Labour has called for grouse shooting to be licensed after a big increase in illegal killings of birds of prey during the coronavirus lockdown, the majority of which, investigators say, are linked to the sport. As the grouse shooting season, known as the Glorious 12th, officially began on Wednesday, the shadow environment secretary, Luke Pollard, […]
Tag: Hen Harrier
RSPB flooded with reports of birds of prey being killed
The RSPB has been “overrun” with reports of birds of prey being illegally killed since lockdown began. Police have been called out to investigate multiple cases of raptors being shot, trapped or suspected of having been poisoned, with the charity saying most incidents were on or close to sporting estates managed for game bird shooting. […]
Tracking technology confirms controversial cause of Hen Harrier decline
In the UK, Hen Harriers Circus cyaneus spend their summers on upland moors, nesting amongst the deep heather. They are one of our most treasured upland species, famous for their spectacular displays of sky-dancing and aerial exchanges of food during the breeding season. Sadly, Hen Harriers are also one of our most persecuted birds of […]
Appeal over hen harrier death and disappearances
RSPB Scotland has said it is “devastated” by the death of a hen harrier found shot and the disappearance of two more birds. The dead bird was discovered by a member of the public near Wanlockhead, in the south of Scotland, in June. Two other hen harriers last recorded in northern Scotland have also disappeared […]
87 bird crime incidents last year and just one conviction, says RSPB
Birds of prey were shot, poisoned, trapped or illegally killed in 87 confirmed incidents in 2018 that led to just one successful conviction, according to the RSPB’s annual Birdcrime report. This persecution of raptors including peregrines, buzzards, red kites and owls is the tip of the iceberg, with many more birds vanishing in mysterious circumstances, […]
Scotland’s golden eagles are dying in agony, all in the name of sport
Somewhere bleak and unforgiving in Scotland, a golden eagle is suffering an agonising death. The young bird of prey was photographed last week with a metal trap clamped around its leg in the Crathie area of Deeside in Aberdeenshire. The tourist who took this distressing image sent it to the police who expressed serious concerns […]
New chicks raise hope for hen harrier survival … but shooters take aim
A row has broken out between conservation groups over the wellbeing of one of Britain’s most critically endangered birds of prey: the hen harrier. The dispute reveals a basic divide between experts on how to save the birds from eradication in Britain. Natural England announces on Sunday that 2019 has been a record year for […]
Maridalen Mandarin
Yesterday, Rune and I “did” Nordre Øyeren and Aurskog-Høland. Birding was good although it was a great disappointment that the flodd waters at Kjelle have so rapidly declined and with no rain forecast for at least the next week they will disappear very soon. It was dry everywhere and Lapwings were concentrated around the last […]