Capercaillie numbers have been falling for decades and despite repeated attempts to boost the population it can now only be found in the Highlands. Experts from the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT) said that when surveys started in 1991, capercaillie numbered approximately 2,200 birds, spread from Argyll and Perthshire to the south and west […]
Tag: Grouse
Game over – the Ritz takes grouse off the menu in victory for environment campaigners
From 12 August to early December, it’s usually possible to walk into old-fashioned fine dining establishments across the country and order the rare British delicacy that is grouse, frequently served with bread sauce and game chips. But those hoping to eat the tiny game bird in the gilded Ritz dining room in London will be […]
Pheasant meat sold for food found to contain many tiny shards of toxic lead
Eating pheasant killed using lead shot is likely to expose consumers to raised levels of lead in their diet, even if the meat is carefully prepared to remove the shotgun pellets and the most damaged tissue. A study has found that pheasants killed by lead shot contain many fragments of lead too small to detect […]
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 […]
Why are people poisoning Britain’s sea eagles when they are such a wonderful sight?
A beautiful white-tailed eagle has once again been a familiar sight for those fortunate enough to live in the flight path of eagles recently introduced to the Isle of Wight. Thousands of Britons have witnessed and heard the gigantic two-metre wings beating overhead, as well as the cruel-beaked birds diving for fish in spectacular fashion. […]
Success for hen harrier protection plan in Northumberland
Wildlife experts have hailed a resurgence in hen harrier numbers following a successful protection plan in Northern England. The Northumberland Hen Harrier Protection Partnership has announced that 18 young have fledged from five nests on Forestry England land and two private estates this year. Northumberland continues to be a stronghold for rare hen harriers as […]
POLL: Should the ‘Glorious Twelfth’, which is on the brink after a poor grouse breeding season, be cancelled and permanently banned?
The “Glorious Twelfth” may be effectively cancelled this year, shooting estates have said, as the grouse breeding season has been so poor. Hard frosts while the birds were laying has meant that fewer were born, and some eggs are still yet to hatch. Sleet and cold rain during the hatching season earlier this summer caused […]
New Federal Report Shows 80-Percent Decline in Greater Sage-Grouse Populations
DENVER (March 30, 2021) – “This new science should ring alarm bells whether or not you have heard of sagebrush or the sage-grouse,” said Brian Rutledge, director of the National Audubon Society’s Sagebrush Ecosystem Initiative. “These birds are found across 11 Western states and are a reliable indicator of how other wildlife and the greater […]