Plea to help police trace illegal hunters

Reports of poachers, coursers and fishers across the Perthshire area

Illegal hunters have been spotted across Perthshire, and police are appealing for information.

Deer poachers, illegal fishers and hare coursers have all been reported to police this month.

Five men were seen with a lurcher dog in a field at Cordon Farm, Station Road, Abernethy, on Wednesday, October 11.

On being approached by the farmer, the males quickly left the area in a four-wheel drive vehicle. It is suspected that they intended to go hare coursing.

Two men with lurcher type dogs were disturbed on land near West Dron, Bridge of Earn about 5pm on Friday, October 20. It was suspected they were in the area for hare coursing.

This has been condemned by Almond and Earn councillor David Illingworth.

He said: “The area around Abernethy and Bridge of Earn is lucky to have observant citizens who care enough to scare off the hare coursers and to report the alleged occurrences to Police Scotland.

“At the very least, the hare coursers will have been made very uncomfortable at the thought of being detected by these concerned locals.

“If our communities work together with the police, then we can bring this vile practice to an end.”

Hare coursing is a cruel wildlife crime that tends to take place at this time of year just after the fields have been harvested. The criminals usually operate around dawn or dusk.

On Sunday, October 8, police received a report that the occupants of a Volkswagen Passat were hare coursing on the Tullybelton and Tullybeagles estates near Bankfoot.

Then, further east, at about 2.30pm on Monday, October 16, a blue Subaru Forrester motor vehicle was between Hillfoot Holding Farm and South Gask Farm, travelling in the direction of Blairgowrie. It was suspected the vehicle occupants were also in the area to carry out hare coursing.

Less than a week later, gill fishing nets, were discovered at Loch Clunie near Blairgowrie.

Gill nets are illegal in Scotland and are extremely damaging to fish stocks, and were found by the shore of the loch on Monday, October 23.

Blairgowrie and the Glens councillors have united to condemn this behaviour.

Conservative elected member Caroline Shiers said: “The reports of illegal and cruel activities such as hare coursing are really concerning.

“I would ask the public to be vigilant and report any information or suspicions to the police or Crimestoppers as soon as possible.”

SNP ward representative Tom McEwan said: “Rural crimes such as these have a negative effect on our countryside, impact biodiversity and the tourist economy based on wildlife watching and general enjoyment of our great rural spaces.

“It also diverts an already stretched police resource from policing our communities effectively.”

Councillor Bob Brawn, also Conservative, added: “I very much support the police action against illegal hunting and hare coursing both of which have no place in today’s countryside particularly the latter which involves unnecessary cruelty to wild animals.”

Deer poachers are also thought to have been sighted in Perthshire’s westernmost corner.

At about 4am on Saturday, October 21, a white van with a spotlight was seen acting suspiciously near Loch Earn at St Fillans and it was suspected the occupants may have been there to poach deer.

The deer stalking season switched recently from stags to hinds, however, night poaching has been illegal in the UK for almost 200 years.

The reports of illegal and cruel activities are concerning