Crimes against raptors worst on record in 2020

Crimes against birds soared across the UK in 2020 and the RSPB believes Scotland’s birds of prey will continue to be persecuted.

Birds of prey such as hawks, eagles, kites, buzzards, harriers, falcons and owls are protected by the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.

The RSPB’S annual report revealed 2020 was the worst year on record for bird crime across the UK.

There were 137 known and confirmed incidents of birds of prey being killed, the highest number in 30 years.

This trend has continued in 2021 according to Ian Thomson, RSPB Scotland’s head of investigations.

He said: “Bird crime covers a whole manner of crimes against wild birds, but what is particularly of concern are those crimes that have an impact on the populations and ranges of a variety of species.”

According to Mr Thomson bird crime, also known as raptor persecution, is particularly rife in the north east, with the hen harrier population being a fraction of what it was 20 years ago.

He also explained that golden eagles are only occupying around a third of the breeding territories they ought to, meanwhile peregrines have largely disappeared from the uplands in the north east.

Mr Thomson believes these low population numbers are largely down to the persecution of birds of prey for the intense land management of grouse moors.

Birds of prey are at the top of the food chain and they hunt and eat grouse and pheasants. In an attempt to maximise the number of game birds available for clients to shoot, grouse moor managers will eliminate any threats to their birds.

This can include burning patches of heather moorland and releasing clouds of smoke into the air, leaving medicated grit out in the open and hare baiting.

The National Golden

Eagle Survey shows that across Scotland the population as a whole is doing well and that there are significant increases in the west where there are no grouse moors.

Mr Thomson said it is the east of Scotland where the populations are a fraction of what they should be.

Scientific reports show that the illegal persecution of golden eagles, hen harriers, red kites and peregrines is largely happening in areas managed for game bird shooting.

“Unfortunately, these findings are largely happening in the middle of nowhere,” Mr Thomson said. “Out of sight, out of mind, where witnesses are very far and few between.

“But, occasionally, an incident occurs that is detected. In 2020 about a week into lockdown when the entire population of the country was told to stay indoors or to exercise within five miles of your house, we had a young white-tailed eagle poisoned on a grouse moor in Strathdon, in an area with an appalling history of crimes against birds of prey going back 10-plus years.”

Mr Thomson said there have been cases of satellite-tagged birds disappearing under “suspicious circumstances”.

In March, a poisoned golden eagle was found on the Invercauld Estate, a grouse moor in the Cairngorms.

Last year, a satellite transmitter fitted on a golden eagle was found at the side of a river. It was wrapped in lead sheeting and thrown into the river where it lay for four years until a walker found it. Mr Thomson said: “This is the efforts that people are going to to cover up these crimes. The problem is these crimes are seldom witnessed, to actually get any idea of the scale of it we’re really depending on doing population studies.

“We’re never going to find all the victims because needless to say if someone shoots a golden eagle they’re not going to leave it around for the RSPB or the police or a hillwalker to find. These crimes are being covered up.”

RSPB Scotland’s head of investigations explained there are other factors that have impacted the populations of birds of prey.

He said all birds face challenges “just surviving”, through natural mortality, starvation and loss of habitat due to the intensification of land management or agriculture.

Because of this, populations are much lower than what would be ideal and so deliberate killing is adding extra strain to the populations.

UNDER THREAT: The tag of a golden eagle, inset, was found wrapped in lead sheeting beside a river.

Ian Thomson.