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Tag: gamekeeper
Natural England’s review of Hen Harrier Brood Meddling trial ‘being prepared for publication’
Natural England’s review of its controversial Hen Harrier Brood Meddling trial is ‘being prepared for publication‘, according to a Freedom of Information request.
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.
In September 2024, Natural England announced on its blog that it was ‘currently reviewing and analysing the data gathered under the trial, a process which will be concluded later this year‘:
I have speculated previously that this relatively speedy review was probably triggered by an apparent application by the Moorland Association for a licence to continue Hen Harrier brood meddling as part of what it laughingly calls a ‘conservation licence’ (see here).
As I understand it, in September 2024 the Moorland Association (grouse moor owners’ lobby group in England) applied to Natural England for a brood meddling licence and it included the following condition requests:
- That there should be a single release site [for the brood meddled HHs] irrespective of the location from where they’d been removed from their nests; and
- That the requirement for the brood meddled HHs to be satellite-tagged should be dropped.
The first proposed condition is presumably designed to get around the problem of there not being sufficient receptor sites willing to take the brood meddled harriers (just a handful of estates agreed to receive brood meddled hen harriers during the trial period). I’m also led to understand that the proposed single release site is, shall we say, a location of great interest to this blog.
The second proposed condition, that any brood meddled hen harriers should not be satellite-tagged, is 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 on grouse moors (e.g. see here and here).
We also know that gamekeepers on grouse moors are now selectively choosing to kill hen harriers that are NOT satellite-tagged because there’s less chance of their crimes being detected (e.g. see here).
The deadline for Natural England to respond to the Moorland Association’s licence application must be fast approaching, hence Natural England’s relatively speedy brood meddling review.
Given that Natural England had said in September 2024 that its brood meddling review would be ‘concluded later this year‘, I submitted an FoI request on 2nd January 2025 to find out whether the review had been completed.
Here’s Natural England’s response:
Natural England’s response was dated 28 January 2025, so a month on, the publication of this review must now be imminent.
Will Natural England conclude that the hen harrier brood meddling trial was ‘a remarkable success story‘ as the Moorland Association ridiculously claimed? Remember, the trial was set up 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 were 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’s abundantly clear 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 has continued amongst the wider grouse moor industry (at least 134 hen harriers reported as ‘missing’/illegally killed since the trial began in 2018, including at least 30 brood meddled hen harriers).
Indeed, the illegal killing is still 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.
Many of us will be taking a very close look at Natural England’s review of brood meddling whenever it’s published. Watch this space.
134 hen harriers confirmed ‘missing’ or illegally killed in UK since 2018, most of them on or close to grouse moors
For anyone who still wants to pretend that the grouse shooting industry isn’t responsible for the systematic extermination of hen harriers on grouse moors across the UK, here’s the latest catalogue of crime that suggests otherwise.
This is the blog I now publish after every reported killing or suspicious disappearance.
“They disappear in the same way political dissidents in authoritarian dictatorships have disappeared” (Stephen Barlow, 22 January 2021).
Today the list has been updated to include the most recently reported victim, ‘Red’, who hatched on the Tarras Valley Nature Reserve in 2024 and ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the North Pennines in January 2025 (here).
I’ve been compiling this list only since 2018 because that is the year that the grouse shooting industry ‘leaders’ would have us believe that the criminal persecution of hen harriers had stopped and that these birds were being welcomed back on to the UK’s grouse moors (see here).
This assertion was made shortly before the publication of a devastating new scientific paper that demonstrated that 72% of satellite-tagged hen harriers were confirmed or considered likely to have been illegally killed, and this was ten times more likely to occur over areas of land managed for grouse shooting relative to other land uses (see here). A further scientific paper published in 2023 by scientists at the RSPB, utilising even more recent data, echoed these results – see here.
2018 was also the year that Natural England issued a licence to begin a hen harrier brood meddling trial on grouse moors in northern England. For new blog readers, hen harrier brood meddling was a conservation sham sanctioned by DEFRA as part of its ludicrous ‘Hen Harrier Action Plan‘ and carried out by Natural England (NE), in cahoots with the very industry responsible for the species’ catastrophic decline in England. For more background see here and for a critical evaluation of the trial after 5 years see this report by Wild Justice. In 2024 the brood meddling trial appeared to collapse for reasons which are not yet clear (see here) and the licence for the so-called ‘scientific trial’ expired. Natural England is currently undertaking a review of the ‘trial’ and a report is expected soon.
Brood meddling has been described as a sort of ‘gentleman’s agreement’ by commentator Stephen Welch:
“I don’t get it, I thought the idea of that scheme was some kind of trade off – a gentleman’s agreement that the birds would be left in peace if they were moved from grouse moors at a certain density. It seems that one party is not keeping their side of the bargain“.
With at least 134 hen harriers gone since 2018, and 30 of those being brood meddled birds, there is no question that the grouse shooting industry is simply taking the piss. Meanwhile, Natural England pretends that ‘partnership working’ is the way to go and consecutive DEFRA Ministers have remained silent.
‘Partnership working’ according to Natural England appears to include authorising the removal of hen harrier chicks from a grouse moor already under investigation by the police for suspected raptor persecution (here) and accepting a £75k ‘donation’ from representatives of the grouse shooting industry that prevents Natural England from criticising them or the sham brood meddling trial (see here). This is in addition to a £10k ‘donation’ that Natural England accepted, under the same terms, in 2021 (here).
Thankfully, the Scottish Government finally decided to act by introducing a grouse moor licensing scheme under the Wildlife Management & Muirburn (Scotland) Act 2024. The intention behind this new legislation is that grouse shooting estates could have their licences suspended/revoked if, on the balance of probability, it is shown that any raptor persecution crimes (& some other associated offences) are linked with grouse moor management on that estate. There, are, however, ongoing issues with the licence as it’s been significantly watered-down after an intervention from the grouse shooting industry (see here). Work is underway to address this.
In England a new Hen Harrier Taskforce was established in 2024, led by the National Wildlife Crime Unit, to use innovative techniques to target hen harrier persecution hotspots (locations where hen harriers repeatedly ‘disappear’ or are found illegally killed). It’s too early to judge the Taskforce’s success and it’s been met with resistance from the Moorland Association, the grouse moor owners’ lobby group (here) and so far, illegal persecution continues.
So here’s the latest gruesome list of ‘missing’/illegally killed hen harriers since 2018. Note that the majority of these birds (but not all) were fitted with satellite tags. How many more [untagged] harriers have been killed? We now have evidence that gamekeepers are specifically targeting untagged hen harriers, precisely to avoid detection (see here for brilliant exposure by Channel 4 News).
February 2018: Hen harrier Saorsa ‘disappeared’ in the Angus Glens in Scotland (here). The Scottish Gamekeepers Association later published wholly inaccurate information claiming the bird had been re-sighted. The RSPB dismissed this as “completely false” (here).
5 February 2018: Hen harrier Marc ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Durham (here).
9 February 2018: Hen harrier Aalin ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Wales (here).
March 2018: Hen harrier Blue ‘disappeared’ in the Lake District National Park (here).
March 2018: Hen harrier Finn ‘disappeared’ near Moffat in Scotland (here).
18 April 2018: Hen harrier Lia ‘disappeared’ in Wales and her corpse was retrieved in a field in May 2018. Cause of death was unconfirmed but police treating death as suspicious (here).
8 August 2018: Hen harrier Hilma ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Northumberland (here).
16 August 2018: Hen harrier Athena ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Scotland (here).
26 August 2018: Hen Harrier Octavia ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Peak District National Park (here).
29 August 2018: Hen harrier Margot ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Scotland (here).
29 August 2018: Hen Harrier Heulwen ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Wales (here).
3 September 2018: Hen harrier Stelmaria ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Scotland (here).
24 September 2018: Hen harrier Heather ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Scotland (here).
2 October 2018: Hen harrier Mabel ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
3 October 2018: Hen Harrier Thor ‘disappeared’ next to a grouse moor in Bowland, Lanacashire (here).
23 October 2018: Hen harrier Tom ‘disappeared’ in South Wales (here).
26 October 2018: Hen harrier Arthur ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the North York Moors National Park (here).
1 November 2018: Hen harrier Barney ‘disappeared’ on Bodmin Moor (here).
10 November 2018: Hen harrier Rannoch ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Scotland (here). Her corpse was found nearby in May 2019 – she’d been killed in an illegally-set spring trap (here).
14 November 2018: Hen harrier River ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Nidderdale AONB (here). Her corpse was found nearby in April 2019 – she’d been illegally shot (here).
16 January 2019: Hen harrier Vulcan ‘disappeared’ in Wiltshire close to Natural England’s proposed reintroduction site (here).
28 January 2019: Hen harrier DeeCee ‘disappeared’ in Glen Esk, a grouse moor area of the Angus Glens (see here).
7 February 2019: Hen harrier Skylar ‘disappeared’ next to a grouse moor in South Lanarkshire (here).
22 April 2019: Hen harrier Marci ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Cairngorms National Park (here).
26 April 2019: Hen harrier Rain ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Nairnshire (here).
11 May 2019: An untagged male hen harrier was caught in an illegally-set trap next to his nest on a grouse moor in South Lanarkshire. He didn’t survive (here).
7 June 2019: An untagged hen harrier was found dead on a grouse moor in Scotland. A post mortem stated the bird had died as a result of ‘penetrating trauma’ injuries and that this bird had previously been shot (here).
5 September 2019: Wildland Hen Harrier 1 ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor nr Dalnaspidal on the edge of the Cairngorms National Park (here).
11 September 2019: Hen harrier Romario ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Cairngorms National Park (here).
14 September 2019: Hen harrier (Brood meddled in 2019, #183704) ‘disappeared’ in the North Pennines (here).
23 September 2019: Hen harrier (Brood meddled in 2019, #55149) ‘disappeared’ in North Pennines (here).
24 September 2019: Wildland Hen Harrier 2 ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor at Invercauld in the Cairngorms National Park (here).
24 September 2019: Hen harrier Bronwyn ‘disappeared’ near a grouse moor in North Wales (here).
10 October 2019: Hen harrier Ada ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the North Pennines AONB (here).
12 October 2019: Hen harrier Thistle ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Sutherland (here).
18 October 2019: Member of the public reports the witnessed shooting of an untagged male hen harrier on White Syke Hill in North Yorkshire (here).
November 2019: Hen harrier Mary found illegally poisoned on a pheasant shoot in Ireland (here).
November 2019: Hen harrier Artemis ‘disappeared’ near Long Formacus in south Scotland (RSPB pers comm).
14 December 2019: Hen harrier Oscar ‘disappeared’ in Eskdalemuir, south Scotland (here).
December 2019: Hen harrier Ingmar ‘disappeared’ in the Strathbraan grouse moor area of Perthshire (RSPB pers comm).
27 January 2020: Members of the public report the witnessed shooting of a male hen harrier on Threshfield Moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
23 March 2020: Hen harrier Rosie ‘disappeared’ at an undisclosed roost site in Northumberland (here).
1 April 2020: Hen harrier (Brood meddled in 2019, #183703) ‘disappeared’ in unnamed location, tag intermittent (here).
5 April 2020: Hen harrier Hoolie ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Cairngorms National Park (here)
8 April 2020: Hen harrier Marlin ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Cairngorms National Park (here).
19 May 2020: Hen harrier Fingal ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Lowther Hills, Scotland (here).
21 May 2020: Hen harrier (Brood meddled in 2019, #183701) ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Cumbria shortly after returning from wintering in France (here).
27 May 2020: Hen harrier Silver ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor on Leadhills Estate, Scotland (here).
2020: day/month unknown: Unnamed male hen harrier breeding on RSPB Geltsdale Reserve, Cumbria ‘disappeared’ while away hunting (here).
9 July 2020: Unnamed female hen harrier (#201118) ‘disappeared’ from an undisclosed site in Northumberland (here).
25 July 2020: Hen harrier Harriet ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
14 August 2020: Hen harrier Solo ‘disappeared’ in confidential nest area in Lancashire (here).
7 September 2020: Hen harrier Dryad ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
16 September 2020: Hen harrier Fortune ‘disappeared’ from an undisclosed roost site in Northumberland (here).
19 September 2020: Hen harrier Harold ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
20 September 2020: Hen harrier (Brood meddled in 2020, #55152) ‘disappeared’ next to a grouse moor in North Yorkshire (here).
24 February 2021: Hen harrier Tarras ‘disappeared’ next to a grouse moor in Northumberland (here)
12th April 2021: Hen harrier Yarrow ‘disappeared’ near Stockton, County Durham (here).
18 May 2021: Adult male hen harrier ‘disappeared’ from its breeding attempt on RSPB Geltsdale Reserve, Cumbria whilst away hunting (here).
18 May 2021: Another adult male hen harrier ‘disappeared’ from its breeding attempt on RSPB Geltsdale Reserve, Cumbria whilst away hunting (here).
24 July 2021: Hen harrier Asta ‘disappeared’ at a ‘confidential site’ in the North Pennines (here). We learned 18 months later that her wings had been ripped off so her tag could be fitted to a crow in an attempt to cover up her death (here).
14th August 2021: Hen harrier Josephine ‘disappeared’ at a ‘confidential site’ in Northumberland (here).
17 September 2021: Hen harrier Reiver ‘disappeared’ in a grouse moor dominated region of Northumberland (here)
24 September 2021: Hen harrier (Brood meddled in 2021, R2-F-1-21) ‘disappeared’ in Northumberland (here).
15 November 2021: Hen harrier (brood meddled in 2020, #R2-F1-20) ‘disappeared’ at the edge of a grouse moor on Arkengarthdale Estate in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
19 November 2021: Hen harrier Val ‘disappeared’ in the Lake District National Park in Cumbria (here).
19 November 2021: Hen harrier Percy ‘disappeared’ in Lothian, Scotland (here).
12 December 2021: Hen harrier Jasmine ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor (High Rigg Moor on the Middlesmoor Estate) in the Nidderdale AONB in North Yorkshire (here).
9 January 2022: Hen harrier Ethel ‘disappeared’ in Northumberland (here).
26 January 2022: Hen harrier Amelia ‘disappeared’ in Bowland (here).
10 February 2022: An unnamed satellite-tagged hen harrier ‘disappeared’ in a grouse moor dominated area of the Peak District National Park (here). One year later it was revealed that the satellite tag/harness of this young male called ‘Anu’ had been deliberately cut off (see here).
12 April 2022: Hen harrier ‘Free’ (Tag ID 201121) ‘disappeared’ at a ‘confidential site’ in Cumbria (here). It later emerged he hadn’t disappeared, but his mutilated corpse was found on moorland in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. A post mortem revealed the cause of death was having his head twisted and pulled off. One leg had also been torn off whilst he was still alive (here).
April 2022: Hen harrier ‘Pegasus’ (tagged by the RSPB) ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor at Birkdale in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
May 2022: A male breeding hen harrier ‘disappeared’ from a National Trust-owned grouse moor in the Peak District National Park (here).
May 2022: Another breeding male hen harrier ‘disappeared’ from a National Trust-owned grouse moor in the Peak District National Park (here).
14 May 2022: Hen harrier ‘Harvey’ (Tag ID 213844) ‘disappeared’ from a ‘confidential site’ in the North Pennines (here).
20 June 2022: Hen harrier chick #1 stamped to death in nest on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
20 June 2022: Hen harrier chick #2 stamped to death in nest on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
20 June 2022: Hen harrier chick #3 stamped to death in nest on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
20 June 2022: Hen harrier chick #4 stamped to death in nest on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
17 August 2022: Hen harrier (brood meddled in 2022, #R1-M1-22) ‘disappeared’ on moorland in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
September 2022: Hen harrier ‘Sullis’ (tagged by the RSPB) ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Cumbria (here).
5 October 2022: Hen harrier (brood meddled in 2022, #R3-M2-22) ‘disappeared’ on moorland in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
10 October 2022: Hen harrier ‘Sia’ ‘disappeared’ near Hamsterley Forest in the North Pennines (here).
October 2022: Hen harrier (brood meddled in 2021, #R1-F1-21) ‘disappeared’ in the North Sea off the North York Moors National Park (here).
1 December 2022: Hen harrier male (brood meddled in 2021, #R1-M1-21) ‘disappeared’ on moorland in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
7 December 2022: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2020, #R2-F2-20) ‘disappeared’ from winter roost (same as #R3-F1-22) on moorland in North Pennines AONB (here). Later found dead with 3 shotgun pellets in corpse.
14 December 2022: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2022, #R3-F1-22) ‘disappeared’ from winter roost (same as #R2-F2-20) on moorland in the North Pennines AONB (here). Later found dead with two shotgun pellets in corpse.
15 December 2022: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2022, #R2-F1-22) ‘disappeared’ on moorland in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
30 March 2023: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2022, #R1-F3-22) ‘disappeared’ in Yorkshire (here). Notes from NE Sept 2023 spreadsheet update: “Final transmission location temporarily withheld at police request“.
1 April 2023: Hen harrier male (brood meddled in 2022, #R2-M1-22) ‘disappeared’ in Yorkshire (here). Notes from NE Sept 2023 spreadsheet update: “Final transmission location temporarily withheld at police request“.
April 2023: Hen harrier ‘Lagertha’ (tagged by RSPB) ‘disappeared’ in North Yorkshire (here).
April 2023: Hen harrier ‘Nicola’ (Tag ID 234078) ”disappeared’ in North Yorkshire (here).
April 2023: Untagged male hen harrier ‘disappeared’ from an active nest on RSPB Geltsdale Reserve in Cumbria (here).
April 2023: Another untagged male hen harrier ‘disappeared’ from an active nest on RSPB Geltsdale Reserve in Cumbria (here).
April 2023: Untagged male hen harrier ‘disappeared’ from an active nest in Durham (here).
4/5 May 2023: Satellite-tagged male hen harrier called ‘Rush’ ‘disappeared’ from a grouse moor in Bowland AONB in Lancashire (here).
9/10 May 2023: Hen harrier male called ‘Dagda’, tagged by the RSPB in Lancashire in June 2022 and who was breeding on the RSPB’s Geltsdale Reserve in 2023 until he ‘vanished’, only to be found dead on the neighbouring Knarsdale grouse moor in May 2023 – a post mortem revealed he had been shot (here).
17 May 2023: Satellite-tagged hen harrier called ‘Wayland’ ‘disappeared’ in the Clapham area of North Yorkshire, just north of the Bowland AONB (here).
31 May 2023: Hen harrier male (brood meddled in 2022, tag #213932, name: R2-M3-22) ‘disappeared’ in Northumberland (grid ref: NY765687) (here).
11 June 2023: Hen harrier male (brood meddled in 2021, tag #213922, name: R2-M1-21) ‘disappeared’ at a confidential site in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. Notes from the NE spreadsheet: “Final transmission location temporarily withheld at police request“ (here).
12 June 2023: Hen harrier male (brood meddled in 2020, tag #203004, name: R1-M2-20) ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Co. Durham (grid ref: NY976322) (here).
6 July 2023: Satellite-tagged female hen harrier named ‘Rubi’ (tag #201124a) ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Co. Durham (grid ref: NY911151) (here).
23 July 2023: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2023, tag #55154a, name: R1-F1-23) ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Co. Durham (close to where ‘Rubi’ vanished), grid ref: NY910126 (here).
29 July 2023: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2020, tag #55144, name: R2-F2-20) ‘disappeared’ at a confidential site in the North Pennines. Notes from the NE spreadsheet: “Dead. Recovered – awaiting PM results. Final transmission location temporarily withheld at police request“ (here).
9 August 2023: Satellite-tagged hen harrier called ‘Martha’ ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor (Westburnhope Moor) near Hexham in the North Pennines (here).
11 August 2023: Satellite-tagged hen harrier called ‘Selena’ ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor (Mossdale Moor) in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
11 August 2023: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2023, tag #201118a, name: R3-F1-23) ‘disappeared’ in Co. Durham (grid ref: NZ072136) (here).
15 August 2023: Satellite-tagged hen harrier called ‘Hepit’ ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor (Birkdale Common) near Kirkby Stephen in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
24 August 2023: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2023, tag #55155a, name: R1-F2-23) ‘disappeared’ at a confidential site in Northumberland. Notes from the NE spreadsheet: “Final transmission location temporarily withheld at police request“ (here).
August-Sept 2023: Satellite-tagged hen harrier called ‘Harmonia’ ‘disappeared’ in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
September 2023: Hen harrier female ‘Saranyu’, tagged by the RSPB in Cumbria in June 2023, ‘disappeared’ in Durham in September 2023 (no further details available yet – just outline info provided in 2022 Birdcrime report) (here).
September 2023: Hen harrier female ‘Inger’, a female tagged by the RSPB in Perthshire in July 2022, ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Angus Glens in September 2023 (here).
15 September 2023: Hen harrier male called ‘Rhys’, tagged in Cumbria on 1st August 2023, ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. Grid ref: SD798896 (here).
24 September 2023: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2023, name: ‘R2-F2-23’) ‘disappeared’ in the North Pennines, grid ref: NY888062 (here).
25 September 2023: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2022, name: ‘R1-F4-22’) ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, grid ref: SE077699 (here).
26 September 2023: Hen harrier female called ‘Hope’, tagged in Cumbria on 21 July 2023, ‘disappeared’ next to a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, grid ref: SD801926 (here).
4 October 2023: Hen harrier male (brood meddled in 2020, name: ‘R1-M3-20’) ‘disappeared’ in Co Durham, grid ref: NY935192 (here).
4 October 2023: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2023, name: ‘R4-F1-23’) ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, grid ref: SE003981 (here).
14 October 2023: Hen harrier male called ‘Cillian’, tagged in Cumbria on 1 August 2023, ‘disappeared’ in south west Scotland, grid ref: NY051946 (here).
15 November 2023: Hen harrier female called ‘Hazel’, tagged in Cumbria on 21 July 2023, ‘disappeared’ on the Isle of Man, grid ref: SC251803 (here).
27 November 2023: Hen harrier female called ‘Gill’, tagged in Northumberland on 10 July 2023, ‘disappeared’ at a confidential location in Teeside (here).
12 February 2024: Hen harrier female called ‘Susie’, Tag ID 201122, found dead at a confidential location in Northumberland and the subject of an ongoing police investigation (here).
15 February 2024: Hen harrier female called ‘Shalimar’, tagged on the National Trust for Scotland’s Mar Lodge estate in 2023, ‘disappeared’ in suspicious circumstances on a grouse moor in the notorious Angus Glens (here).
7 March 2024: Hen harrier male (brood meddled in 2023, name R2-M1-23) found dead in Devon. According to an FoI response from Natural England in June 2024 this death is the subject of an ongoing police investigation (here).
24 April 2024: Hen harrier male called ‘Ken’, Tag ID 213849a, ‘disappeared’ in suspicious circumstances close to a grouse moor in Bowland, grid ref SD 684601 (here).
17 May 2024: Hen harrier male (brood meddled in 2023, name R2-M2-23) ‘disappeared’ in suspicious circumstances next to Middlesmoor grouse moor in Nidderdale, grid ref SE043754 (here).
25 June 2024: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2023, name R2-F1-23) ‘disappeared’ in suspicious circumstances on a grouse moor in Yorkshire Dales National Park, grid ref NY985082 (here).
July 2024: Hen harrier female named ‘Helius’ satellite tagged by the RSPB ‘disappeared’ in suspicious circumstances in Bowland (here).
October 2024: An un-tagged hen harrier was shot on a grouse moor by one of three gamekeepers being secretly filmed by the RSPB (here).
1 October 2024: Hen harrier female named ‘Dreich’, Tag ID: 254842, ‘disappeared’ in Lanarkshire. Listed by NE as ‘Missing Fate Unknown, site confidential – ongoing investigation‘ (here).
15 October 2024: Hen harrier male named ‘Baldur’, Tag ID: 240291, ‘disappeared’ in Northumberland. Listed by NE as ‘Missing Fate Unknown, site confidential – ongoing investigation‘ (here).
19 October 2024: Hen harrier female named ‘Margaret’, Tag ID: 254844, ‘disappeared’ in Northumberland. Listed by NE as ‘Missing Fate Unknown, site confidential – ongoing investigation‘ (here).
15 January 2025: Hen harrier female named ‘Red’, hatched on the Tarras Valley Nature Reserve in 2024, ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in County Durham in the North Pennines, in the same area another tagged hen harrier (Sia) vanished in 2022 (here).
To be continued…….
Not one of these 134 incidents has resulted in an arrest, let alone a prosecution. I had thought that when we reached 30 dead/missing hen harriers then the authorities might pretend to be interested and at least say a few words about this national scandal. We’ve now reached ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY FOUR hen harriers, and still Govt ministers remain silent on the illegal persecution issue. They appear not to give a monkey’s. And yes, there are other things going on in the world, as always. That is not reason enough to ignore this blatant, brazen and systematic destruction of a supposedly protected species, being undertaken to satisfy the greed and bloodlust of a minority of society.
And let’s not forget the response from the (now former) Moorland Association Chair (and owner of Swinton Estate) Mark Cunliffe-Lister, who told BBC Radio 4 in August 2023 that, “Clearly any illegal [hen harrier] persecution is not happening” (here), in the year when a record 33 hen harriers had been confirmed ‘missing’ and/or illegally killed.
Nor should we forget the response from the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust’s (GWCT) Director of Policy Dr Alistair Leake who wrote a letter to the Guardian newspaper in November 2023 stating that the hen harrier brood management [meddling] scheme “is surely a shining example of human / wildlife conflict resolution that would be the envy of other countries trying to find similar solutions“ (I kid you not – here).
Wild Justice has launched another petition calling for a ban on driven grouse shooting. This latest petition is intended to gauge the view of the new Labour Government, as previous petitions were all lodged under the Conservative Government with its well-documented vested interests. Labour issued an appallingly pathetic interim response to the petition in January 2025, via DEFRA, which indicated it had no intention of banning driven grouse shooting (see here).
The petition is live until 22 May 2025 and needs 100,000 signatures to qualify for a debate in Westminster Hall. It’s currently on 65,000 signatures. If you haven’t yet signed it, it’s here.
UPDATE 14 April 2025: Natural England / DEFRA turns down licence application for hen harrier brood meddling in 2025 (here)
133 hen harriers confirmed ‘missing’ or illegally killed in UK since 2018, most of them on or close to grouse moors
For anyone who still wants to pretend that the grouse shooting industry isn’t responsible for the systematic extermination of hen harriers on grouse moors across the UK, here’s the latest catalogue of crime that suggests otherwise.
This is the blog I now publish after every reported killing or suspicious disappearance.
“They disappear in the same way political dissidents in authoritarian dictatorships have disappeared” (Stephen Barlow, 22 January 2021).
Today the list has been updated to include the most recently reported victims, three more satellite-tagged hen harriers that ‘disappeared’ in Lanarkshire and Northumberland during October 2024 (here).
I’ve been compiling this list only since 2018 because that is the year that the grouse shooting industry ‘leaders’ would have us believe that the criminal persecution of hen harriers had stopped and that these birds were being welcomed back on to the UK’s grouse moors (see here).
This assertion was made shortly before the publication of a devastating new scientific paper that demonstrated that 72% of satellite-tagged hen harriers were confirmed or considered likely to have been illegally killed, and this was ten times more likely to occur over areas of land managed for grouse shooting relative to other land uses (see here). A further scientific paper published in 2023 by scientists at the RSPB, utilising even more recent data, echoed these results – see here.
2018 was also the year that Natural England issued a licence to begin a hen harrier brood meddling trial on grouse moors in northern England. For new blog readers, hen harrier brood meddling was a conservation sham sanctioned by DEFRA as part of its ludicrous ‘Hen Harrier Action Plan‘ and carried out by Natural England (NE), in cahoots with the very industry responsible for the species’ catastrophic decline in England. For more background see here and for a critical evaluation of the trial after 5 years see this report by Wild Justice. In 2024 the brood meddling trial appeared to collapse for reasons which are not yet clear (see here) and the licence for the so-called ‘scientific trial’ expired. Natural England is currently undertaking a review of the ‘trial’ and a report is expected soon.
Brood meddling has been described as a sort of ‘gentleman’s agreement’ by commentator Stephen Welch:
“I don’t get it, I thought the idea of that scheme was some kind of trade off – a gentleman’s agreement that the birds would be left in peace if they were moved from grouse moors at a certain density. It seems that one party is not keeping their side of the bargain“.
With at least 133 hen harriers gone since 2018, and 30 of those being brood meddled birds, there is no question that the grouse shooting industry is simply taking the piss. Meanwhile, Natural England pretends that ‘partnership working’ is the way to go and consecutive DEFRA Ministers have remained silent.
‘Partnership working’ according to Natural England appears to include authorising the removal of hen harrier chicks from a grouse moor already under investigation by the police for suspected raptor persecution (here) and accepting a £75k ‘donation’ from representatives of the grouse shooting industry that prevents Natural England from criticising them or the sham brood meddling trial (see here). This is in addition to a £10k ‘donation’ that Natural England accepted, under the same terms, in 2021 (here).
Thankfully, the Scottish Government finally decided to act by introducing a grouse moor licensing scheme under the Wildlife Management & Muirburn (Scotland) Act 2024. The intention behind this new legislation is that grouse shooting estates could have their licences suspended/revoked if, on the balance of probability, it is shown that any raptor persecution crimes (& some other associated offences) are linked with grouse moor management on that estate. There, are, however, ongoing issues with the licence as it’s been significantly watered-down after an intervention from the grouse shooting industry (see here). Work is underway to address this.
In England a new Hen Harrier Taskforce was established in 2024, led by the National Wildlife Crime Unit, to use innovative techniques to target hen harrier persecution hotspots (locations where hen harriers repeatedly ‘disappear’ or are found illegally killed). It’s too early to judge the Taskforce’s success and it’s been met with resistance from the Moorland Association, the grouse moor owners’ lobby group (here) and so far, illegal persecution continues.
So here’s the latest gruesome list of ‘missing’/illegally killed hen harriers since 2018. Note that the majority of these birds (but not all) were fitted with satellite tags. How many more [untagged] harriers have been killed? We now have evidence that gamekeepers are specifically targeting untagged hen harriers, precisely to avoid detection (see here).
February 2018: Hen harrier Saorsa ‘disappeared’ in the Angus Glens in Scotland (here). The Scottish Gamekeepers Association later published wholly inaccurate information claiming the bird had been re-sighted. The RSPB dismissed this as “completely false” (here).
5 February 2018: Hen harrier Marc ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Durham (here).
9 February 2018: Hen harrier Aalin ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Wales (here).
March 2018: Hen harrier Blue ‘disappeared’ in the Lake District National Park (here).
March 2018: Hen harrier Finn ‘disappeared’ near Moffat in Scotland (here).
18 April 2018: Hen harrier Lia ‘disappeared’ in Wales and her corpse was retrieved in a field in May 2018. Cause of death was unconfirmed but police treating death as suspicious (here).
8 August 2018: Hen harrier Hilma ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Northumberland (here).
16 August 2018: Hen harrier Athena ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Scotland (here).
26 August 2018: Hen Harrier Octavia ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Peak District National Park (here).
29 August 2018: Hen harrier Margot ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Scotland (here).
29 August 2018: Hen Harrier Heulwen ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Wales (here).
3 September 2018: Hen harrier Stelmaria ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Scotland (here).
24 September 2018: Hen harrier Heather ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Scotland (here).
2 October 2018: Hen harrier Mabel ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
3 October 2018: Hen Harrier Thor ‘disappeared’ next to a grouse moor in Bowland, Lanacashire (here).
23 October 2018: Hen harrier Tom ‘disappeared’ in South Wales (here).
26 October 2018: Hen harrier Arthur ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the North York Moors National Park (here).
1 November 2018: Hen harrier Barney ‘disappeared’ on Bodmin Moor (here).
10 November 2018: Hen harrier Rannoch ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Scotland (here). Her corpse was found nearby in May 2019 – she’d been killed in an illegally-set spring trap (here).
14 November 2018: Hen harrier River ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Nidderdale AONB (here). Her corpse was found nearby in April 2019 – she’d been illegally shot (here).
16 January 2019: Hen harrier Vulcan ‘disappeared’ in Wiltshire close to Natural England’s proposed reintroduction site (here).
28 January 2019: Hen harrier DeeCee ‘disappeared’ in Glen Esk, a grouse moor area of the Angus Glens (see here).
7 February 2019: Hen harrier Skylar ‘disappeared’ next to a grouse moor in South Lanarkshire (here).
22 April 2019: Hen harrier Marci ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Cairngorms National Park (here).
26 April 2019: Hen harrier Rain ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Nairnshire (here).
11 May 2019: An untagged male hen harrier was caught in an illegally-set trap next to his nest on a grouse moor in South Lanarkshire. He didn’t survive (here).
7 June 2019: An untagged hen harrier was found dead on a grouse moor in Scotland. A post mortem stated the bird had died as a result of ‘penetrating trauma’ injuries and that this bird had previously been shot (here).
5 September 2019: Wildland Hen Harrier 1 ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor nr Dalnaspidal on the edge of the Cairngorms National Park (here).
11 September 2019: Hen harrier Romario ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Cairngorms National Park (here).
14 September 2019: Hen harrier (Brood meddled in 2019, #183704) ‘disappeared’ in the North Pennines (here).
23 September 2019: Hen harrier (Brood meddled in 2019, #55149) ‘disappeared’ in North Pennines (here).
24 September 2019: Wildland Hen Harrier 2 ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor at Invercauld in the Cairngorms National Park (here).
24 September 2019: Hen harrier Bronwyn ‘disappeared’ near a grouse moor in North Wales (here).
10 October 2019: Hen harrier Ada ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the North Pennines AONB (here).
12 October 2019: Hen harrier Thistle ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Sutherland (here).
18 October 2019: Member of the public reports the witnessed shooting of an untagged male hen harrier on White Syke Hill in North Yorkshire (here).
November 2019: Hen harrier Mary found illegally poisoned on a pheasant shoot in Ireland (here).
November 2019: Hen harrier Artemis ‘disappeared’ near Long Formacus in south Scotland (RSPB pers comm).
14 December 2019: Hen harrier Oscar ‘disappeared’ in Eskdalemuir, south Scotland (here).
December 2019: Hen harrier Ingmar ‘disappeared’ in the Strathbraan grouse moor area of Perthshire (RSPB pers comm).
27 January 2020: Members of the public report the witnessed shooting of a male hen harrier on Threshfield Moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
23 March 2020: Hen harrier Rosie ‘disappeared’ at an undisclosed roost site in Northumberland (here).
1 April 2020: Hen harrier (Brood meddled in 2019, #183703) ‘disappeared’ in unnamed location, tag intermittent (here).
5 April 2020: Hen harrier Hoolie ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Cairngorms National Park (here)
8 April 2020: Hen harrier Marlin ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Cairngorms National Park (here).
19 May 2020: Hen harrier Fingal ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Lowther Hills, Scotland (here).
21 May 2020: Hen harrier (Brood meddled in 2019, #183701) ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Cumbria shortly after returning from wintering in France (here).
27 May 2020: Hen harrier Silver ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor on Leadhills Estate, Scotland (here).
2020: day/month unknown: Unnamed male hen harrier breeding on RSPB Geltsdale Reserve, Cumbria ‘disappeared’ while away hunting (here).
9 July 2020: Unnamed female hen harrier (#201118) ‘disappeared’ from an undisclosed site in Northumberland (here).
25 July 2020: Hen harrier Harriet ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
14 August 2020: Hen harrier Solo ‘disappeared’ in confidential nest area in Lancashire (here).
7 September 2020: Hen harrier Dryad ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
16 September 2020: Hen harrier Fortune ‘disappeared’ from an undisclosed roost site in Northumberland (here).
19 September 2020: Hen harrier Harold ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
20 September 2020: Hen harrier (Brood meddled in 2020, #55152) ‘disappeared’ next to a grouse moor in North Yorkshire (here).
24 February 2021: Hen harrier Tarras ‘disappeared’ next to a grouse moor in Northumberland (here)
12th April 2021: Hen harrier Yarrow ‘disappeared’ near Stockton, County Durham (here).
18 May 2021: Adult male hen harrier ‘disappeared’ from its breeding attempt on RSPB Geltsdale Reserve, Cumbria whilst away hunting (here).
18 May 2021: Another adult male hen harrier ‘disappeared’ from its breeding attempt on RSPB Geltsdale Reserve, Cumbria whilst away hunting (here).
24 July 2021: Hen harrier Asta ‘disappeared’ at a ‘confidential site’ in the North Pennines (here). We learned 18 months later that her wings had been ripped off so her tag could be fitted to a crow in an attempt to cover up her death (here).
14th August 2021: Hen harrier Josephine ‘disappeared’ at a ‘confidential site’ in Northumberland (here).
17 September 2021: Hen harrier Reiver ‘disappeared’ in a grouse moor dominated region of Northumberland (here)
24 September 2021: Hen harrier (Brood meddled in 2021, R2-F-1-21) ‘disappeared’ in Northumberland (here).
15 November 2021: Hen harrier (brood meddled in 2020, #R2-F1-20) ‘disappeared’ at the edge of a grouse moor on Arkengarthdale Estate in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
19 November 2021: Hen harrier Val ‘disappeared’ in the Lake District National Park in Cumbria (here).
19 November 2021: Hen harrier Percy ‘disappeared’ in Lothian, Scotland (here).
12 December 2021: Hen harrier Jasmine ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor (High Rigg Moor on the Middlesmoor Estate) in the Nidderdale AONB in North Yorkshire (here).
9 January 2022: Hen harrier Ethel ‘disappeared’ in Northumberland (here).
26 January 2022: Hen harrier Amelia ‘disappeared’ in Bowland (here).
10 February 2022: An unnamed satellite-tagged hen harrier ‘disappeared’ in a grouse moor dominated area of the Peak District National Park (here). One year later it was revealed that the satellite tag/harness of this young male called ‘Anu’ had been deliberately cut off (see here).
12 April 2022: Hen harrier ‘Free’ (Tag ID 201121) ‘disappeared’ at a ‘confidential site’ in Cumbria (here). It later emerged he hadn’t disappeared, but his mutilated corpse was found on moorland in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. A post mortem revealed the cause of death was having his head twisted and pulled off. One leg had also been torn off whilst he was still alive (here).
April 2022: Hen harrier ‘Pegasus’ (tagged by the RSPB) ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor at Birkdale in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
May 2022: A male breeding hen harrier ‘disappeared’ from a National Trust-owned grouse moor in the Peak District National Park (here).
May 2022: Another breeding male hen harrier ‘disappeared’ from a National Trust-owned grouse moor in the Peak District National Park (here).
14 May 2022: Hen harrier ‘Harvey’ (Tag ID 213844) ‘disappeared’ from a ‘confidential site’ in the North Pennines (here).
20 June 2022: Hen harrier chick #1 stamped to death in nest on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
20 June 2022: Hen harrier chick #2 stamped to death in nest on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
20 June 2022: Hen harrier chick #3 stamped to death in nest on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
20 June 2022: Hen harrier chick #4 stamped to death in nest on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
17 August 2022: Hen harrier (brood meddled in 2022, #R1-M1-22) ‘disappeared’ on moorland in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
September 2022: Hen harrier ‘Sullis’ (tagged by the RSPB) ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Cumbria (here).
5 October 2022: Hen harrier (brood meddled in 2022, #R3-M2-22) ‘disappeared’ on moorland in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
10 October 2022: Hen harrier ‘Sia’ ‘disappeared’ near Hamsterley Forest in the North Pennines (here).
October 2022: Hen harrier (brood meddled in 2021, #R1-F1-21) ‘disappeared’ in the North Sea off the North York Moors National Park (here).
1 December 2022: Hen harrier male (brood meddled in 2021, #R1-M1-21) ‘disappeared’ on moorland in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
7 December 2022: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2020, #R2-F2-20) ‘disappeared’ from winter roost (same as #R3-F1-22) on moorland in North Pennines AONB (here). Later found dead with 3 shotgun pellets in corpse.
14 December 2022: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2022, #R3-F1-22) ‘disappeared’ from winter roost (same as #R2-F2-20) on moorland in the North Pennines AONB (here). Later found dead with two shotgun pellets in corpse.
15 December 2022: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2022, #R2-F1-22) ‘disappeared’ on moorland in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
30 March 2023: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2022, #R1-F3-22) ‘disappeared’ in Yorkshire (here). Notes from NE Sept 2023 spreadsheet update: “Final transmission location temporarily withheld at police request“.
1 April 2023: Hen harrier male (brood meddled in 2022, #R2-M1-22) ‘disappeared’ in Yorkshire (here). Notes from NE Sept 2023 spreadsheet update: “Final transmission location temporarily withheld at police request“.
April 2023: Hen harrier ‘Lagertha’ (tagged by RSPB) ‘disappeared’ in North Yorkshire (here).
April 2023: Hen harrier ‘Nicola’ (Tag ID 234078) ”disappeared’ in North Yorkshire (here).
April 2023: Untagged male hen harrier ‘disappeared’ from an active nest on RSPB Geltsdale Reserve in Cumbria (here).
April 2023: Another untagged male hen harrier ‘disappeared’ from an active nest on RSPB Geltsdale Reserve in Cumbria (here).
April 2023: Untagged male hen harrier ‘disappeared’ from an active nest in Durham (here).
4/5 May 2023: Satellite-tagged male hen harrier called ‘Rush’ ‘disappeared’ from a grouse moor in Bowland AONB in Lancashire (here).
9/10 May 2023: Hen harrier male called ‘Dagda’, tagged by the RSPB in Lancashire in June 2022 and who was breeding on the RSPB’s Geltsdale Reserve in 2023 until he ‘vanished’, only to be found dead on the neighbouring Knarsdale grouse moor in May 2023 – a post mortem revealed he had been shot (here).
17 May 2023: Satellite-tagged hen harrier called ‘Wayland’ ‘disappeared’ in the Clapham area of North Yorkshire, just north of the Bowland AONB (here).
31 May 2023: Hen harrier male (brood meddled in 2022, tag #213932, name: R2-M3-22) ‘disappeared’ in Northumberland (grid ref: NY765687) (here).
11 June 2023: Hen harrier male (brood meddled in 2021, tag #213922, name: R2-M1-21) ‘disappeared’ at a confidential site in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. Notes from the NE spreadsheet: “Final transmission location temporarily withheld at police request“ (here).
12 June 2023: Hen harrier male (brood meddled in 2020, tag #203004, name: R1-M2-20) ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Co. Durham (grid ref: NY976322) (here).
6 July 2023: Satellite-tagged female hen harrier named ‘Rubi’ (tag #201124a) ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Co. Durham (grid ref: NY911151) (here).
23 July 2023: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2023, tag #55154a, name: R1-F1-23) ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in Co. Durham (close to where ‘Rubi’ vanished), grid ref: NY910126 (here).
29 July 2023: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2020, tag #55144, name: R2-F2-20) ‘disappeared’ at a confidential site in the North Pennines. Notes from the NE spreadsheet: “Dead. Recovered – awaiting PM results. Final transmission location temporarily withheld at police request“ (here).
9 August 2023: Satellite-tagged hen harrier called ‘Martha’ ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor (Westburnhope Moor) near Hexham in the North Pennines (here).
11 August 2023: Satellite-tagged hen harrier called ‘Selena’ ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor (Mossdale Moor) in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
11 August 2023: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2023, tag #201118a, name: R3-F1-23) ‘disappeared’ in Co. Durham (grid ref: NZ072136) (here).
15 August 2023: Satellite-tagged hen harrier called ‘Hepit’ ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor (Birkdale Common) near Kirkby Stephen in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
24 August 2023: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2023, tag #55155a, name: R1-F2-23) ‘disappeared’ at a confidential site in Northumberland. Notes from the NE spreadsheet: “Final transmission location temporarily withheld at police request“ (here).
August-Sept 2023: Satellite-tagged hen harrier called ‘Harmonia’ ‘disappeared’ in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (here).
September 2023: Hen harrier female ‘Saranyu’, tagged by the RSPB in Cumbria in June 2023, ‘disappeared’ in Durham in September 2023 (no further details available yet – just outline info provided in 2022 Birdcrime report) (here).
September 2023: Hen harrier female ‘Inger’, a female tagged by the RSPB in Perthshire in July 2022, ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Angus Glens in September 2023 (here).
15 September 2023: Hen harrier male called ‘Rhys’, tagged in Cumbria on 1st August 2023, ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. Grid ref: SD798896 (here).
24 September 2023: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2023, name: ‘R2-F2-23’) ‘disappeared’ in the North Pennines, grid ref: NY888062 (here).
25 September 2023: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2022, name: ‘R1-F4-22’) ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, grid ref: SE077699 (here).
26 September 2023: Hen harrier female called ‘Hope’, tagged in Cumbria on 21 July 2023, ‘disappeared’ next to a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, grid ref: SD801926 (here).
4 October 2023: Hen harrier male (brood meddled in 2020, name: ‘R1-M3-20’) ‘disappeared’ in Co Durham, grid ref: NY935192 (here).
4 October 2023: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2023, name: ‘R4-F1-23’) ‘disappeared’ on a grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, grid ref: SE003981 (here).
14 October 2023: Hen harrier male called ‘Cillian’, tagged in Cumbria on 1 August 2023, ‘disappeared’ in south west Scotland, grid ref: NY051946 (here).
15 November 2023: Hen harrier female called ‘Hazel’, tagged in Cumbria on 21 July 2023, ‘disappeared’ on the Isle of Man, grid ref: SC251803 (here).
27 November 2023: Hen harrier female called ‘Gill’, tagged in Northumberland on 10 July 2023, ‘disappeared’ at a confidential location in Teeside (here).
12 February 2024: Hen harrier female called ‘Susie’, Tag ID 201122, found dead at a confidential location in Northumberland and the subject of an ongoing police investigation (here).
15 February 2024: Hen harrier female called ‘Shalimar’, tagged on the National Trust for Scotland’s Mar Lodge estate in 2023, ‘disappeared’ in suspicious circumstances on a grouse moor in the notorious Angus Glens (here).
7 March 2024: Hen harrier male (brood meddled in 2023, name R2-M1-23) found dead in Devon. According to an FoI response from Natural England in June 2024 this death is the subject of an ongoing police investigation (here).
24 April 2024: Hen harrier male called ‘Ken’, Tag ID 213849a, ‘disappeared’ in suspicious circumstances close to a grouse moor in Bowland, grid ref SD 684601 (here).
17 May 2024: Hen harrier male (brood meddled in 2023, name R2-M2-23) ‘disappeared’ in suspicious circumstances next to Middlesmoor grouse moor in Nidderdale, grid ref SE043754 (here).
25 June 2024: Hen harrier female (brood meddled in 2023, name R2-F1-23) ‘disappeared’ in suspicious circumstances on a grouse moor in Yorkshire Dales National Park, grid ref NY985082 (here).
July 2024: Hen harrier female named ‘Helius’ satellite tagged by the RSPB ‘disappeared’ in suspicious circumstances in Bowland (here).
October 2024: An un-tagged hen harrier was shot on a grouse moor by one of three gamekeepers being secretly filmed by the RSPB (here).
1 October 2024: Hen harrier female named ‘Dreich’, Tag ID: 254842, ‘disappeared’ in Lanarkshire. Listed by NE as ‘Missing Fate Unknown, site confidential – ongoing investigation‘ (here).
15 October 2024: Hen harrier male named ‘Baldur’, Tag ID: 240291, ‘disappeared’ in Northumberland. Listed by NE as ‘Missing Fate Unknown, site confidential – ongoing investigation‘ (here).
19 October 2024: Hen harrier female named ‘Margaret’, Tag ID: 254844, ‘disappeared’ in Northumberland. Listed by NE as ‘Missing Fate Unknown, site confidential – ongoing investigation‘ (here).
To be continued…….
Not one of these 133 incidents has resulted in an arrest, let alone a prosecution. I had thought that when we reached 30 dead/missing hen harriers then the authorities might pretend to be interested and at least say a few words about this national scandal. We’ve now reached ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY THREE hen harriers, and still Govt ministers remain silent on the illegal persecution issue. They appear not to give a monkey’s. And yes, there are other things going on in the world, as always. That is not reason enough to ignore this blatant, brazen and systematic destruction of a supposedly protected species, being undertaken to satisfy the greed and bloodlust of a minority of society.
And let’s not forget the response from the (now former) Moorland Association Chair (and owner of Swinton Estate) Mark Cunliffe-Lister, who told BBC Radio 4 in August 2023 that, “Clearly any illegal [hen harrier] persecution is not happening” (here), in the year when a record 33 hen harriers had been confirmed ‘missing’ and/or illegally killed.
Nor should we forget the response from the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust’s (GWCT) Director of Policy Dr Alistair Leake who wrote a letter to the Guardian newspaper in November 2023 stating that the hen harrier brood management [meddling] scheme “is surely a shining example of human / wildlife conflict resolution that would be the envy of other countries trying to find similar solutions“ (I kid you not – here).
Wild Justice has launched another petition calling for a ban on driven grouse shooting. This latest petition is intended to gauge the view of the new Labour Government, as previous petitions were all lodged under the Conservative Government with its well-documented vested interests. Labour issued an appalling pathetic interim response to the petition in January 2025, via DEFRA, which indicated it had no intention of banning driven grouse shooting (see here).
The petition is live until 22 May 2025 and needs 100,000 signatures to qualify for a debate in Westminster Hall. It’s currently on 53,000 signatures. If you haven’t yet signed it, it’s here.
Three more satellite-tagged hen harriers have gone ‘missing’ & two more found dead, awaiting post mortem
Natural England has just published its latest update on the fates of the satellite-tracked hen harriers it has tagged and subsequently been tracking. This latest update (dated Dec 2024) shows that since its last update (Aug 2024 but actually published in Sept 2024), three more hen harriers have gone ‘missing’ and two more have been found dead and are awaiting post-mortem.
Once again, I haven’t seen any press releases or appeals for information about any of these incidents, either from Natural England or the police.
Here are the details of the latest hen harriers listed as ‘missing’:
- Female hen harrier named ‘Dreich’, Tag ID: 254842, last known transmission date 1 October 2024 in Lanarkshire. Listed by NE as ‘Missing Fate Unknown, site confidential – ongoing investigation‘.
- Male hen harrier named ‘Baldur’, Tag ID: 240291, last known transmission date 15 October 2024 in Northumberland. Listed by NE as ‘Missing Fate Unknown, site confidential – ongoing investigation‘.
- Female hen harrier named ‘Margaret’, Tag ID: 254844, last known transmission date 19 October 2024 in Northumberland. Listed by NE as ‘Missing Fate Unknown, site confidential – ongoing investigation‘.
I’ll be adding these three birds to my long-running tally of hen harriers that are known to have been illegally killed and/or have ‘disappeared’ in suspicious circumstances since 2018.
Here are the details of the latest hen harriers listed by NE as found dead and awaiting post mortem:
- Male hen harrier named ‘Chance’, Tag ID: 254840, last known transmission date 8 August 2024 in Cumbria. Listed by NE as ‘Recovered awaiting PM‘.
- Female hen harrier named ‘Sofia’, Tag ID: 34346, last known transmission date 3 October 2024 in Northumberland. Listed by NE as ‘Recovered awaiting PM‘.
I won’t add these two birds to my tally of missing/illegally killed hen harriers just yet because the circumstances of their deaths have not yet been published. They join the other four dead hen harriers whose corpses were found earlier in 2024 (see here) but whose causes of death have not yet been published. They are:
- Female hen harrier named ‘Susie’, Tag ID: 201122. Last known transmission 12 February 2024, Northumberland. Found dead. Site confidential. In NE’s April 2024 update, Susie was listed as, ‘recovered, awaiting post mortem‘. Now her listing says, ‘Ongoing police investigation, final transmission location temporarily withheld at police request‘. You might remember ‘Susie’ – she’s the hen harrier whose chicks were brutally stamped on and crushed to death in their nest on a grouse moor in Whernside in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, in June 2022 (here).
- Female hen harrier named ‘Edna’, Tag ID: 161143a. Last known transmission 7 June 2024, Northumberland. Listed by NE as ‘Recovered, awaiting post mortem‘.
- Female hen harrier, Tag ID: 254843. Last known transmission 29 July 2024, Northumberland. Listed by NE as ‘Recovered, awaiting post mortem‘.
- Male hen harrier, Tag ID: 254839. Last known transmission 5 August 2024, Northumberland. Listed by NE as ‘Recovered, awaiting post mortem‘.
I won’t be holding my breath waiting for NE to publish the post mortem results and inform us whether any of these additional six hen harriers died of natural causes or were the victims of illegal persecution. As we saw in December 2024 (here), it took NE 18 and 20 months respectively to reveal that two brood meddled hen harriers that had been previously listed as ‘Missing Fate Unknown’ had actually been found dead, their corpses containing two and three shotgun pellets respectively.
I’ll be writing more about hen harrier brood meddling shortly, but first it’s time to update the death list, which now stands at 133 hen harriers confirmed ‘missing’ or illegally killed in the UK since 2018, mostly on or close to grouse moors. If the six dead hen harriers currently still awaiting post mortems turn out to have been illegally killed, the death list will stand at 139 hen harriers.
If you’re sick to the back teeth of watching the death list expand, and the grouse moor owners and gamekeepers continue to escape prosecution for their crimes, please sign Wild Justice’s latest petition calling for a ban on driven grouse shooting. The petition runs until 22 May 2024 and currently stands at 53,000 signatures. If it reaches 100,000 signatures it will be considered for a debate in Westminster Hall. Please sign the petition HERE and then share it! Thank you.
Gamekeeper pleads guilty to snaring fox – press release from SSPCA
Further to this afternoon’s blog about the conviction today of Scottish gamekeeper Thomas Ebner for a snaring offence in April 2023 (here), the Scottish SPCA has issued the following press release:
GAMEKEEPER PLEADS GUILTY TO SNARING FOX
A man has been fined £1,250 and ordered to pay a £75 surcharge for cruelly snaring a fox.
Thomas Ebner, 74, from Reston in the Scottish Borders, pled guilty to setting a snare that could cause unnecessary suffering to any animal that came into contact with it. The snare was located on land belonging to Old Castles Farm in Chirnside.
The fox was caught by the neck and partially suspended on a broken fence line.
Ebner was sentenced at Selkirk Sheriff Court on Monday, January 20 2025.
Sheriff Paterson remarked, “This is a breach of the act. You knew what you were doing, and the fox suffered. But, I must consider that you have no previous convictions and pleaded guilty.”
The sheriff then fined Ebner £1,250, plus a £75 surcharge.
A Scottish SPCA Inspector from the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) said, “The fox was found caught in a snare along a broken fence line by members of the public. It was seen jumping through the fence in considerable distress and foaming at the mouth. The snare was wrapped around a fence post and was blood-stained. The public was able to free the fox from the snare.
“This snare was set in a way that caused suffering to the fox. There was a significant risk of it becoming entangled in the fence, which could have led to strangulation. It was clear that the fox was experiencing both mental and physical distress. The animal was at further risk of injury from surrounding barbed wire and broken wood.
“The snare was set by an individual who had attended an official snare training course, where they were taught the correct way to set snares.
“This is yet another example of the cruel impact snares can have on animal welfare and the unnecessary suffering they cause. We welcome the ban on snares implemented by the Scottish Government.”
A ban on the use of snares came into effect in March 2024 as part of the Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Act.
“We have also been given additional investigative powers to tackle wildlife crime. These powers allow our inspectors, who are already investigating animal welfare offences, to search, examine, and seize evidence.
“The Bill includes various measures to protect wildlife, such as a ban on all forms of snares and glue traps.
“We have long called for an outright ban on snares due to the suffering they inflict on animals, whether used legally or illegally. Animals caught in snares can endure unimaginable physical and mental anguish. Snares are non-selective and can harm both domestic animals and non-target wildlife.”
ENDS
Scottish gamekeeper convicted of snaring offence
A Scottish gamekeeper has pleaded guilty to a snaring offence and has been fined £1,250.
Thomas Ebner, 74, of Lakeside, Reston, Berwickshire, had previously pleaded not guilty to four charges relating to an incident that took place on land believed to be used by a small shooting syndicate at Old Castles Farm, Chirnside, in the Scottish Borders on April 25th 2023, which resulted in a fox being suspended by its neck in a snare on a broken fence line where it was found foaming at the mouth and thrashing around trying to escape (see here for previous blog on this case).
At the time of the offence, snares were still lawful in Scotland but were not permitted to be set in a position where a trapped animal could be suspended, and users had to first attend a snare training course and then apply for an identification tag that would identify the snare operator and the target species.
Ebner’s previous not guilty plea had led to a trial date being set for 4th February 2025. However, in a pre-trial hearing this morning at Selkirk Sheriff Court, Ebner changed his plea to guilty of one charge and the other three charges were dropped.
I’d argue that Ebner got off lightly. A fine of £1,250 + £75 surcharge is well below the maximum sentence available, which is a custodial sentence of six months and/or a fine of £5,000. So much for those so-called ‘tougher penalties‘ for wildlife crime.
Thankfully, the use of snares in Scotland has now been banned (since 25th November 2024) under the new Wildlife Management & Muirburn (Scotland) Act, thanks to a long-running campaign by animal welfare campaigners who spent decades putting forward evidence that these devices, recently and cynically named ‘humane cable restraints’ by the game-shooting industry, are actually cruel, indiscriminate and inhumane and have no place in modern society.
UPDATE 16.30hrs: Gamekeeper pleads guilty to snaring fox – press release from SSPCA (here)
Licence fees for firearms & shotguns set to increase for ‘full-cost recovery’ – no more public subsidy!
The UK Government has announced that licence fees for firearms and shotguns are set to increase next month to allow for ‘full-cost recovery’, which means that taxpayers will no longer be subsidising the use of these weapons.
Those wishing to possess, buy or acquire a firearm or shotgun and ammunition in the UK are required to have a certificate, issued by the user’s local police force who act as the licensing authority. These certificates are valid for five years, unless revoked.
Before a certificate is granted, the police undertake a vetting procedure which includes medical checks and a range of suitability checks including referee interviews and a home visit to ensure the applicant has a secure facility to store a weapon and ammunition. All of this costs money from the force’s budget and until now, this cost has been significantly subsidised by the tax payer, costing the national police budget an estimated £17 – £20 million pounds a year.
Last week the Home Office announced an increase in licensing fees, the first since 2015, that will, for the first time, achieve full-cost recovery for police forces.
Here are the current licence fees and the new fees that begin on 5th February 2025:
This has been a long time coming. It was in Labour’s election manifesto and I’m pleased to see the speed with which it’s being rolled out.
Some game-shooting organisations, such as BASC, are dramatically claiming that the fee increase ‘poses a threat to rural livelihoods‘. Having to pay the equivalent of £25.20 per year for a shotgun certificate renewal isn’t exactly going to ruin the rural economy, is it?
Let’s hope the £17-£20 million pounds saved from the annual police budget can be put to good use to chase down all those certificate-holding gamekeepers who continue to use their firearms and shotguns to illegally kill birds of prey.
“This has to stop” – North Pennines National Landscape Director denounces ongoing hen harrier persecution
A few weeks ago just before Xmas, Natural England published an update on the fates of three brood meddled satellite-tracked hen harriers: one that had been found dead in north Devon on 5th March 2024 (it died of natural causes) and two that had both vanished within a week of each other from a winter roost site in the North Pennines in December 2022 and whose gunshot-riddled corpses were later found in April and June 2023 (see here).
Both of these shot hen harriers were found in the North Pennines National Landscape (previously known as an AONB, Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty) and the North Pennines NL was quick to highlight these ongoing crimes by posting a statement on its website the following day.
The Director of the North Pennines NL, Chris Woodley-Stewart, has long been proactively involved in raising awareness about raptor persecution in the area (e.g. see here) and he’s quoted in the North Pennines NL statement as follows:
“It has taken some time to come to light and given that the bodies were on the ground for months before being found, the precise cause of death is uncertain. However, the two birds were found with lead shot in them, near to a North Pennines roost site.
“Whatever the conclusion about the explicit cause of death, the shotgun pellets tell an unequivocal story of illegality. Someone shot these birds with the intent of ending their lives; why else do it? This, regardless of the ultimate cause of death, is evidence of ongoing illegal raptor persecution in the North Pennines.
“This has to stop. We will continue to work with others to raise awareness and support practical action where we can. We’re asking, as always, for anyone with information about any incidents of raptor persecution, to come forward using the confidential hotline“.
The confidential hotline Chris mentioned is the RSPB’s Raptor Crime Hotline, Tel: 0300 999 0101, for sensitive information specifically relating to the illegal targeting of birds of prey.
Meanwhile, we’re still waiting for Natural England to provide updates / post mortem results on four other satellite-tagged hen harriers that were found dead during the first eight months of 2024, and all four of them in Northumberland:
Hen harrier ‘Susie’, female, Tag ID 201122. Last known transmission 12 February 2024, Northumberland. Found dead. Site confidential. In NE’s April 2024 update, Susie was listed as, ‘recovered, awaiting post mortem‘. In NE’s August 2024 update her listing says, ‘Ongoing police investigation, final transmission location temporarily withheld at police request‘. You might remember ‘Susie’ – she’s the hen harrier whose chicks were brutally stamped on and crushed to death in their nest on a grouse moor in Whernside in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, in June 2022 (here).
Hen harrier ‘Edna’, female, Tag ID 161143a. Last known transmission 7 June 2024, Northumberland. ‘Recovered, awaiting post mortem‘.
Hen harrier, female, Tag ID 254843. Last known transmission 29 July 2024, Northumberland. ‘Recovered, awaiting post mortem‘.
Hen harrier, male, Tag ID 254839. Last known transmission 5 August 2024, Northumberland. ‘Recovered, awaiting post mortem‘.
Natural England last updated its online database of satellite-tagged hen harriers in August 2024. That was five months ago, so who knows how many more may have ‘disappeared’ or been found illegally killed since then?
We know of at least one more killed, as revealed exclusively by Channel 4 News in October 2024 when it published covert footage filmed by the RSPB of three gamekeepers on an undisclosed grouse moor in northern England discussing the shooting of an untagged hen harrier and casually chatting to one another about other protected species they’d shot that same afternoon (see here). The police haven’t released any information about a subsequent investigation.
My current running tally of hen harriers that have either been illegally killed or have ‘disappeared’ in suspicious circumstances, most of them on or close to grouse moors, since 2018 stands at 130 birds and this list doesn’t include any of the four Natural England-tagged hen harriers listed above because their causes of death have not yet been revealed.
‘Why are birds of prey still being killed in Scotland despite new legislation?’ – special report in The National
The National newspaper published a special report on Monday 16 December 2024 entitled, ‘Why are birds of prey still being killed in Scotland despite new legislation?’, with a particular focus on the Cairngorms National Park.
It’s reproduced below.
SCOTLAND passed the Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Bill earlier this year, introducing a licensing scheme for the grouse shooting industry in a bid to end the illegal killing of birds of prey.
The first licenses were issued this past summer, and while considered a blueprint for tougher legislation across the UK – people are still killing birds of prey on grouse moors, which is not an easy thing to do.
Guilty parties must have access to a vehicle, equipment such as a firearm, opportunity and motive.
“This isn’t people traveling from towns and cities going up onto our hills and randomly killing birds of prey. These are targeted offences,” Ian Thomson, investigations manager for the RSPB, told The National.
But why? And who would do this?
Why are grouse moor shootings still taking place?
A Hen Harrier disappeared in February. A buzzard was shot in Perthshire in mid-May. An osprey was shot in the Glen Doll area in August. A dead golden eagle was found in a plastic bag near Loch Rusky in November.
In the last 15 years, more than 1500 birds of prey have been killed, with 57 convictions. However, the majority of these sentences are suspended, and only one person has been jailed.
Most of the evidence gathered by investigators is from satellite tags, fitted to allow conservationists to monitor the movements around the country.
The technology is estimated to be about 97% reliable, and “very rarely suffers some sort of technical function”, according to Thomson.
“Often we believe that there is strong evidence that supports the fact that these birds are being shot often at night, the tags destroyed, and the carcass is disposed of,” Thomson said.
The RSPB investigations team assists Police Scotland by speaking to local land managers and liaising with the community if a tag stops working. When asked why anyone would target the birds, even with the new legislation in place, Thomson said: “The killings are being undertaken by people who are working on the land.
“That’s the reality, and the vast majority of raptor persecution offenses occurring in Scotland are linked to management for kind of game bird shooting and particularly grouse shooting.
“There are many layers of evidence that support that.
“First of all, the location of the incidents that are found. Whether its birds shot, birds poisoned, or nests destroyed, these are all subject to police investigations.
“A significant proportion of people convicted for raptor persecution offenses have been gamekeepers,” Thomson shared.
RSPB data shows that at least 54% of all confirmed incidents in the last 10 years (2014-2023) have been linked to land managed for pheasant, partridge and grouse shooting.
The association of these crimes with the gamebird industry is also evidenced by criminal court records. Of all individuals convicted of bird of prey persecution related offences from 2009 to 2023, 75% were connected to the gamebird shooting industry and 68% were gamekeepers.
The Angus Glens crime hotspot
Angus Glens in the Cairngorms is a hotspot for the number of raptor persecution in Scotland, with the Highlands having 69 since 2009.
There have been multiple confirmed incidents occurring on several estates in the area. This includes many poisoning incidents using chemicals whose possession was long banned, repeated illegal misusing abuse of crow traps and pole traps, shootings and destruction of nests.
Earlier this year, NatureScot placed restrictions on an estate on the edge of the Cairngorms National Park for three years following evidence of bird poisoning on the property.
Thomson said there had been 10 suspicious disappearances of satellite tags on birds of prey in the Angus Glen in the last 15 years.
There has been a peregrine, and an osprey shot since the start of the shooting season in Angus Glens this year, which Thomson described as “worrying”.
The law as it has stood since 2012 has been serious liability, which means landowners are responsible for the actions of their employees and the land.
So are landowners aware of the circumstances surrounding raptor persecutions on their land?
A wall of silence
The first licenses under the new bill were approved this past July, but Thomson noted there would have been no need for it had the industry “taken possession of this problem decades ago”.
He added: “I think had the industry rooted out criminals, then we wouldn’t have needed this sort of legislation moved on.
“We are in a situation where some Victorian management practices towards birds of prey persist. It really is time that the shooting industry got into the 21st century.”
Thomson said it was rare for estates to report raptor persecutions.
When asked whether estates may be protecting or turning a blind eye to those who target birds of prey, Thomson said he could not confirm but he and his team frequently hear of peer pressure within estates to keep reporting low, adding that crimes are rarely reported by the industry.
“The problem is the game keeping industry is used to operating a bit like a closed shop,” Thomson said.
“It’s very difficult. There is no whistleblowing culture, and it would be fantastic if organizations representing gamekeepers set up a scheme where people could report incidents taking place and those are passed on to the police.
“But that just never seems to happen. Exceedingly rare truths are told.”
Thomson revealed that gamekeepers come to the team sharing their worries and are “terrified” to come forward.
“They say to us this information can’t come from me because I may lose my job and I may lose my friends and I may lose my hobby. People are under considerable pressure to keep their mouths shut,” he said.
“Either people won’t see anything or there is just a culture of denial.”
Thomson described “efforts to deny or downplay” incidents, and said that when satellite tags start to disappear, people blame “imaginary wind farms” or factors, dismissing science and evidence of crimes.
“It’s a mix of cultural misinformation, a wall of silence and complete denial”, Thomson added.
ENDS
For those who are sick to the back teeth of birds of prey being illegally killed on grouse moors, you might want to sign this new petition from Wild Justice calling for a ban on driven grouse shooting – HERE.
Raptor Persecution UK 