Confirmed incidents of the illegal persecution of birds of prey have fallen to their lowest levels for more than a decade, according to the latest RSPB Birdcrime report. But the conservation charity warned that the reduction in incidents to 61 in 2022 is distorted by a failure to examine dead raptors caught in the avian […]
Tag: Bird of Prey
Australia’s rarest bird of prey disappearing at alarming rate
Australia’s rarest bird of prey—the red goshawk—is facing extinction, with Cape York Peninsula now the only place in Queensland known to support breeding populations. Ph.D. candidate Chris MacColl from The University of Queensland’s School of Earth and Environmental Sciences led the research project that made the discovery and was shocked by the hawk’s dwindling numbers. […]
Harpy eagles: The challenge of protecting the Amazon’s largest bird of prey
“Keeping the nest tree standing and protecting a small area around that tree is one of our goals,” says Tânia Sanaiotti, founder of the Harpy Eagle Project, 25 years old now. “If you leave only the nest tree there in the middle of nowhere, the nestling won’t be able to take its first flight. It […]
‘It’s a serious problem’: battle to save Griffon vulture heats up in Cyprus
They’re vital for the ecosystem, play a crucial role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and, for bird lovers, are an ecotourism delight. But in Cyprus, where prolific use of poison bait has made the Griffon vulture virtually extinct, campaigners are taking action. “Island-wide, we had just eight,” says Melpo Apostolidou at BirdLife Cyprus, which is […]
More than 100 hen harriers fledge in England for first time in a century
Nearly 120 rare hen harrier chicks have fledged in England this year, the highest number for more than a century, England’s conservation agency has said. Natural England and its partners recorded 119 hen harrier chicks successfully fledging from nests across uplands in County Durham, Cumbria, Lancashire, Northumberland and Yorkshire. A fledgling is a young bird […]
6 Harmless Ways To Keep Birds Away From Your Property
You can appreciate a bird from a distance, but when they invade your space it can lead to a variety of issues. Bird droppings are corrosive, which can cause serious damage to your property over time – not to mention it just looks untidy and gross. They can ruin any fruit and veg you’re trying […]
Gamekeeper jailed after using dogs to fight badgers and foxes
A former gamekeeper at one of Scotland’s best-known grouse moors has been jailed for eight months and banned for owning dogs for 15 years, after using dogs to fight badgers and foxes. Rhys Davies, from Gwynedd, north Wales, admitted earlier this year that he had used five Patterdale terriers for illegal badger and fox-fighting at […]
Poison used to kill lions and hyenas is indirectly killing Kenya’s vultures and other raptors
Darcy Ogada rarely spots raptors from her home in central Kenya any more. The birds were once a common sight in the industrial town of Thika, 25 miles (40km) north of Nairobi, but the region’s forests are rapidly declining, and the few remaining raptor populations face the added threats of poison and persecution. “It is […]