Very pleased to see regular updates are being made available to show us the movements of the 2012 sat-tagged Langholm harrier chicks. Well done Cat Barlow, the project officer at the Langholm Moorland Education Project, who is providing these updates on her blog, called ‘Making the Most of Moorlands’ (see here for latest maps).
The latest update (Sept 10th) reveals the male (Barry) has headed south while the female (Blae) has gone north. Things should start to get interesting now…
A couple of weeks ago we blogged about an article penned by the well-known advocate of ‘raptor control’, Magnus Linklater (see here).
He’s back again, this time as a guest blogger on Mark Avery’s ‘Standing up for Nature’ blog (see here). For a masterclass in arrogance and ignorance, you’d struggle to find a better example than his latest offering. You might think that “one of the country’s most respected journalists” (according to his editor) would have gone away to consider the factual inaccuracies that were pointed out by many knowledgeable readers of his original article, and then come back to discuss each point in turn. He didn’t manage to do that. Instead, he dug in his heels and stated, “I stand by everything I wrote“.
As is becoming more and more obvious, Linklater’s views seem to be representative of the majority of those involved in grouse-shooting, especially landowners and gamekeepers, judging by current and previous comments made by these groups. It’s easy to try and deflect attention from the real issue (continuing illegal raptor persecution) by attacking the UK’s largest conservation charity (RSPB), who just happen to be involved in exposing these illegal practices. What isn’t as easy is to convince an increasingly well-informed public that [driven] grouse-shooting shouldn’t now be banned.
For our anagram-loving readers, here’s another one: Kill Tuns Manager
Two chicks from this year’s hen harrier nest at the Langholm Moor Demonstration Project have been fitted with satellite tags so their dispersal movements can be monitored.
In previous years the project has failed to release most of these data to the public, even though as tax payers we’re all part-funding this project (see previous blogs here, here, here, here). We’ve all got our opinions about why we’ve been kept in the dark about these birds’ movements, especially those ones whose signals mysteriously stopped working when the birds were visiting certain grouse moors – although strangely we were allowed to view the movements of the harrier who travelled to Spain (‘McPedro’).
This year, maps showing the recent movements of the 2012 Langholm harriers have been posted on a public blog called ‘Making the Most of Moorlands’, which is written by the project officer at the Langholm Moorland Education Project (see here for maps).
It’s great to have an opportunity to follow these two young harriers. Let’s hope the maps are kept updated so we can all be kept informed.
How very curious. Have you heard about the new project set up by SNH and University of Exeter to fit satellite tags to basking sharks on the west coast of Scotland (see here)? The purpose of this fantastic project is to help solve some of the mysteries about basking shark behaviour and to identify important marine areas that may need greater protection.
Apart from the scientific importance of this research, a substantial effort has been made to engage with the general public, which is a good thing seeing as though we, as tax-payers, have helped fund part of the project. First of all we were asked to help name eight of the tagged sharks, and then a dedicated website was launched, where we can follow the daily movements of each named shark, in close-to-real time (see here). We can even subscribe to receive daily project updates!
Now, compare and contrast the glut of detail available from the basking shark sat-tagging project (which has only been running for several short weeks), with the barely discernible detail available from the hen harrier sat-tagging project at Langholm Moor, which has been running for several years and which, incidentally, we as tax- payers also helped to fund. The ‘detail’ (and that word is used generously!) of the hen harrier sat-tag data can be seen here.
Interesting difference, eh?
Everyone’s favourite Minister Richard Benyon has been giving evidence at the House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee’s inquiry into wildlife crime (see here, here and here for earlier blog posts about this inquiry).
Some of the topics on which Benyon was questioned included #buzzardgate, hen harriers, the introduction of vicarious liability in England, the legislation concerning possession of illegal poison, and the independence of Natural England.
So how did he do?
He started off badly when questioned about the need for legislation to criminalise the possession of certain poisons. The legislation is already in place in Scotland but a loophole in the English legislation means that ‘possession’ (rather than ‘use’) is still not an offence – see here for an RSPB press release last year on this very topic. Bungling Benyon suggested that the current legislation was adequate and didn’t require updating. He was picked up on this a bit later by the Committee Chair, who insisted on clarifying whether there was a difference between ‘possession’ and ‘use’ in the legislation. Benyon chose the safe option and asked whether he could make the clarification in writing at a later date, presumably to give himself time to actually go and read the legislation.
On the issue of whether to introduce vicarious liability legislation in England for raptor persecution crime, Benyon commented that there were no plans to introduce VL but he will watch the impact of it in Scotland. That’s fair enough. Why waste time and funds to introduce something that may be completely useless as a tool to combat raptor crime until you’ve seen whether it can make a difference in Scotland. It was suggested to Benyon that some might say the Scottish government takes wildlife crime more seriously than their English counterparts. Benyon rejected that and said there are wildlife crime measures that are making a difference and the legislation is adequate. Unfortunately he didn’t give any examples.
When asked about #buzzardgate, he basically said he loved buzzards but that some of the people protesting about the ‘study’ had misunderstood the research. Er, what was there to misunderstand? Benyon and his game-shooting cronies wanted to spend our money removing native buzzards from the wild, on private shooting estates, for the benefit of mass-introduced non-native species that are bred for the sole purpose of being killed for sport. “I recognise that it hit a wall of credibility“, said Benyon. Too bloody right it did.
When asked whether he was doing anything specific to protect the hen harrier, Benyon stated, “Yes, we are“. He said he was looking at the possibilty of a project that might work, but he didn’t want to provide any specific details because “it is at a very conceptual stage“. Hmm. Could this be the controversial plan to introduce a so-called ‘ceiling’ for hen harrier numbers, a concept that has been knocking around since 2008 (see here and here)? We’ll have to wait and see.
Benyon was then asked: To what extent are you satisfied that Natural England is making sufficient use of its civil enforcement powers in relation to SSSIs? Benyon’s response: “…….It is also very important that Natural England is an arm’s length body with the neccessary statutory basis that they have, and that they are able to operate the laws and sanctions that they have freely and unencumbered“. Now that’s an interesting statement! If you’ve been following Mark Avery’s superb analysis of what went on in the Walshaw grouse moor fiasco (see here for his 23rd blog entry on the subject), you’d be hard pressed to believe that Natural England acted “freely and unencumbered”. There’s still plenty more to be uncovered about what happened between Natural England and Walshaw Moor Estate but rest assured that Mark Avery will have a good go at getting to the bottom of it. Benyon’s statement may just come back to haunt him.
To read the full transcript of Benyon’s evidence to the Environmental Audit Committee, see here. Bear in mind that this is the uncorrected version; the corrected version should be posted shortly.
The EAC has now finished compiling the written and oral evidence in this inquiry and a report should be published in due course.
A public seminar on the future of the hen harrier in Scotland is to be held in September, hosted by the Watson Bird Centre in Dalry, Dumfries & Galloway. The centre was established to celebrate the achievements of the late Donald and Jeff Watson, the father and son who were recognised as world experts on the hen harrier and golden eagle respectively.
The seminar day is Saturday 22 September 2012:
13.00-14.00hr – Lunch at Lochinvar Hotel / Clachan Inn
14.00hr – A History of Hen Harriers in the South of Scotland (Chris Rollie, RSPB)
14.20hr – Hen Harriers in Orkney – A Success Story (Erik Meek, RSPB)
15.00hr – Hen Harriers and Grouse on Langholm: Managing a Special Challenge (Aly McCluskie, Langholm Moor Demonstration Project)
15.30hr – Tea / Coffee
16.00hr – Hen Harrier in Scotland Today – What Does the Future Hold? (Brian Etheridge, Scottish Raptor Monitoring Scheme)
16.30hr – Discussion
For further information, contact the Watson Bird Centre here
Scottish Natural Heritage will be organising a major conference later this year to discuss the results of their five-year Species Action Framework programme, which ended in March 2012.
‘Managing Species in a Challenging Climate: Scotland’s Species Action Framework’ will be held 22-23 November 2012 at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.
There will be two presentations specifically on raptors; one on the white-tailed eagle and the other on the hen harrier.
The hen harrier presentation should be fascinating, especially as it’s being led by Des Thompson (SNH) and Simon Lester (head gamekeeper at the Langholm Moor Demonstration Project). A recent (2011) SNH-commissioned report (later attributed to JNCC, presumably for political reasons) on the conservation status of the hen harrier identified illegal persecution as one of the key constraints affecting hen harriers in Scotland, and particularly when associated with grouse moor management (see here). However, at the recent 2012 police wildlife crime conference in Scotland, Des Thompson claimed that “the great majority of these [grouse moors] are well managed” (see here). An interesting statement and completely at odds with the findings of the hen harrier conservation framework report as well as with the findings of the SNH-commissioned 2008 golden eagle conservation framework report (see here). Hopefully there will be an opportunity to question Des at this conference, and also Simon Lester – especially about the lack of transparency on the fate of all those satellite-tagged hen harrier chicks from the Langholm project (see here and here).
The Species Action Framework conference programme can be viewed here
Details on how to book your place at the conference can be found here. It’s worth noting that the registration fee rises after 13th July 2012.
‘Given the population of hen harriers in Europe, it is wrong to talk of “extinction”‘ [in relation to the single hen harrier breeding attempt in England this year], claims Alasdair Mitchell in his latest article for Shooting Times. He goes on to say, “To talk in emotive terms about “a second extinction” is a tad over the top“.
I don’t think there’s anything emotive or over the top about stating that England’s HH breeding population is on the verge of extinction – it’s a biological fact! With only one known nesting attempt in 2012 (and rumours circulating that the attempt has failed), the species is most definitely on the brink of an extinction as an English breeding species. What else would you call it? Birds-now-wearing-invisible-cloaks?
The term ‘extinction’ is a valid, scientific term that can be used to describe the loss of a species (in this case a breeding species) at a local, regional, national or international level. In this case, the first three levels are applicable. Perhaps Mitchell objects to the word because he knows it is a word the general public can understand far more easily than other scientific terms such as ‘population decline’, which just infers a loss but doesn’t explain the extent of that loss. The public understands that ‘extinction’ means curtains, lights out, elimination, end of the line. This is probably of concern to the game-shooting industry as they realise there’ll be no place to hide once the public understands the full impact of all that illegal killing.
Mitchell points to the hen harrier’s international conservation status as a species of ‘least concern’ to support his view and says: “There are many thousands flying around Western Europe – including several hundred pairs breeding happily in Scotland“. What he (deliberately?) fails to mention is that Scotland’s breeding HH population fell by more than 22% between the 2004 and 2010 national surveys (633 pairs recorded in 2004; 489 pairs recorded in 2010) (see here). He also fails to comprehend the concept of biological diversity and it’s importance on various scales, including, again, local, regional, national and international scales. It’s illogical to ignore the loss of local, regional and national biodiversity just because the species’ international status is still ok. Yeah, let’s kill all our native wildlife – we don’t need it ‘cos it’s all doing fine in other parts of Europe.
Mitchell is a hill farmer in Northumberland. In addition to his weekly column for Shooting Times (under the heading ‘Sharpshooter’) he has also written for the National Gamekeepers’ Organisation as well as acting as their media advisor. In May 2012 (see here) Mitchell was appointed as the Northern Regional Director for BASC (British Association for Shooting and Conservation). That potted bio probably explains Mitchell’s failure to grasp the principles of biodiversity conservation, although to give him his due, he ends his article by saying:
“I am not pretending that illegal persecution has not had an impact, over the years, on the hen harrier population. It has – and that’s bad. We need to find ways of hosting more hen harriers but without destroying the commercial grouse shooting that actually pays for their moorland habitat“.
It’s certainly refreshing to hear someone from the shooting industry admit that persecution has affected HHs – it’s usually just outright denial, and it’s also encouraging to hear him calling for more hen harriers, although that now seems an unlikely prospect without formal government intervention. In the meantime, while we all argue about the semantics of extinction, the UK’s breeding hen harrier population continues to fade.
Mitchell’s full column can be read on the Shooting Times website (although it appears that this one hasn’t yet been posted).
George Monbiot is fast becoming my favourite journalist (and not just because he uses this blog as a source of information!).
In his latest article, due to be published in the Guardian tomorrow but released on his website tonight (see here), Monbiot digs a little deeper inside the #buzzardgate debacle and uncovers some fascinating information.
In addition to #buzzardgate he also discusses the scandalous state of the English hen harrier population. He is one of very few authors willing to state, categorically and without caveats or apologies, that the missing English hen harriers [approx 329 pairs] ‘have been shot or poisoned by grouse-shooting estates’. There’s no dilution or ‘maybes’ or ‘possiblys’ in the name of so-called ‘partnership building’ – English hen harriers have been wiped out by grouse-shooting estates and Monbiot is not afraid to say so.
If you read Monbiot’s biography (here) you’ll see that the thing he fears is ‘other people’s cowardice’.
We can all learn from him.
We’ve been hearing rumours that the last remaining pair of hen harriers attempting to breed in England have now failed. We don’t yet have confirmation but several (usually reliable) sources are telling us the same thing.
In a recent BBC news article (here), a spokesman from the National Gamekeepers’ Organisation said:
“We are unaware of any instance of human interference with hen harriers in England in recent years“.
Yeah, of course you are. Just like Bashar al-Assad is unaware of any instance of government troops massacring the Syrian people?
So, while the country celebrates ’60 glorious years’, take a moment to reflect on the effects of 60 years of raptor persecution.
Raptor Persecution UK 