The Yorkshire Dales Bird of Prey ‘Partnership’ has published its latest evidence report documenting the status of raptors and details of confirmed illegal persecution incidents between 2022-2023.
I wrote about the establishment of this so-called ‘partnership’ in 2022 (see here) and again in June 2023 when the RSPB walked out, citing familiar problems with the involvement of the Moorland Association (see here).
Photo by Ruth Tingay
The latest report suffers from the same issues as previous reports, being data-poor for most species (making it impossible to evaluate the status of many breeding raptors) and in this report there seems to be some misleading detail about the apparent ‘success’ of breeding hen harriers in the area, which I’m pretty sure includes data from brood meddled nests where the chicks were removed from the wild, reared in captivity and then released elsewhere, so not quite the natural success that readers are being led to believe.
The report does however include details of the many confirmed and suspected ongoing incidents of hen harrier persecution in this area, which led to the police executing a search warrant on an unnamed grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park around the same time this report was published (see here).
It was also interesting to read about the disappearance of a young satellite-tagged white-tagged eagle (originally from the Isle of Wight reintroduction problem) in March 2022 – I don’t think I’d read about that before.
To summarise, birds of prey are still being found killed and many are still ‘disappearing’ in this grouse moor-dominated National Park and it’s not clear to me what this so-called ‘partnership’ has achieved.
As David Butterworth, Chief Executive of the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority said in December 2023 (here) when he was responding to the RSPB’s 2022 BirdCrime Report:
“We are currently preparing a new evidence report on bird of prey populations in the National Park on behalf of the Yorkshire Dales Bird of Prey Partnership. We hope this report will be published in the coming weeks. Sadly all of this will count for little whilst the persecution of Birds of Prey continues“.
A young female white-tailed eagle has been found shot dead near Cranberry Lough in County Roscommon, Ireland.
She was part of the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) long-running reintroduction project and had been released at Lough Derg two years ago.
The corpse of the shot white-tailed eagle. Photo: NPWS
As part of the reintroduction project, the young eagles are fitted with satellite tags to monitor their movements. Information from this eagle’s tag suggest she was killed sometime between Monday evening and Tuesday morning on 11th/12th March 2024.
She’d been present in the area for the last few weeks, having previously travelled around the north and west of Ireland once she’d dispersed from Lough Derg almost a year ago.
Director General of the NPWS, Niall Ó Donnchú, said forensic examinations were being conducted which he hoped would provide more information about the weapon used to kill the eagle.
“I deplore this wanton act of violence against this beautiful and endangered bird. We’re asking for the public’s help in bringing the perpetrator of this heinous act of destruction to justice.”
Meanwhile, just over the border in Northern Ireland, the investigation is ongoing into the illegal poisoning of two white-tailed eagles, found dead last year on the only moor that’s managed for driven grouse shooting in NI (here).
The charity Birds of Poole Harbour (the fabulous team behind the Osprey Reintroduction Project, amongst many other things) is advertising for an Events Assistant to help them deliver a number of exciting public engagement projects this year.
This includes helping out on their brilliantly popular ‘bird cruise boats’ around the harbour, providing the public with an opportunity to see ospreys, white-tailed eagles, marsh harriers, peregrines and much, much more!
Looking for raptors (& other species!) on the Birds of Poole Harbour Bird Boat. Photo: Ruth Tingay
Here are the details of this fantastic job opportunity:
BIRDS OF POOLE HARBOUR EVENTS ASSISTANT
Birds of Poole Harbour is a Dorset-based charity with a local community focus, committed to conserving and interpreting the important birdlife in the Poole Harbour area. We deliver a range of exciting events and projects, and are looking for an enthusiastic Events Assistant to support our team in delivering our public engagement offer through the Spring and Summer of 2024.
Position: Events Assistant
Hours: 32 hours per week, 15th April – 15th September 2024. Due to the nature of our events, regular weekend and occasional early morning/evening working hours are required.
Salary: £8053.76 (FTE: £23,795.20 per annum)
Location: Poole and Wareham-based, with travel to events around Poole Harbour
Annual Leave: 9.5 days, inclusive of bank holidays
Essential Criteria:
Friendly and warm interpersonal style
Excellent verbal and written communication skills
Ability to work effectively as part of a busy team
Proactive and self-motivated attitude
Excellent bird identification skills
Desirable Skills and Experience:
Experience of working with volunteers
Experience of delivering events
Knowledge of local birding sites and conservation projects, including the Poole Harbour Osprey Reintroduction Project
Full driving licence and access to a vehicle
What you’ll be working on:
You’ll be helping our team to deliver an ambitious events schedule through the spring and summer, including our Carey Osprey Tours led in partnership with Careys Secret Garden, as well as our guided walks and cruises. This role will be well-suited to an aspiring and enthusiastic ornithologist with excellent communication skills and a good knowledge of British birds.
Full training will be provided and more detail on our project work and events can be found here: www.birdsofpooleharbour.co.uk. Please note that this position will be offered subject to the successful return of the nesting pair of Osprey to Careys Secret Garden, and that we will be unable to fulfil the role if they do not return.
If you would like to apply, please email our Operations Manager Laura at laura@birdsofpooleharbour.co.uk with a CV (2 pages maximum) and a PDF with answers to the following questions:
What attracted you to apply for this position? (200 words max)
Why do you believe you are well-suited for the role of Events Assistant at Birds of Poole Harbour? (500 words max)
Interviews commencing W/B 4th March with the option for online interviews available. Please note that the interview will involve a UK bird species identification test.
Closing date: 9am on 26th February 2024
If you have any questions or queries about the role or application process, please contact our Charity Manager Liv via liv@birdsofpooleharbour.co.uk. Birds of Poole Harbour are an equal opportunities employer and are happy to provide additional information or accommodations within our hiring practices to support applicants.
Press release from RSPB Scotland (12 December 2023):
Lambs not a major food source for breeding white-tailed eagles in Scotland
New study finds proportion of nests with evidence of lamb as prey declines over 20-year period
A new study assessing the diet of breeding White-tailed Eagles (Haliaeetus albicilla) – also known as Sea Eagles – in Scotland between 1998 and 2017 has found that marine prey of seabirds and fish is the most important food source for them, whilst the occurrence of lamb in their food has decreased as more pairs have established.
Photo: Amanda Fergusson
Analysis of food remains shows an incredibly diverse diet during the breeding season; 11,375 different food items were recorded in 293 samples from nest sites in 92 White-tailed Eagle territories across Scotland and 121 species were recorded with 70 species of bird, 17 species of mammals and at least 30 species of fish.
Food remains collected by the study. Photo by Robin Reid
Food remains collected by the study. Photo by David Carrs
Food remains collected by the study. Photo by David Carrs
The study, published as a peer reviewed paper “The breeding season diet of White-tailed Eagles in Scotland” in the Scottish Ornithologists’ Club journal Scottish Birds, began in 1998 when there were only 18 pairs of White-tailed Eagles in Scotland, mostly in the Inner Hebrides. By 2017 there were at least 122 pairs across the country, and 58 nests were sampled in that year.
The analysis showed that in that time the proportion of lamb remains in nests have decreased; at the start of the study period between 1998 and 2002, 15 nests were sampled and lambs accounted for more than 30% of items in five of those nests. However, as the White-tailed Eagle population expanded, pairs establishing in new territories tended to feed on fewer lambs, so by the end of the study in 2017 lambs accounted for 30% or more of items at five of 58 nests sampled.
White-tailed Eagles are major scavengers, with inexperienced birds from the first round of releases in the 1970s and 1980s attracted to areas where dead sheep or lambs were readily available. A previous study found that lambs tended to be scavenged when already dead and as carrion. That study also indicated that on occasion live lambs were killed, however that these lambs taken were often smaller than average so more vulnerable to predation.
Despite many hours of field observations in other monitoring of White-tailed Eagles the scale of live lamb predation has proved very hard to quantify. Following the original settlement pattern on the islands of Mull and Skye in particular subsequent generations began breeding in areas where natural live prey was more readily available, with a shift in diet as a result. In its conclusion the paper states that “the previously widespread view that lambs are an important food for White-tailed Eagles has been superseded; the prevailing evidence now is that marine items (seabirds and fishes) are the most important breeding season food in Scotland.”
The most common species found in nests is now Fulmar – 30% of items per nest – with lamb now only accounting for 6% on average. As this study was based on prey remains, fish, young birds and smaller items are likely to be under-represented in it as these remains are more easily digested or decomposed. The result is that this study will have over-estimated the importance of large mammals and birds in the diet.
The study also recorded differences in diet based on the geographical location of the nests, supporting previous studies that show White-tailed Eagles are generalist foragers – taking a wide range of prey types – and able to adapt their diet to what is readily available locally. At coastal territories seabirds and fish made up most of the food remains. At nests in territories further in inland foods such as wetland birds and rabbits dominated. The study authors note that as White-tailed Eagles continue to recolonise historic territories away from the coast species such as Mountain Hare and freshwater fish are likely to become important food sources.
The paper is an important contribution to the growing body of knowledge about the diet of these birds with robust field data and analysis vital in feeding into policy and management, such as the Sea Eagle Management Scheme (SEMS) promoted by NatureScot to support farmers and crofters in areas where White-tailed Eagles are present. The SEMS is due to be reviewed and updated in 2024.
The paper authors highlight that as the study method focused on nests where breeding was successful, future studies using tracking devices on eagles to monitor foraging behaviour and identify feeding perches will be needed to help identify food remains of juvenile or immature birds, and adult birds outside the breeding season.
Robin Reid, one of the paper authors said: “This publication has been made possible through collaboration between many researchers and fieldworkers and with support from several organisations. As a result, the findings are based on large and robust dataset with prey remains collected from the majority of White-tailed Eagle territories occupied in Scotland during the study period. It has been fascinating to see how the diet varies between individual territories and across regions. The wide range of prey items recorded demonstrates that the White-tailed Eagle is an opportunistic and adaptable predator and scavenger, consistent with findings from studies elsewhere across the species range in Europe.”
Eilidh McNab, Development Officer for the Scottish Ornithologists’ Club who published the paper said: “The SOC is delighted to support the publication of important research in Scottish ornithology through our quarterly journal, Scottish Birds. It is fantastic to see the return of such charismatic and iconic species as White-tailed Eagles to Scottish skies, and it is heartening that the population is expanding into areas where they have not been seen in over a century. This paper offers a fascinating insight into the diet of our largest bird of prey, and greatly adds to the knowledge base of their feeding behaviours in Scotland.”
Duncan Orr-Ewing, Head of Species and Land Management at RSPB Scotland and member of the National Sea Eagle Stakeholder Group said; “This study will be invaluable for an evidence-based approach when drawing up the next Sea Eagle Management Scheme and targeting of available resources to geographical areas where support is most needed. We also hope that the results of this study will provide some reassurance to famers and crofters in connection with their concerns about livestock predation and when noting the largely natural diet of most breeding White-tailed Eagles in Scotland.”
ENDS
The paper’s full citation is as follows:
Reid, R., Grant, J.R., Broad, R.A., Carrs, D.N. and Marquiss, M. (2023). The breeding season diet of White-tailed eagles in Scotland. Scottish Birds 43(4): 305-318.
Unfortunately this paper is not ‘open access’ so I’m not allowed to publish it here. If you’d like to read it you’ll either have to become a member of the Scottish Ornithologists’ Club or contact one of the authors directly for a PDF.
The Scottish Parliament’s Stage 1 debate of the Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Bill will take place in the Chamber this Thursday, 30 November 2023, from 2.30pm.
This debate provides all MSPs with the opportunity to discuss the general principles of the Bill and vote to either throw it out or allow it to proceed to Stage 2, which is when the finer details would be debated and amended.
The Stage 1 debate follows the publication last week of the Stage 1 scrutiny report written by the Rural Affairs & Islands Committee which has been taking evidence for the last six months.
Lobbying of MSPs continues apace, from both conservationists and from the grouse-shooting industry. I read the other day a quote from BASC Scotland Director Peter Clark, who wrote that BASC was urging MSPs, “…to work with us to make the enormous yet vital changes to the Bill to avert the decimation of the rural economy, biodiversity and conservation“.
Quite how a licensing scheme designed to regulate a supposedly lawful industry will ‘decimate the rural economy, biodiversity and conservation’ is anyone’s guess. It’s almost as if Peter thinks the industry is so reliant on criminality that it can’t possibly function under a licensing framework and will thus collapse.
This level of hysterical fearmongering is nothing new. Here’s an excerpt from a blog I wrote three years ago when a similar outcry was heard from the grouse-shooting sector in response to the announcement that the Scottish Government intended to introduce a grouse shooting licence scheme:
This hysterical scaremongering about so-called threats to the rural economy from the introduction of a grouse moor licensing scheme is nothing new from this lot (e.g. see here, here, here and here for previous histrionics).
Nor is it the first time we’ve heard the claim that any sort of enforced regulation will ‘threaten’ or ‘damage’ the rural economy.
When the Land Reform Bill was being debated [in 2003] the Scottish Landowners Federation (which later re-branded to call itself the Scottish Rural Property & Business Association (SRPBA) and then re-branded again to its current name of Scottish Land & Estates) warned that the legislation would do irreversible damage to rural economies and they threatened to block the legislation at the European Court of Human Rights (see here).
Scottish Land & Estates also bleated about further land reform measures [in 2015] when the Scottish Government proposed removing the two-decades-old exemption from business rates enjoyed by shooting estates. SLE claimed that, “We believe that there would be a negative impact on rural jobs, tourism and land management” (see here).
And then there was more bleating when the Scottish Government brought in vicarious liability to tackle the continued illegal persecution of birds of prey. David Johnstone, the then Chair of Scottish Land & Estates claimed this would introduce another layer of bureaucracy “When the Government should be doing what it can to help landowners and the rural economy” (see here).
Has the rural economy fallen flat on its arse as a result of these measures? Not according to the grouse shooting industry, which is still declaring itself indispensable to the Scottish economy (a claim strongly contested by others, e.g. see here).
As has been said before on this blog, the grouse shooting industry should be thanking its lucky stars that a licensing scheme is all it’s getting. The case for a ban on driven grouse shooting has been made many times over.
There are those of us who don’t believe for one second that a licensing scheme will be effectively enforced, although we’ll do our bloody level best to ensure it is enforced when breaches have been detected and are fully evidenced. And if/when the licensing scheme is shown to be failing, there’s only one place left to go.
It seems to me that the grouse shooting industry should be welcoming a licensing scheme, which should protect those who are complying with the law and remove those who are not. Gosh, a world where there are consequences for criminality. Imagine that! Is that really what this backlash is all about?
Meanwhile, lobbyists from the conservation sector will this week be reminding MSPs that even in the midst of all this political scrutiny and threat, there are still some in the grouse-shooting industry that simply refuse to stop killing birds of prey, as evidenced in last week’s RSPB Birdcrime report where we learned that as recently as July this year yet another satellite-tagged golden eagle ‘vanished’ in suspicious circumstances on a grouse moor in the Monadhliaths and as recently as September this year yet another satellite-tagged hen harrier ‘vanished’ on a grouse moor in the Angus Glens.
These are in addition to the suspicious disappearances of a further 35 satellite-tagged birds of prey on Scotland’s grouse moors between 2017-2022, including including 8 golden eagles, 21 hen harriers and 5 white-tailed eagles (here).
The time for pretending that this is all ‘historical’ and no longer an issue is well and truly over and I hope that the Scottish Parliament finally makes a stand on Thursday.
Proceedings in the main Chamber can be watched live on Scottish Parliament TV from 2.30pm on Thursday, here.
Channel 4 News aired an exclusive seven-minute report this evening about raptor persecution on gamebird shooting estates across the UK.
Fronted by Chief Correspondent Alex Thomson, this was a pre-cursor to the publication tomorrow of the RSPB’s latest Birdcrime report (2022) and the film featured two case studies that are included in that report – the illegal shooting of a hen harrier found dead on the Knarsdale Estate in Northumberland earlier this year, and the illegal poisoning of a red kite and a white-tailed eagle found on a pheasant shoot in West Sussex in October 2021. A beater’s gundog also died from the same poison, on the same estate, within a few days.
I’ll be writing in detail about both these cases and others, once Birdcrime has been published. There’s a lot to say.
In the meantime, I thoroughly recommend you watch the Channel 4 report here:
I received an unexpected email on Friday evening announcing the sad passing of John Love, who died at his cottage on South Uist on Wednesday 18 October 2023.
John’s name will always be synonymous with the reintroduction of the white-tailed eagle in Scotland. John was the original Sea Eagle Reintroduction Project Officer between 1975 – 1985, living on the Isle of Rum in Western Scotland and releasing a total of 82 Norwegian sea eagles in what was at the time an ambitious and pioneering effort.
He later worked as an Area Officer for SNH (now NatureScot) for Uist, Barra and St Kilda and after ‘retirement’ he worked as an expert guest speaker for a cruise company, having written books on eagles, penguins, sea otters, St Kilda, Rum, and even the natural history of lighthouses, but sea eagles remained his passion to the very end.
Photo by Dave Sexton
I first learned of John Love in 1999, planning my first trip to Madagascar to study the island’s critically endangered fish eagles. On a university field trip to Mull I met the now sorely missed Richard Evans, who was the RSPB’s eagle warden on Mull at the time, and he invited me to his cottage to talk eagles. He was kind to me and several cups of tea later, realising that my knowledge of eagles was limited at best, he took a small blue book from his bookshelf and handed it to me with the words, “You’ll be needing this“.
It was a first edition of John Love’s highly acclaimed 1983 book, The Return ofthe Sea Eagle and I’ve treasured it ever since.
I was lucky enough to get to know John in later years after meeting him at a raptor conference where he took an interest in my research on the Madagascar fish eagle. He later agreed to write a chapter for a book I was co-editing on people who studied eagles. Here’s the biography he sent through back in 2006:
‘Born in Inverness, the capital of the Highlands of Scotland, John has been interested in animals as long as he can remember. Joining the local Bird Club as a schoolboy in 1958 broadened his horizons, especially two summer weekend trips to the island of Handa, Sutherland in 1963 and 1964. (Islands and seabirds, especially Leach’s petrel, have always remained a passion, so John’s work on sea eagles has fitted nicely!) In winter, evening lecturers at the bird club included Seton Gordon, George Waterston, Charlie Palmer and Lea MacNally – all illustrious golden eagle enthusiasts. John trained as a bird ringer and spent several school holidays as a volunteer helping to protect what were at the time Scotland’s only pair of nesting ospreys. He graduated Honours in Natural History at the University of Aberdeen and did three years post-graduate research on bird predators of bivalve mussels.
It was on holiday on Fair Isle in June 1968, that John first encountered white-tailed sea eagles, when George Waterston and Dr Johan Willgohs arrived with four eaglets for release. This project was following of from a pioneering effort by George’s cousin, Pat Sandeman, who had set free three Norwegian sea eagles in Argyll in 1959. None of these seven birds survived to adulthood but paved the way for a more concerted effort in 1975 on the Isle of Rum National Nature Reserve in the Inner Hebrides.
Dr Morton Boyd, Dr Derek Ratcliffe and Dr Ian Newton were all instrumental in encouraging this new reintroduction attempt. It was several years before the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), finally agreed to support the project. In 1975 John Love was invited by the Nature Conservancy Council (NCC) to help Dr Johan Willgohs collect the first four eaglets from northern Norway. Two weeks cruising with Johan in the heart of sea eagle country was both an inspiration and an education. The following year Harald Misund, a local eagle expert then in the Norwegian Air Force in BodØ, took over collecting eaglets for the Scottish project. John has since visited Norway many times and learnt so much from Harald, who remains a close friend.
From 1975 John lived on Rum where he released no fewer than 82 Norwegian sea eagles. His monograph on the reintroduction – ‘The Return of the Sea Eagle’ – was published in 1983. By 1985, when the first phase of the project ceased, the first Scottish-bred bird fledged in the wild. A further 59 eaglets were set free near Loch Maree on the west Scottish mainland between 1993 and 1998. As the population has grown, John has remained on the UK Project Team, though he now works in the Outer Hebrides as an Area Officer for Scottish Natural Heritage (formerly NCC), and where he helps monitor several breeding pairs of sea eagles. He has since written and illustrated several other books on eagles, penguins and sea otters, together with a detailed human history of the island of Rum. He is currently updating the sea eagle story’.
John was a huge supporter of this blog when I began writing it in 2010 and he became a confidante, writing long emails to rail against those whose continued blind prejudice against sea eagles infuriated him. After writing an opinion piece for the Press & Journal in 2021 in response to some ill-informed nonsense from a Director of the Scottish Gamekeepers Association (here), he told me:
“…so it looks like we are facing attacks from east coast keepers/landowners as well as crofter/farmers on the west!!“
I’ll miss John, as will so many others fortunate to have known him, but what a legacy he leaves behind – I’ll think of him whenever I see one of his beloved sea eagles. RIP.
WHITE-TAILED EAGLE CHICKS SPREAD THEIR WINGS FURTHER INTO IRISH SKIES
24 white-tailed eagle chicks were released in August around the country, as part of an ongoing National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) programme to reintroduce this once extinct species
A total of 171 white-tailed eagles have now been released through the programme to date
A small, established population of eagles is now fledging chicks around the country and has even produced triplets
Over the past week, twenty-four white-tailed eagle chicks have been released in locations around Lough Derg, the Shannon Estuary and the west of Ireland, as part of a long term reintroduction programme managed by the NPWS.
White-tailed eagles are predators who play an important role in nature and the ecosystem.
Once native to Ireland, they became extinct in the nineteenth century. Since 2007, the NPWS has been working with partners in Norway along with farmers and communities around the country to reintroduce the white-tailed eagle to Ireland.
Young White-tailed eagle. Photo: Valerie O’Sullivan
Minister of State for Heritage and Electoral Reform, Malcolm Noonan TD, who released four chicks at Killarney National Park as part of the release programme, said:
“The juvenile white-tailed eagles we have released this week are joining a growing population across our island. This incredible endeavour is the result of 16 years’ work and collaboration, not just on the reintroduction programme, but also on habitat restoration and engagement with landowners to secure their ongoing protection.
These apex predators perform a vital role in our ecosystems and the sight of them soaring in the thermals is a privilege that everyone who lives in or visits Ireland will now have the opportunity to enjoy. I would like to pay tribute to NPWS staff for their commitment and dedication to this initiative, our international partners from Norway, and the communities around the country who are embracing the return of the white-tailed eagle to our landscapes.”
A comprehensive satellite tagging system is now in place so that the birds can be monitored as they disperse around the country.
Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh O’Brien who also participated in the release of chicks at in the vicinity of Lough Derg added:
“This reintroduction programme is the result of a combined effort by my Department’s National Parks and Wildlife Service, participating landowners and communities and endangered species experts. I commend each of them for the role they are playing in protecting these iconic birds of prey“.
Niall Ó Donnchú, Director General with the NPWS said:
“This programme is one of several initiatives underway in the NPWS to protect endangered species in Ireland and prevent their decline. This work takes time, and calls for a partnership approach if it is to be sustainable in the long term. Collaboration with the science community and international partners, along with the involvement of our expert staff and communities around the country has been key to the success we have seen so far“.
Eamonn Meskell, Divisional Manager NPWS, Killarney National Park who heads up the white-tailed eagle reintroduction Programme added:
“There is huge interest from the public in the white-tailed eagle programme. Locations where they are spotted attract many visitors and local interest and we love to hear about sightings of the birds around Ireland and further afield. There are great stories to tell about the project. For example, the first Irish bred female to breed in over a hundred years has fledged seven chicks in three years! In Lough Derg this year for the second time a nesting pair fledged triplets. This is incredibly unusual – even in the wilds of Norway, and it shows how well suited Ireland really is for the white-tailed eagle from both a habitat and a feeding perspective. We’ll be watching this year’s chicks with interest as they mature and hopefully go on to fledge more chicks“.
Bente Lyngstad, chargé d’affaires at the Norwegian Embassy in Ireland said:
“Watching the release of the white-tailed sea eagles is a truly extraordinary and mighty experience. Over the years more than 150 eagle chicks have been collected in Norway and released in Ireland. Today’s stock in Ireland is the result of a long-term collaboration between Norway and Ireland, which again stems from our deep friendship and our shared values. I would like to acknowledge all volunteers whose efforts have been imperative to make this happen“.
The retention of species is essential for maintaining the intricate web of life and the functioning of ecosystems. It contributes to the sustainable use of natural resources and the well-being of both present and future generations. Yet we now see a rapid loss of species world-wide. This development must be halted. The reintroduction of white-tailed sea eagles into their natural habitat is a great example of how we can work together against biodiversity loss.”
ENDS
These releases form part of phase two of the reintroduction project. Phase one involved releasing 100 White-tailed eagles into Killarney National Park in County Kerry, between 2007-2011. A scientific review of the project in 2019 suggested that the small population was still vulnerable to issues such as Avian Influenza, extreme weather events and illegal poisoning so phase two began in 2020, to reintroduce more young birds and release them in different parts of the country.
Unfortunately some of the eagles released in phase two have already been killed illegally after consuming poisoned bait (see here and here).
South England Forest District manages some 46,000 hectares of the public forest estate across West Sussex, Surrey, Berkshire, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Dorset & South Wiltshire. Much of the land is of high importance for nature conservation, supporting some 29,000 hectares (ha) deemed to be of national importance for wildlife of which approximately 28,000 ha are also designated as being of international importance for biodiversity as Special Areas of Conservation (SACs), Special Protection Areas (SPAs) and Ramsar sites. The majority of the land managed by the District is also within areas designated for their landscape value, including 4,000 ha within AONBs and 31,500 ha across two National Parks.
The White-tailed Eagle project is a partnership with the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation, to reintroduce this species back to the south coast of England. The project has a Natural England licence to release birds over a 5-year programme, which started in 2019.
The Assistant Ecologist will be assisting the Project Officer in all areas of their work, from engagement with groups and stakeholders about the project to management and care for the birds prior to release. They will also have a role to play in monitoring the birds that are already released. This is an exciting 6 month role to gain valuable experience in reintroductions.
Two of the young reintroduced white-tailed eagles. Photo: Ainsley Bennett
JOB DESCRIPTION:
Key Work Areas
The post holder will help to deliver the reintroduction process, including feeding of the birds and monitoring pre and post release.
They will support the Project Officer with information dissemination via a project website, social media and a programme of guided walks and talks.
Liaise with stakeholders both on the Isle of Wight and on the mainland to ensure the success of the project.
The post holder will be local to the Isle of Wight so that they can be on hand during the period when the birds are in cages at the release location and during post-release feeding.
PERSON SPECIFICATION:
Essential
A good understanding of raptor ecology with on the ground practical experience.
Experience or knowledge of monitoring birds in the field.
Desirable
Preferably experience of working on a similar reintroduction project.
Experience of working with landowners.
Ability to demonstrate engagement with the public and local groups.
As part of the application process we will assess you on the following behaviours:
Making Effective Decisions
Speak with the relevant people in order to obtain the most accurate information and get advice when unsure of how to proceed.
Communicating and influencing
Actively listens, allowing others to fully express their opinion.
Be an effective representative of the team.
Working Together
Build, maintain and improve relationships with different stakeholders at the relevant level to understand differing views and issues.
Seeing the Big Picture
Focus on the overall goal and intent of what you are trying to achieve, not just the task.
Ability to communicate the wider context of the project to others.
For further details and information on how to apply, please click here.
A case of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI), otherwise known as bird flu, has been confirmed in red grouse in Scotland, according to DEFRA.
Red grouse. Photo: RSPB Images
The confirmation has appeared in DEFRA’s running tally of confirmed bird flu cases in wild birds, which is a spreadsheet that’s updated weekly (see here).
The spreadsheet entry states that H5N1 was detected in a red grouse in week 30 (July 24 – July 30 2023) in the Scottish Borders:
There isn’t any more detail about the location, nor how many birds have been found infected/dead, just that a single bird has been tested and found to be positive.
If this infected red grouse was found on land managed for driven grouse shooting it’s of serious concern. Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza causes severe disease and high mortality in birds and has already killed tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of wild birds in the UK, impacting on the populations of globally significant species.
Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza is transmitted by the spreading between birds of nasal secretions and droppings, and it also spreads to birds of prey via the predation of infected birds. Some UK raptor species have already been badly affected, including golden eagles and white-tailed eagles (e.g. see here).
We know that many driven grouse moors are (mis)managed to produce an artificially-high density of red grouse for shooting. Another highly contagious disease, Cryptosporidiosis (Bulgy Eye) is rife on many intensively-managed driven grouse moors. It was first detected in wild red grouse in England in 2010 and then spread rapidly, via communal medicated grit trays, and by 2015 had affected high density red grouse on half of the 150 grouse moors in northern England. It has also been detected in Scotland, although the extent of the spread in Scotland is not known because the shooting industry is keeping quiet, and, for reasons unknown, NatureScot isn’t undertaking any surveillance of the disease (see here).
A grit tray on a grouse moor containing red grouse faecal droppings – a disease reservoir. Photo: Ruth Tingay
If the highly contagious Cryptosporidiosis disease can spread so rapidly via red grouse secretions and droppings found in grit trays on the moors, then so can Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza.
Last year I argued that it would be ‘irresponsible’ for grouse-shooting to go ahead during the avian flu epidemic (see here). In response, the Scottish Government said: ‘…there have been no recorded cases of avian influenza in any grouse species, and there are no restrictions in place on grouse shooting’.
Given that Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza has now been confirmed in red grouse in the Scottish Borders, and the grouse-shooting season opens on Saturday (the Inglorious 12th), how will the Scottish Government respond?
Shouldn’t they be restricting shooting as a precautionary measure, at least until the extent of the disease is evaluated?
Raptor Persecution UK 