Tag: poisoning

Scottish landowners complain about RSPB’s cartoon landowner/villain

There’s a great article in today’s Telegraph that reports that Scottish landowners have complained about an RSPB cartoon strip, which they claim portrays landowners as cartoon villains.

The Telegraph reports that the cartoon strip appears in the RSPB’s Bird Life magazine for children and features a man in green boots and a country jacket putting out poisoned bait to kill protected birds of prey. It also features police vehicles arriving on a dawn raid and an RSPB investigator staking out the scene.

Douglas McAdam, chief executive of Scottish Land and Estates (an organisation that claims to represent 2,500 landowners in Scotland), has apparently written a letter of complaint to the RSPB and copied it to the Scottish Environment Minister. The Telegraph reports that McAdam refused to comment to them on the issue, but The Telegraph claims to have seen a copy of the letter and their subsequent article includes some interesting alleged quotes from McAdam. There’s also a response from an RSPB spokesperson who suggests the cartoon was based on a real incident last year.

Perhaps someone should ask McAdam and co. what sort of image would have been more acceptable to them? Or perhaps they’d rather that the topic wasn’t raised at all? Brush it all under the carpet and pretend that raptors aren’t illegally poisoned in Scotland?

Article in The Telegraph here

Tip of the iceberg

Anyone who has been reading the ‘official’ annual raptor persecution reports over the last few decades will be familiar with the phrase, “These figures represent the tip of the iceberg”. Conservationists have long held the view that many illegal raptor persecution incidents go unreported, given the remote locations involved and the cultural and social pressures that inhibit certain sectors of the rural community from speaking up about these crimes. Most reports of poisoned, shot, or trapped raptors come from people who have found them by chance, for example hill walkers and dog walkers. The game shooting lobby, in response to the ‘tip of the iceberg’ statement, usually asks, “Where’s the evidence?” The numerous (and ever-increasing) glut of peer-reviewed scientific publications, that show a clear correlation between persecution and upland grouse moors, are usually dismissed as ‘pseudo-science’ by the landowners and gamekeepers, and the conservationists are often accused of conducting some sort of smear campaign against the game shooting industry.

No doubt we will hear all of this, and more, in the coming few days once the RSPB Birdcrime 2010 report has been published later this week. For certain, the report will contain the statement, “These figures represent the tip of the iceberg”, or words to that effect.

So, if the gamekeepers want evidence, here’s some that was unwittingly provided by….er, gamekeepers. It comes in the form of a recently (Sept 2011) published paper in the journal Scottish Birds, which is published by the Scottish Ornithologists’ Club. The paper was written by R.L. McMillan and is entitled, ‘Raptor persecution on a large Perthshire estate: a historical study’. Unfortunately we’re not allowed to publish the whole paper here (you have to be a member of the SOC to get access, or google the author and ask him for a PDF for your personal use) but here is the abstract:

The Atholl Game and Vermin Lists provide an almost continuous record from 1867 until 1988 and in many respects are unique for a large estate in Scotland. Large numbers of raptors and owls were destroyed by gamekeepers during the latter part of the 19th century and into the late 20th century. The implementation of legislation to protect predatory birds appears to have made little difference to persecution levels. Gamekeepers on individual beats seemed able to decide whether they killed predators or not. A few gamekeepers chose not to kill any birds of prey. Some persecution continued well into the late 20th century and a comparison between estate records and incidents recorded by the authorities strongly suggests that a substantial amount of illegal persecution was not recorded.

The paper provides a detailed insight into the extent of raptor persecution on Atholl Estate,  covering the historical period when it was legal to kill raptors (pre-1954), and the current period when it is illegal to kill raptors (1954 onwards). Gamekeepers on the nine beats at Atholl Estate were required to submit annual report cards that recorded the number of game and ‘vermin’ [including raptors!] that was killed on each beat. According to the paper, McMillan writes of Atholl Estate:

“To maintain the estate record of game and vermin killed, the individual shooting beats were required to complete a card by the end of February each year and this contained details from the preceding year. The same printed card had been in use for many years and this included hawks, owls and ravens. Although the estate factor regularly checked the returns on these cards, it was only when a member of staff expressed concern that protected birds were included in the returns, that a new form was introduced for the 1988/89 season which excluded protected species”.

The historical records covering part of the period (1867-1911) when it was legal to kill raptors don’t provide any surprises, showing that 11,428 ‘hawks’ were killed on Atholl Estate, in addition to 3,731 owls. Sadly the records do not distinguish between different species of ‘hawks’ or owls and McMillan has interpreted the term to include every raptor and owl species that would typically occur in the area.

The more recent records, however, are of far more interest. They show the period covering the introduction of the 1954 Protection of Birds Act (making it illegal to kill all raptors except sparrowhawks, which weren’t protected until 1961) and McMillan’s graphs of persecution incidents show that the legislation was ignored on the two beats whose records he analysed. In fact on one beat, McMillan shows that persecution actually increased at the time the Act was implemented.

But the most interesting part of this paper comes in Table 3. It is a comparison of gamekeeper records from just one Atholl Estate beat, with the ‘official’ RSPB data for the whole of Scotland, from the period 1980 – 1988. The RSPB data only include details of raptors that have been killed (so not details of ‘suspected’ incidents). Here’s an overview of McMillan’s findings:

1980/81: Atholl Estate beat = 19 raptors killed; RSPB official data for all of Scotland= 9 raptors killed.

1981/82: AE beat = 21; RSPB all Scotland= 23.

1982/83: AE beat = 36; RSPB all Scotland= 16.

1983/84: AE beat = 36; RSPB all Scotland  = 13.

1984/85: AE beat = 25; RSPB all Scotland= 12.

1985/86: AE beat = 22; RSPB all Scotland= 8.

1986/87: AE beat = 14; RSPB all Scotland= 13.

1987/88: AE beat = 30; RSPB all Scotland  = 15.

So, in each of the years listed, with the exception of 1981/82, the ‘official’ RSPB figures for the WHOLE of Scotland were lower than the number of illegally persecuted raptors on just one shooting beat. Does anyone need any clearer evidence that the ‘official’ statistics of illegal raptor persecution are just the tip of the iceberg?!! Of course, there are plenty of arguments that could be made about the reliability of the gamekeepers’ records – i.e. keepers could have inflated the number to earn a bonus, or alternatively keepers could have reduced the number for fear of providing potentially incriminating evidence. McMillan deals with these and other issues in the paper. And for those who think the persecution stopped when Atholl Estate stopped recording it in the 1988/89 season, McMillan reports that “between 1989 and 1999, a number of incidents were logged by the RSPB on several shooting beats on the Atholl Estates, not all of which were confirmed, but which included shootings of raptors, trapping of birds including golden eagle and the deliberate destruction of broods of hen harrier and peregrines“.

It’s worth bearing in mind that these figures in Table 3 are from just ONE beat on just ONE sporting estate. You don’t need much imagination to guess what these figures would look like if records from every sporting estate in Scotland were included in the analysis. This should provide some perspective when we read the ‘official’ figures in the RSPB Birdcrime 2010 report later this week.

It should be noted that under the current management, Atholl Estate regularly provides a home for breeding golden eagles, peregrines, hen harriers and other raptors.

Full paper citation: McMillan, R.L. (2011). Raptor persecution on a large Perthshire estate: a historical study. Scottish Birds 31(3): 195-205.

Atholl Estate website here

Thank you to the contributor who alerted us to this publication.

North Yorkshire worst place for raptor persecution in UK, says RSPB

A report out today in the Independent on Sunday says that birds of prey are being poisoned or shot in the North York Moors and Yorkshire Dales at a rate unknown in any other region in the UK, according to the latest RSPB figures.

The headline is actually quite a misleading statement. Perhaps what it should say is that reports of raptor persecution are highest in North Yorkshire than any other region. We know only too well that reporting and recording is done very differently between regions, and these differences do not neccessarily reflect what is actually happening on the ground.

The latest figures come from the RSPB’s annual Birdcrime report, Birdcrime 2010, which is due to be published on Thursday, so it’s difficult to assess the findings until the report has been released. However, according to the IoS article, “Almost 10 per cent of the 117 incidents against 11 species last year took place in the county, which has consistently recorded high rates of such crime, according to the RSPB“.

The article continues: “The number of reported incidents in North Yorkshire doubled between 2009 and 2010, from 27 to 54, with 10 confirmed cases of bird of prey persecutions. These include the poisoning of four red kites and three buzzards and the shooting of a goshawk. Two-week old chicks [of what species?] were also found laced with a banned pesticide and left as bait in the Yorkshire Dales.”

An RSPB spokesman lays the blame firmly at the feet of intensive upland grouse moors; a BASC spokesman denied the extent of the problem and said “the gamekeeper is a convenient scapegoat.”

All depressingly familiar. The bottom line is, despite the overwhelming evidence of widespread criminal raptor persecution, it is still not possible to get a meaningful prosecution. Until this happens, we will continue to read these appalling statistics.

More on this once the Birdcrime 2010 report has been published.

Article in the Independent on Sunday here

Got Carbofuran? Get rid of it here, no questions asked.

Earlier this year, a subsidised pesticide and biocide disposal scheme was set up for a three month period (Jan-Mar), so that gamekeepers, farmers, pest controllers etc could safely and cheaply get rid of certain redundant and/or illegal substances. The scheme was organised by the bafflingly-named Project SOE (Security in the Operational Environment) and was supported by government funding, which allowed collection and disposal for the bargain rate of £20 per application.

It was pleasing to see that the scheme was supported by the National Gamekeepers Organisation and also the Scottish Gamekeepers Association, given the on-going and widespread problem of keepers using illegal pesticides, especially  Carbofuran, to poison raptors and other wildlife. Credit to the two organisations for doing this (publicly supporting the disposal scheme, not poisoning raptors, obviously).

According to the Project SOE website, the scheme was so successful that it will now be continued for a further limited period, offering collection and disposal at favourable rates. The scheme could be viewed as a sort of ‘poisons amnesty’, with no questions asked of the participants. This seems too good an opportunity to miss and we hope that landowners and gamekeepers (and their representative organisations) will jump at the chance to advertise this extended scheme and participate in it if they haven’t already done so.

Project SOE website here

GWCT grouse keeper’s course in glen where poisoned eagle found dead

The Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT) are advertising a grouse keeper’s training course, to be held in November. Their advert for the training course includes the following statement:

“This highly acclaimed, practical training will take place on working estates in Glen Esk, Angus, where well respected grouse keepers, along with GWCT advisory and research staff, will impart their knowledge based on a wealth of experience“.

Glen Esk is, of course, where golden eagle ‘Alma’ was found poisoned two years ago (see here). She had been poisoned by Carbofuran. Police raided one of the three sporting estates in Glen Esk where Alma’s body was found (Millden Estate), but no arrests were made. A report in the Brechin Advertiser one month later (see here) included the following statement: “It had previously been confirmed by Tayside Police that the bird “certainly” picked up the poison in the local area“. It is not clear what this ‘certainty’ was based upon. Local residents apparently shared this view though, and Brechin Community Council vice-convenor, David Adam, was reported in the Advertiser article as saying: “I think it is fairly conclusive that the bird was poisoned and that the bird was poisoned in Glenesk“.

It is not known whether the police extended their investigations to the other two sporting estates in Glen Esk – Gannochy Estate and Invermark Estate. As far as anyone can tell, the police investigation is still on-going.

Interesting then, that the GWCT would select Glen Esk as the venue for their ‘highly acclaimed’ grouse keeper’s training course, don’t you think? And also interesting that Scottish Land and Estates and the Scottish Gamekeepers Association should choose to advertise this training course on their websites.

Training course advert on GWCT website here

Training course advert on Scottish Land and Estates website here

Training course advert on SGA website here

Bye, then

In a feature article in the latest edition of Shooting Times, the Chairman of the National Gamekeepers Organisation, Lindsay Waddell, laments the sale of Millden Estate in Angus (see our earlier story about the sale here).

He questions the reasons behind the sale, “just as the moor is coming good“. It’s a strange description for an estate where two-year-old golden eagle Alma was found poisoned in 2009 (see here). His theory about why Millden has come on the market goes like this:

“It would appear the answer lies in the recent legislation passed by the Scottish Parliament which holds landowners liable for the actions of their staff [vicarious liability], and that is something, it appears, some will not entertain at any cost. So it’s sell up, and get out. It may well turn out to be a sad day for the inhabitants of many glens if more and more of the modern-day owners decide to take the same course of action“.

Interesting.

Waddell goes on to acknowledge that there are still landowners (he says “a few”, we say ‘too many’) who won’t manage their land without the use of [illegal] poison and says these individuals have to shoulder a lot of the blame for the introduction of vicarious liability. No disagreement there, Lindsay – the criminals within your industry are finally having to face the music after 60 long years of relentless and systematic illegal raptor persecution.

He also comments that the new legislation (vicarious liability) is ‘open to abuse’. He writes: “It is all very easy for items to be ‘found’ on a piece of land“. By ‘items’, does he mean poisoned birds and poisoned baits, and enormous caches of illegal poison? Much like what was found on Skibo Estate in 2010? The ‘items’ that Dean Barr, sporting manager at Skibo Estate, claimed in the press had been planted by the RSPB (see here)? Obviously his press statement was made before he was found guilty of possessing 10.5 kg of Carbofuran – the UK’s biggest haul of this banned pesticide to date (see here).

Waddell continues by suggesting that Millden may be the first of many Scottish sporting estates to be sold. Let’s hope so. I can think of more than just ‘a few’ whose closure is long overdue.

Shooting Times article here

Another poisoned peregrine and the appeal for info comes three months later (again)

The BBC News website is running a story today about another poisoned peregrine. The young bird was apparently discovered three months ago at Whitecleaves Quarry near Buckfastleigh in Devon. The toxicology results, which have only just been released, indicate the bird was poisoned with the banned pesticides Carbofuran and Aldicarb.

This is the third reported poisoning incident in the region in recent weeks, following the reports of four poisoned goshawks and one buzzard in Devon (see here) and two poisoned peregrines in Cornwall (see here).

According to the BBC article, peregrines at Whitecleaves Quarry have been targeted before, with poisoned birds being discovered in 1992, 2004 and 2005.

Devon & Cornwall police are investigating the latest incident, and the RSPB has once again put up a £1,000 reward for information leading to a conviction.

The obvious question – why has it taken three months for this incident to be publicised?

BBC News article here

Latest SASA figures show illegal raptor poisoning continues in Scotland

Well finally, on behalf of the Scottish Government, SASA (Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture) has published the poisoning figures from the second quarter of 2011 (covering the period from April to June), and guess what? More raptors were illegally poisoned during this period. Seems a bit of a coincidence that these figures have been published four months late and on the very day that people were encouraged to make a Freedom of Information request to SASA to obtain the 2011 poisoning data. Nevertheless, the publication of these data is still welcome and provides us with cold hard facts about the continuing illegal poisoning of our native species.

The latest report shows that there were three confirmed ‘abuse’ incidents during this period, including:

April 2011: 1 x buzzard poisoned by Aldicarb & Carbofuran (Highland region)

May 2011: 1 x raven poisoned by Carbofuran (Dumfries & Galloway)

May 2011: 1 x red kite poisoned by Bendiocarb & Carbofuran (Highland)

All three incidents are reported to be the subject of on-going police investigations. How many of these were reported in the media at the time of the incidents? These latest figures can now be added to the figures from the first quarter (Jan – Mar 2011 – see here) to show that in the first half of this year the following  have been confirmed poisoned by illegal pesticides:

4 x buzzards; 1 x golden eagle; 2 x red kites; 2 x peregrines; 1 x raven.

And of course these are only the ones that have been discovered. And the figures do not include all the other incidents of non-poisoning persecution reported this year (e.g. shot goshawks here, shot peregrine here), nor the suspected poisoning incidents that were not included in the earlier SASA report (see here), nor the birds reported to have been poisoned since June (e.g. see here). It is clear that the widespread problem of illegal raptor persecution still exists, despite the (now apparently premature) comments from the game-shooting industry that this criminal behaviour has been eradicated. It clearly hasn’t been eradicated, but have the numbers dropped? Given the chronic delays in reporting these incidents in the media, we’ll have to wait for the next two SASA reports before that assessment can be made.

I wonder how long will we have to wait until the figures from the 3rd quarter (July – Sept) are released? If their publication is as late as this current one, we can expect to see them in four months time (February 2012). Perhaps that FoI request is still worth pursuing after all..

Latest SASA figures available for download here.

Poisoned buzzard & ravens – appeal for info comes three months later

A news item posted today on the RSPB website reveals that a buzzard and two ravens were found dead in Monmouthshire in July. Tests reveal they had been poisoned by the banned pesticide Carbofuran. Two dead pigeons were also found which had been laced with an un-named pesticide and the news report suggests these were put out as illegal poisoned bait. Last year, two dead peregrines, poisoned with Carbofuran, were found at the same site (see here).

The article reports that Gwent Police, the Welsh Government and the RSPB are appealing for information. The RSPB is reported to be offering a £1,000 reward for information leading to a conviction.

Three months after the incident? What’s the point? Why is it that media reports about wildlife crime, and particularly illegal raptor persecution incidents, are now consistently delayed for several months? What other areas of crime are reported this way? If my house was burgled in July and I waited for three months before I reported it to the police, what do you think the chances would be of catching the burglar? About the same as catching the raptor poisoners, I reckon.

Talking of delayed reports…why is it that the 2011 SASA poisoning report, which is supposed to be updated every quarter, has not been updated since March 2011? Are we to believe that raptors are no longer systematically poisoned in Scotland because none have been handed in for analysis for the last seven months? If anyone feels like doing a Freedom of Information Request, this would seem to be a good place to start (FoI on SASA website here).

News story about the poisoned buzzard & ravens on RSPB website here

Red kite persecution study wins science award

A recent study that revealed how illegal persecution is affecting the growth of a red kite population in Scotland has won a scientific research award.

The new award, the Watson Raptor Science Prize, is given for the best raptor study published in a peer-reviewed journal, and is made in honour of two exceptional raptor biologists, the late Donald Watson and his late son, Jeff Watson. Donald pioneered studies on the hen harrier and Jeff was a world authority on the ecology and conservation of the golden eagle.

The award-winning paper: Illegal killing slows population recovery of a re-introduced raptor of high conservation concern – the red kite, was published in the international journal Biological Conservation in 2010. The study, undertaken by RSPB scientists, compared the growth of two red kite populations, one in the Chilterns in southern England and one in the north of Scotland. The researchers found that after 17 years the Chilterns population numbered around 300 pairs, whereas the north of Scotland population only numbered around 50 pairs. The reason for the difference in survival rates was conclusively demonstrated to be illegal persecution.

Well done to the team of researchers, led by Dr Jennifer Smart, for scientific excellence, and especially for adding to the ever-increasing body of scientific literature that shows, unequivocally, that the illegal persecution of raptors continues to affect the conservation status of these iconic species.

BBC news article here