dalnacardoch Estate. This collaboration will be vital in helping achieve our National Park Partnership Plan commitments, particularly around ecological restoration, net zero, woodland expansion, peatland restoration, and green skills and training.   

 “It’s also encouraging that Durrell plans to work so closely with neighbouring landowners and with the local community, developing a lasting vision that reflects the unique environmental and cultural heritage of the area.”  

 Professor Carl Jones MBE, Durrell’s Chief Scientist, said: “Durrell is excited to be working on a major restoration project in Britain, bringing six decades of experience in saving species from extinction and rebuilding ecosystems.  In a world where we are seeing major environmental changes and the loss of wildlife, we passionately believe we can address these challenges and make the world a better place. We look forward to restoring the plant and animal communities of Dalnacardoch so that the glens and moors are vibrant with bird song and pulsing with life.”   

The land was bought earlier this year by a family foundation with charitable aims, specifically with the intent to lease it to Durrell for a rewilding project.  

ENDS

This is excellent news for wildlife conservation in Scotland, and especially for this south west corner of the Cairngorms National Park. Part of Dalnacardoch’s boundary is shared with Gaick Estate, managed by Wildland and part of the impressive Cairngorms Connect project, a multi-partner, long-term, landscape-scale rewilding effort.

However, Dalnacardoch, a former grouse-shooting estate, also shares its boundary with a number of other estates (Atholl, Dalnaspidal, North & South Drumochter, and Phones, Etterridge and Cuaick). Some of these estates are still managed (some of them I’d say quite intensively) for driven grouse shooting.

Map adapted from Cairngorms National Park estate map

I’m delighted to see Durrell take on a wildlife conservation project in the UK – this is an organisation whose international conservation work is legendary, particularly on the islands of Mauritius and Madagascar in the Indian Ocean which is where I’ve seen their bold and innovative projects recover threatened species and transform and restore ecosystem functionality, at the same time as providing training for literally hundreds of young conservationists (30 years ago I was one of them!), many of whom have gone on to apply that training to their own successful careers in this field.

I really look forward to seeing what they can achieve at Dalnacardoch.

Moorland Association Director Ben Ramsden resigns & receives inconsequential fine following conviction for illegal burning on his grouse moor

Last Friday I wrote about how Moorland Association Director Ben Ramsden had been convicted at Skipton Magistrates Court for three counts of illegal burning on his grouse moor at Middlesmoor in the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) in April 2023 (see here).

At the time, details of the fine imposed by the court were unavailable. I also wrote how his profile had curiously ‘disappeared’ from the Moorland Association website, even though he was still listed as a Moorland Association Director on Companies House documents.

I can now provide an update on those issues.

Ramsden has ‘resigned’ his position as Director of the Moorland Association, according to updated documents. His resignation was lodged at Companies House on 11 October 2023, nine days before his court hearing, presumably because he knew at that stage that he was going to plead guilty to three charges of criminal activity on his grouse moor and so his continued Directorship of the Moorland Association, alongside a conviction, would come under great scrutiny.

Unsurprisingly, the Moorland Association hasn’t mentioned Ramsden’s conviction or resignation as a Director. Not even PR contortionist Amanda Anderson could put a positive spin on that. Besides, I suspect she’s busy formulating campaigns against the reintroduction of beavers, supporting the burning of vegetation on peat-rich grouse moors, supporting the continuation of hen harrier brood meddling and promoting the use of neonicotinoids in her new position as Vice Chair of this lot.

As for Ramsden’s ‘punishment’ from the court for his three offences of illegal burning on a deep peat moor, there’s an article in today’s Craven Herald & Pioneer (here) which states that Ramsden was ordered to pay a grand total of just £925 in fines and costs (£300, £100 and £200 for each fire, a surcharge of £240 and costs of £85). Gosh, that’ll learn ‘im and what a daunting deterrent for anybody else considering of setting fire to their grouse moors, eh?

The article includes some interesting commentary about how the fires were a ‘genuine mistake’ and how there had been ‘ignorance to the regulations’ by Ramsden.

Ignorance? Really? Is this the same Ben Ramsden who not only was a Director of the Moorland Association but who served on DEFRA’s Project Advisory Group for a multi-year project called, ‘Restoration of blanket bog vegetation for biodiversity, carbon sequestration and water regulation’??!

And is this the same Ben Ramsden whose grouse moor was the subject of a five year £1.5 million peatland restoration project undertaken by the Yorkshire Peat Partnership? A project on which after completion in 2020 Ramsden said: “…Our moors are essentially wall to wall deep peat…”?!! (And by the way, how many traps can you see on those logs – that looks like quite intensive predator control to me):

And is this the same Ben Ramsden whose Moorland Association profile said was ‘instrumental in establishing the Nidderdale Moorland Group‘, the same group that repeatedly states on social media posts:

“We do not burn peat, burn peatlands, burn deep peat or blanket bog. All areas are managed under agreement with Natural England and DEFRA“

and whose work ‘restoring peatland‘ was celebrated ‘under the Moorland Association banner‘ (here)?

It seems incomprehensible to me, given his position and experience, that Ben Ramsden would be ‘ignorant’ of the burning restrictions on deep peat. Of course it’d be impossible to prove what exactly he did and didn’t know but it just doesn’t seem credible that he’d be ‘ignorant’ of the risks of lighting fires on his moorland that he has previously described as “wall to wall deep peat“.

The court must have seen some credibility in this mitigation argument though, given that the maximum fine for an offence under this legislation is £1,000 per fire, and Ramsden received just a fraction of that for each one (£100, £200 and £300 respectively).

Had someone other than the landowner (or working under the landowner’s authority) set fire to this blanket bog they could have faced a custodial sentence for arson (criminal damage by fire). It clearly pays to be a landowner.

It’s more than a little sickening that this landowner’s grouse moor can benefit from multi-year, multi-million pound projects (much of it publicly funded) to restore vitally important peatland during a climate emergency, then the landowner can burn it, claim ‘ignorance’ of the rules, and be fined a teeny tiny fraction of the cost of even bringing the prosecution, let alone any damage he caused.

We so desperately need a dedicated environmental justice court, populated by expert judges and backed up with sentencing powers that actually hold people to account.

Obituary: John Love, Champion of Sea Eagles

I received an unexpected email on Friday evening announcing the sad passing of John Love, who died at his cottage on South Uist on Wednesday 18 October 2023.

John’s name will always be synonymous with the reintroduction of the white-tailed eagle in Scotland. John was the original Sea Eagle Reintroduction Project Officer between 1975 – 1985, living on the Isle of Rum in Western Scotland and releasing a total of 82 Norwegian sea eagles in what was at the time an ambitious and pioneering effort.

He later worked as an Area Officer for SNH (now NatureScot) for Uist, Barra and St Kilda and after ‘retirement’ he worked as an expert guest speaker for a cruise company, having written books on eagles, penguins, sea otters, St Kilda, Rum, and even the natural history of lighthouses, but sea eagles remained his passion to the very end.

Photo by Dave Sexton

I first learned of John Love in 1999, planning my first trip to Madagascar to study the island’s critically endangered fish eagles. On a university field trip to Mull I met the now sorely missed Richard Evans, who was the RSPB’s eagle warden on Mull at the time, and he invited me to his cottage to talk eagles. He was kind to me and several cups of tea later, realising that my knowledge of eagles was limited at best, he took a small blue book from his bookshelf and handed it to me with the words, “You’ll be needing this“.

It was a first edition of John Love’s highly acclaimed 1983 book, The Return of the Sea Eagle and I’ve treasured it ever since.

I was lucky enough to get to know John in later years after meeting him at a raptor conference where he took an interest in my research on the Madagascar fish eagle. He later agreed to write a chapter for a book I was co-editing on people who studied eagles. Here’s the biography he sent through back in 2006:

‘Born in Inverness, the capital of the Highlands of Scotland, John has been interested in animals as long as he can remember. Joining the local Bird Club as a schoolboy in 1958 broadened his horizons, especially two summer weekend trips to the island of Handa, Sutherland in 1963 and 1964. (Islands and seabirds, especially Leach’s petrel, have always remained a passion, so John’s work on sea eagles has fitted nicely!) In winter, evening lecturers at the bird club included Seton Gordon, George Waterston, Charlie Palmer and Lea MacNally – all illustrious golden eagle enthusiasts. John trained as a bird ringer and spent several school holidays as a volunteer helping to protect what were at the time Scotland’s only pair of nesting ospreys. He graduated Honours in Natural History at the University of Aberdeen and did three years post-graduate research on bird predators of bivalve mussels.

It was on holiday on Fair Isle in June 1968, that John first encountered white-tailed sea eagles, when George Waterston and Dr Johan Willgohs arrived with four eaglets for release. This project was following of from a pioneering effort by George’s cousin, Pat Sandeman, who had set free three Norwegian sea eagles in Argyll in 1959. None of these seven birds survived to adulthood but paved the way for a more concerted effort in 1975 on the Isle of Rum National Nature Reserve in the Inner Hebrides.

Dr Morton Boyd, Dr Derek Ratcliffe and Dr Ian Newton were all instrumental in encouraging this new reintroduction attempt. It was several years before the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), finally agreed to support the project. In 1975 John Love was invited by the Nature Conservancy Council (NCC) to help Dr Johan Willgohs collect the first four eaglets from northern Norway. Two weeks cruising with Johan in the heart of sea eagle country was both an inspiration and an education. The following year Harald Misund, a local eagle expert then in the Norwegian Air Force in BodØ, took over collecting eaglets for the Scottish project. John has since visited Norway many times and learnt so much from Harald, who remains a close friend.

From 1975 John lived on Rum where he released no fewer than 82 Norwegian sea eagles. His monograph on the reintroduction – ‘The Return of the Sea Eagle’ – was published in 1983. By 1985, when the first phase of the project ceased, the first Scottish-bred bird fledged in the wild. A further 59 eaglets were set free near Loch Maree on the west Scottish mainland between 1993 and 1998. As the population has grown, John has remained on the UK Project Team, though he now works in the Outer Hebrides as an Area Officer for Scottish Natural Heritage (formerly NCC), and where he helps monitor several breeding pairs of sea eagles. He has since written and illustrated several other books on eagles, penguins and sea otters, together with a detailed human history of the island of Rum. He is currently updating the sea eagle story’.

John was a huge supporter of this blog when I began writing it in 2010 and he became a confidante, writing long emails to rail against those whose continued blind prejudice against sea eagles infuriated him. After writing an opinion piece for the Press & Journal in 2021 in response to some ill-informed nonsense from a Director of the Scottish Gamekeepers Association (here), he told me:

“…so it looks like we are facing attacks from east coast keepers/landowners as well as crofter/farmers on the west!!“

I’ll miss John, as will so many others fortunate to have known him, but what a legacy he leaves behind – I’ll think of him whenever I see one of his beloved sea eagles. RIP.

Moorland Association Director Ben Ramsden convicted for burning on deep peat on Middlesmoor Estate grouse moor, Nidderdale

Grouse moor owner Ben Ramsden was found guilty at Skipton Magistrates Court today of three counts of burning on deep peat on a grouse moor on the Middlesmoor Estate in Nidderdale, Yorkshire on 8 April 2023.

The prosecution related to reports of a fire lit on the grouse moor that was believed to be on a European protected site (Special Area of Conservation / Special Protected Area) and in an area where the peat depth exceeded 4ocm (called ‘deep peat’). Under recent legislation (Heather and Grass etc Burning (England) Regulations 2021, burning is not permitted in such areas without a licence due to the importance of upland peatland habitat as a carbon store.

Grouse moor burning. NB: This is not Middlesmoor Estate

A report about the fire was made to DEFRA and following an investigation, the Crown Prosecution Service approved four charges and the case was due to be heard today at Skipton Magistrates Court at 2pm:

A number of people attended the court this afternoon only to discover that the case was heard this morning. Interesting. It is thought that Ramsden didn’t appear, but his representative lodged three guilty pleas on his behalf and the fourth charge was withdrawn. It would have been interesting to hear the defence’s argument on that fourth charge.

I understand that the court imposed fines in relation to the three guilty pleas but the amount has not yet been made public.

It’s not clear to me why the CPS charged Ben Ramsden as an individual, rather than charging the Middlesmoor Estate or his fellow co-owner, but his name is on the court documents so I guess there was some reason for that.

Ramsden is a prominent figure in the grouse-shooting world and his conviction will no doubt be embarrassing for the industry. Perhaps that’s why his portrait and biography has mysteriously ‘vanished’ from the list of Board members on the Moorland Association website in the last few weeks. This is what has been removed:

Screen grab from Moorland Association website, 7 August 2023. This entry is now ‘missing’.

It’s all very curious, as Ramsden is still listed as a Director of the Moorland Association on documents held at Companies House (here).

Ramsden also featured in an article about Middlesmoor Estate published by the Yorkshire Post in July 2021 (here). His gamekeeper is quoted as claiming that burning on this grouse moor is ‘conducted carefully’.

Ramsden’s conviction is the second successful prosecution against a grouse moor owner for burning on deep peat. In May this year, the landowning company Dunlin Ltd was convicted and fined for six offences of burning on deep peat on a grouse moor on Midhope Moors in the Peak District (see here).

It’s good to see DEFRA take enforcement action against criminal grouse moor management in Nidderdale, which is a well-known raptor persecution hotspot. It’s obviously easier to prosecute for illegal burning than for the illegal killing of birds of prey because it’s much harder to hide the evidence of a fire than it is to stamp a poisoned/shot raptor corpse into the peat, hidden from view.

Although we shouldn’t get too carried away with our praise of DEFRA’s enforcement activities – my understanding is that between 30-60 other reports of allegedly unlawful fires have been submitted to DEFRA by a number of individuals, including with supplementary evidence such as photographs, grid references, peat depth measurements and actual time-stamped film footage of the fires, but for reasons that are not clear (or even known), DEFRA has chosen not to proceed with enforcement action in those cases. Hmm.

The evidence for the two successful prosecutions originated from reports made by members of the public to the RSPB’s Burn Recording App, where people can submit details of fires/muirburn on grouse moors throughout the UK. The value of this information has just been proven. If you’d like to get involved, read this background information (here) and visit the RSPB’s dedicated reporting website here.

UPDATE 23 October 2023: Moorland Association Director Ben Ramsden resigns & receives inconsequential fine following conviction for illegal burning of his grouse moor (here)

8 out of 10 bats – new wildlife show hosted by Chris Packham & Megan McCubbin starts next week

Press release from Trees for Life (18th October 2023):

Chris Packham and Megan McCubbin present new wildlife show from Dundreggan Rewilding Centre in Highlands

Television presenters Chris Packham and Megan McCubbin will be live presenting a week of anarchic and inspiring autumn wildlife programmes from Trees for Life’s Dundreggan Rewilding Centre near Loch Ness in the Highlands from 23-26 October 2023.

Photo by Jo Charlesworth

Chris, Megan and a team of talented young conservationists will be hosting the new 8 Out of 10 Bats nature series via YouTube from 7.30pm-8.30pm each evening.

The hour-long show will feature live segments, topical films by leading wildlife film-makers, hilarious props, and live wildlife cameras, with content from across the UK and plenty of audience participation.

A public event to meet the 8 Out of 10 Bats team will be held at Dundreggan Rewilding Centre – which lies eight miles from Loch Ness in Glenmoriston on the main road (A887) to the Isle of Skye – at 1:30pm on Saturday 21 October. Chris and Megan will be discussing how we can save nature before it’s too late. Tickets are available at visitdundreggan.co.uk.

Chris Packham, naturalist and broadcaster, said:“At a time when we are being constantly bombarded with so much negative news about our precious wildlife, we want to share our passion for what we love most – all that unparalleled wonder for our natural world, which grips young and old alike. 8 Out Of 10 Bats is about being excited by a love of life – everything which slimes, slithers or stings. But it’s also about making sure young people have a voice and an opportunity to showcase their extraordinary abilities.”

Zoologist and wildlife TV presenter Megan McCubbin said: “I am so excited to be launching 8 Out Of 10 Bats, a truly feel-good wildlife show. We are coming live from two spectacular locations over the course of two weeks, and getting our wildlife nerdiness on! We’re hoping to bring some joy and escapism to these darker evenings and celebrate the species on our doorstep and beyond.”

Laurelin Cummins-Fraser, Dundreggan Rewilding Centre Director, said: “We’re thrilled to be hosting Chris and Megan at the rewilding centre. With calls growing for Scotland to become a Rewilding Nation and restore nature in a big way, the show will be a brilliant way for people to be able to enjoy the Highlands’ stunning landscapes and unique wildlife from the comfort of their homes, and discover more about why rewilding fills us with hope.” 

As well as showcasing a fabulous cascade of wildlife, the programmes will offer a platform for new talent, with a diversity of hosts, an equal split of male and female presenters, and a good number of contributors aged under 25. Young film-makers, conservationists, presenters and campaigners will be supported and empowered to share their skills, ideas and ambitions.

Alongside Chris and Megan, presenters will include 18-year-old conservationist and campaigner Indy Greene, Scottish producer and nature presenter Christina Sinclair, wildlife gardener and environmental science student George Hassall, and City Girl in Nature, Kwesia.  There will be appearances by naturalist and campaigner Lucy Lapwing and wildlife filmmaker James Stevens, with the free-to-view show brought together by producer Fabian Harrison.

Trees for Life opened Dundreggan Rewilding Centre this year, to showcase how rewilding – large-scale nature recovery – can give people inspiring experiences, create jobs and benefit communities, while tackling the climate and nature emergencies. Visitors can explore the 10,000-acre Dundreggan estate, where for 15 years Trees for Life has been restoring the Caledonian forest and its wildlife, from wood ants to eagles. 

Dundreggan lies within Affric Highlands, the UK’s largest rewilding landscape which will potentially cover over 500,000 acres – an initiative led by Trees for Life, Rewilding Europe, and a coalition of communities and landowners.

For more information about Trees for Life, visit treesforlife.org.uk.

8 Out of 10 Bats’ second week will be broadcast from the British Wildlife Centre in England from 30 October-2 November.

ENDS

For more information about 8 Out of 10 Bats please visit their website here

The series begins at 7.30pm on Monday 23rd October 2023 and can be watched exclusively on the 8 Out of 10 Bats YouTube channel here (it’s free!).

Van Cutsem’s gamekeeper convicted of having offensive weapon but all charges of alleged wildlife crime ‘withdrawn’

Two gamekeepers who work on William van Cutsem’s Hilborough Estate in Norfolk appeared at Norwich Magistrates Court this morning to face a number of charges of alleged wildlife crime.

Dominic Green, 35, of Cockley Cley Road, Hilborough, Thetford and William Richardson, 22, of Nethergate Street, Hopton, near Diss, had been charged with intentionally taking a Schedule 1 wild bird (a goshawk) at the Hilborough Estate, and the use of pigeons as decoys inside a crow cage trap to take/kill the goshawk. They had also been charged with failing to ensure the welfare of the pigeon decoys.

However, according to a report in the Eastern Daily Press this afternoon (here), all the wildlife crime charges were ‘withdrawn’ against both gamekeepers.

Green pleaded guilty to possession of an offensive weapon (an extendable police-style baton) and his lawyer argued he’d had this in his possession since 2003 when it was lawful to possess it.

Headline from today’s Eastern Daily Press

District Judge David Wilson recognised that Green was “essentially” of good character and imposed a fine of £1,000, with £400 costs and a £400 victim surcharge.

It hasn’t been reported why the wildlife crime charges were ‘withdrawn’.

This case relates to a police investigation that launched in April 2022 after the anti-bloodsports group, the Hunt Investigation Team, recorded covert footage of a masked man removing a goshawk from a trap that appeared to have been baited with a pigeon decoy which was said to have taken place on van Cutsem’s Hilborough Estate in Norfolk. The fate of the goshawk is not known, nor, it seems, the identity of the masked man who removed it from the trap and walked away with it.

Previous blogs on this case:

8th May 2022: Van Cutsem’s Hilborough Estate in Norfolk at centre of police investigation into alleged raptor persecution (here)

10th May 2022: Illegally-set trap found on van Cutsem’s Hilborough Estate in Norfolk (here)

11th May 2022: Police confirm bird of prey was caught in illegally-set trap on van Cutsem’s Hilborough Estate in Norfolk (here)

12th May 2022: Covert footage published showing masked man with trapped goshawk on van Cutsem’s Hilborough Estate (here)

16th May 2022: Mail on Sunday blames ‘vigilantes’ for police investigation into alleged wildlife crime on van Cutsem’s estate (here)

12th August 2022: GWCT disregards police investigation into alleged wildlife crime on van Cutsem’s Norfolk estate (here)

13 October 2023: Two gamekeepers due in court after police investigation on van Cutsems’ Hilborough Estate in Norfolk (here)