SNH says no ‘cull’ of ravens in 2018
No cull of ravens was sanctioned in Lochaber or on Skye or Raasay during 2018, according to Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH).
However, the wildlife management agency confirmed to the Lochaber Times that six licences were issued over the past year in this area to protect livestock, which approved the killing of up to 144 individual birds in total.
SNH has recently been at the centre of a row over information released under Freedom of Information requests, which record that farmers and landowners across Scotland have been granted licences to kill more than 4,000 ravens in the past four years.
The wildlife agency was strongly criticised by animal campaign groups during the summer over a licence to kill 69 ravens at Strathbraan in Perthshire, with the reason given being to protect wading birds.
This was legally challenged and the killings were suspended after 39 ravens had been shot.
Quizzed by the Lochaber Times as to whether there had been any culling of ravens in Lochaber, Skye and Raasay in 2018, SNH said: ‘No licences were issued in 2018 to cull ravens in Lochaber, Skye and Raasay. Six licences were issued in the area to prevent serious damage to livestock, each permitting the killing of up to 24 ravens.
‘The aim isn’t to reduce the population, rather remove the problem birds and deter others.’
The definition of a ‘cull’ is a method of reducing the population of a wild animal by selective slaughter and SNH has been adamant any licences granted were not done so for such a purpose.
However, when asked to comment on SNH’s granting of the six licences for Lochaber, Skye and Raasay, an RSPB spokesperson said: ‘There are strict legal tests which need to be applied by SNH when considering serious agricultural damage by ravens.
‘SNH will shortly be publishing a long-expected scientific report which will show whether current levels of raven killing in Lochaber and other parts of Scotland are having a detrimental impact on local raven population recovery.’