Category: Persecution Incidents in England

Henry’s Tour: Day 16

Thurs 16 April Copy

Henry’s re-enacting a scene at Dersingham Bog, a National Nature Reserve situated on the Queen’s Sandringham Estate in Norfolk.

On the evening of 24 October 2007, two hen harriers were allegedly shot at this site, according to an eye-witness account. The police were informed and they visited the site the following morning, after seeking access permission from the estate(!). No bodies were found. The police interviewed Prince Harry, one of his mates, and a Sandringham gamekeeper, who were known to be shooting ducks on the estate that evening, but they said they knew nothing about the incident. The CPS couldn’t progress the case based on such limited evidence (see here).

Sandringham Estate was reported to have undertaken its own investigation and, according to the Telegraph, declared ‘that there was probably no such shooting and that the supposed eye witnesses were, at best, mistaken over their claims’. Friends of the royal prince also claimed that it had all been a set-up (see here).

It’s all very familiar, isn’t it?

Eight years on, things have not improved for hen harriers. There was an estimated 20 pairs of breeding hen harriers in England in 2007; last year there were just four, and all needed around-the-clock protection. Scientists have estimated that more than 300 pairs could breed in England if they weren’t being shot, trapped, stamped on or poisoned.

It’s often inaccurately reported that hen harriers are doing okay in Scotland. In relation to the dire situation in England, they are. However, the story in some areas of Scotland is identical to the story in England; hen harriers are being systematically killed on many moors that are managed for driven grouse shooting (see here).

And just as in England, prosecutions for killing hen harriers in Scotland are virtually unheard of.

Whatever happened to the case we blogged about 15 months ago (see here)? It related to the illegal killing of a hen harrier in Aberdeenshire in June 2013 (almost two years ago now!) – a 58-year-old man had been reported by Police Scotland to the Procurator Fiscal in January 2014. It’s all been strangely (or perhaps un-strangely) quiet since then….

Shot kestrel successfully rehabbed and released

kestrel shot Ryedale 2015 2 - CopySome good news for a change….

In February we blogged about a kestrel with a shotgun injury that was being cared for by the amazing Jean Thorpe of the Ryedale Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre in North Yorkshire (see here).

What sort of moron shoots a kestrel?

Jean had posted a pitiful photo of the victim with its leg bandaged – a photo that led to a fundraising campaign to help Jean buy material for a new rehab aviary (see here).

Yesterday, Jean posted the following update on this kestrel’s progress:

“The shotgun shot kestrel was successfully released back to Storwood. He went spectacularly well, hovering over farmland and looking wonderful. My thanks to Mark Naguib of Battlefatts Vets, Stamford Bridge, York for amazing veterinary work and Craig Ralston of NE for support and wonderful pictures. It’s so uplifting when it works out!”

kestrel shot Ryedale 2015 released - Copy

Criminal pheasant breeder gets the chop

Last week we asked why the editorial team at Modern Gamekeeping had published an article by a pheasant breeder with eight wildlife crime convictions to his name (see here).

Modern Poisoner header March 2015 - Copy

Yesterday they issued the following statement:

“As soon as we learned of Mike Wood’s conviction, we made the decision to dispense with his services with immediate effect, though Mike Wood actually resigned from his regular column upon conviction. His last article was in the March 2015 edition. Blaze Publishing, publishers of Modern Gamekeeping, do not condone any unethical or illegal practices and do not wish to be associated with anyone involved in them“.

That’s impressive. A fast and unequivocal response – others in the gamekeeping industry could learn a lesson or two from it.

Although we’re not entirely convinced that “Mike Wood actually resigned from his regular column upon conviction“. That statement seems to be at odds with what Charles Nodder (National Gamekeepers’ Org) said….that Mike Wood was considering an appeal (of his latest conviction). It’s also odd that Mike Wood didn’t think his earlier seven convictions (from 2011) merited his resignation.

We wonder if he will/has also resigned from his position of Chair of the Game Farmers’ Association?

Talking of the National Gamekeepers’ Org – we blogged recently about contacting the PAW secretariat to ask them to justify the NGO’s continued presence as a member of the Partnership for Action Against Wildlife Crime (see here). The PAW secretariat has now responded and we’ll be blogging about that, probably tomorrow.

Modern criminal

Modern Poisoner Mike Wood article March 2015 - CopyA few days ago we blogged about an attack on the campaign group Birders Against Wildlife Crime that had appeared in this month’s edition of Modern Gamekeeping (see here).

We also said we’d be blogging about another article that had been published in this industry rag. It’s a full-page spread on page 18, written by Mike Wood. Here’s the bio that accompanies this piece:

“Michael Wood is a partner at Westfield Farms in Pickering, North Yorkshire. Founded in 1953, the farm has 59 years of experience breeding game birds, including pheasant, mallard, red-leg partridge and grey partridge“.

What the bio doesn’t say is ‘Michael Wood is a criminal with eight wildlife crime convictions to his name’.

See here and here.

Interesting, eh? How many times are we told not to tar all gamekeepers with the same brush? But why should we distinguish between lawful and criminal gamekeepers when the game-shooting industry itself doesn’t seem to bother? We already know that the National Gamekeepers’ Organisation doesn’t mind that Wood has wildlife crime convictions – they’ll still accept fund-raising donations from him and Charles Nodder from the NGO will still work with the Game Farmers’ Association, even though convicted wildlife criminal Wood is the GFA’s current Chairman (see here).

So we know that Noddy and the NGO don’t shun convicted wildlife criminals. But what about BASC? Surely they’ve got standards? Hmm. Take a look at this header from the front of Modern Gamekeeping:

 Modern Poisoner header March 2015 - Copy

It’s hard to read from this image so here’s what it says:

“Modern Gamekeeping is proud to be in partnership with The British Association for Shooting and Conservation”.

Does that mean that BASC (a member of the Partnership for Action against Wildlife Crime (PAW UK)) endorses the idea that a wildlife criminal with multiple convictions should be given column inches in an industry publication to discuss the ‘management’ of his game-rearing farm? Surely not.

All in it together…?

Shot buzzard has to be euthanised

BZ shot west tilbury essex March 4th 2015 - CopyFrom the South Essex Wildlife Hospital, 4th March 2015:

“We had to euthanise a beautiful buzzard today, found in West Tilbury it had been shot at least 3 times, twice through the wing, it still has an air gun pellet lodged in its chest. We have of course notified this crime to the police“.

Thanks to Neil Phillips (@UK_Wildlife) for the notification.

 

 

Shot peregrine found dead at Derbyshire Wildlife Trust HQ

peregrine belper jan 2015A dead peregrine has been found outside the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust’s HQ – an x-ray revealed it had been shot.

A £1,000 reward has been put up by the RSPB for information that leads to a conviction.

Tim Birch, Derbyshire Wildlife Trust’s Head of Advocacy and Conservation said: “We have all been shocked at the Trust by the shooting of the male peregrine at our headquarters in Belper. To have a wildlife crime happening right on our doorstep is both alarming and upsetting. Many people from Belper, and indeed from around the whole region, have been thrilled to watch peregrines around the mill where we work. We feel very privileged to have these birds living alongside us. We strongly condemn the shooting of this bird“.

Press statement from Derbyshire Wildlife Trust here

Article in Derby Telegraph here.

This is the second known peregrine to have been illegally killed this year. Just ten days ago we blogged about the discovery of a poisoned peregrine found dead in January on a Scottish sporting estate (here).

According to the RSPB, there have been at least 54 confirmed illegally persecuted peregrines in the UK in the past six years. We eagerly await the results of last year’s National Peregrine Survey to see how persecution is affecting this species at the population level.

£1K reward for info on buzzard found with horrific leg injuries

Sledmere buzzard1 Jan 2015A reward of £1,000 has been offered to anyone with information about a buzzard which was found with horrific leg injuries.

The bird was found, alive, on 21st January 2015 on the Sledmere Estate in Yorkshire. One of its feet was missing, causing Humberside Police and the RSPB to suspect it was a victim of illegal trapping.

The leg damage was so severe the buzzard had to be euthanised.

Bob Elliot, RSPB’s Head of Investigations said: “Setting spring traps in the open is a criminal practice, which harms birds of prey in the most horrible way. These devices are the raptor equivalent of a land mine – deadly and indiscriminate. I would urge anyone with information about this incident to contact the police immediately“.

This bird was initially taken to Jean Thorpe’s Ryedale Rescue facility – we recently blogged about Jean’s work (here) and mentioned that she was fundraising to help support her efforts in this raptor persecution blackspot – you can still donate HERE.

RSPB press release here

ITV news article here

Sledmere buzzard2 Jan 2015

National Gamekeepers’ Org linked to another convicted wildlife criminal

Regular blog readers may recall us writing previously about the National Gamekeepers’ Organisation’s unwillingness to expel a member who had been convicted of poison offences (see here).

We found this interesting, especially as the NGO is an organisational member of the Partnership for Action Against Wildlife Crime (PAW UK) – supposedly committed to helping tackle wildlife crime. Refusing to expel a member with a criminal conviction for, er, wildlife crime, should surely have resulted in PAW UK booting them off the Partnership? Apparently not – the NGO is still there.

And now we have evidence of the NGO’s connection with another convicted wildlife criminal – Michael Wood. We blogged about Michael Wood yesterday – he’s the pheasant/partridge/duck breeder in North Yorkshire who was found guilty of permitting the use of a banned pole trap at his breeding facility – Westfield Farm. In fact, a total of FIVE pole traps had been found there, but two of Wood’s employees escaped a criminal trial because North Yorks Police decided their crimes only merited a police caution.

Thanks to some investigative work by one of our blog readers (Marco McGinty), it turns out that the NGO accepted a fundraising donation from Michael Wood for their 2014 auction. Now, Wood hadn’t been convicted of the pole-trapping offence at that time, but he had been convicted, along with his company Yorks Sports Ltd., of seven offences under the Wildlife & Countryside Act in 2011 – these offences related to the unlawful release of thousands of pheasants (for shooting) which caused ‘significant damage’ to a noted conservation area in the Farndale valley (see here). So why did the NGO accept a fundraising donation from him in 2014?

NGO auction catalogue 2014 Mike Wood donation - Copy

Not only that, but as we mentioned yesterday, the NGO’s PR and political advisor, Charles Nodder, is also the Game Farmers’ Association’s contact for media and political enquiries. The current Chair of the Game Farmers’ Association is…..Michael Wood.

And let’s not forget the NGO’s recent attack on another PAW UK partner organisation – the RSPB (see here).

Isn’t it time the PAW UK Steering Group is asked to justify the continued membership of the National Gamekeepers’ Organisation as a partner member of PAW UK? Let’s ask them. Emails will have to be sent to the PAW UK Secretariat and ask for your message to be forwarded to the Steering Group. Emails to: paw.secretariat@defra.gsi.gov.uk  We’ll be very interested to hear what the Steering Group has to say.

Game farm owner convicted of pole trap offence

A two-day trial concluded at Scarborough Magistrates yesterday with the conviction of game farm owner Michael Wood, who was found guilty of permitting a pole trap last June.

Wood owns Westfield Farm in Cropton, North Yorkshire – a pheasant and partridge and duck breeding facility that supplies young birds to the game-shooting industry.

RSPB investigators found five pole traps placed around the rearing pens last summer. These traps are so barbaric they were outlawed over 100 years ago. They are basically a steel spring trap placed on top of a post (and usually nailed to the post with a short chain) so when a raptor lands on it, the trap crushes the bird’s legs and the bird is left dangling upside down for a prolonged and agonising death. Unbelievably, two farm workers were just given police cautions last year for setting these traps – why weren’t they prosecuted?

Wood was seen by the RSPB Investigations Team driving past one of the pole traps. His defence argued that he hadn’t seen it, but the magistrates didn’t believe him and said it was “inconceivable” that he wouldn’t have seen it.

Wood was fined £4,000, and ordered to pay £750 court costs as well as a £120 victim surcharge, amounting to a grand total of £4,870.

Great work by the RSPB Investigations Team (again).

Full details of this case can be read in the RSPB’s press release here

This isn’t Wood’s first conviction. In 2011, Wood and Yorks Sports Ltd (of which Wood was a Director) pleaded guilty to seven offences under the Wildlife & Countryside Act after defying official warnings and releasing thousands of pheasants (for shooting) on a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) when they’d only been given consent to release 500 birds. It was argued the birds had caused ‘significant damage’ to the conservation area. Wood and Yorks Sports Ltd were fined £20,000 each, plus a £15 victim surcharge, plus £125,000 between them towards the prosecutions costs. They also had to pay a £145,000 defence bill. (News article here).

Interestingly, it has been reported (by a media court reporter) that Wood is the Chairman of the Game Farmers’ Association [“Representing the UK’s game farmers and promoting high standards“] although we haven’t been able to find any supportive evidence of his Chairmanship. What we did find on the GFA’s website, though, is that their contact for ‘media and political enquiries’ is one Charles Nodder. Who he? Why, he’s the PR and political adviser of the National Gamekeepers’ Organisation. Let’s make a ‘media enquiry’ and ask him whether Wood is the Chair of the GFA, or if not whether he’s simply a member, and if so, whether he’ll be kicked out of the club, and if he isn’t kicked out of the club whether Nodder intends to continue working for an organisation whose membership includes someone convicted of wildlife crime. Emails to: cnodder@msn.com

UPDATE: Looks like someone called Mike Wood is indeed involved with the GFA – helping out on their stand at the CLA Game Fair in 2013. There’s also a charming pic of Nodder meeting Owen Paterson to discuss the GFA’s rearing guide. Read here.

Here’s one of the five pole traps found at Westfield Farm (photo RSPB).

Pole trap 1 of 5 westfield game farm RSPB

 Here’s a graphic example of what can happen when a buzzard lands on a pole trap (NB: this photo was not taken at Westfield Farm).

BZ pole trap c - Copy

Help support raptor rehabber in persecution blackspot

kestrel shot Ryedale 2015 2 - CopyNorth Yorkshire has the dubious distinction of being the UK’s worst known raptor persecution blackspot – a title it has held for several years (see here). With driven grouse moors the dominant land-use in this region, this rating shouldn’t come as any surprise.

At the heart of this blackspot is a remarkable lady called Jean Thorpe, who runs Ryedale Wildlife Rehabilitation, a facility that is wholly dependent on donations to keep going.

Jean works closely with the RSPB and the local Police Wildlife Crime Officers and last year was awarded an MBE for her tireless (voluntary) work.

When she’s not caring for injured raptors, mammals and any other creature that needs some expert help, Jean writes a blog (see here). Her latest entry is a review of the raptors she rehabilitated during 2014: a total of 99 injured birds, including 43 tawny owls, 19 barn owls, 11 buzzards, 9 sparrowhawks, 8 little owls, 7 kestrels, 1 peregrine and 1 red kite. She managed to release 53 back to the wild – an incredible achievement.

Not all were victims of persecution – many were road traffic casualties – but some had most definitely been targeted by the raptor-killing criminals. There’s a photo of a kestrel that she’s currently caring for – someone had blasted it with a shotgun.

Jean is fund-raising to buy/build a new aviary – her target is a modest £500. Let’s try and help her: donations can be made HERE.