The battle of ospreys’ nest
RSPB slams garish ploy to move birds
WHEN a pair of rare ospreys threatened to disrupt plans to move T in the Park to its new home, festival bosses promised ‘delicate measures’ to gently coax them away from their old nest.
But their efforts have been condemned by a leading wildlife charity after their plan turned out to be a 60ft cherrypicker festooned with shiny balloons and strings of CDs and flying a giant Saltire.
The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) said the tactics employed to move the ospreys from the Strathallan Estate were ‘not best practice’ and warned that promoters DF Concerts (DFC) could run the risk of committing a criminal offence.
The ospreys’ nest on the 1,000acre Perthshire estate has been their home for years, but its close proximity to the proposed main stage of the festival means organisers need the birds to relocate to an artificial nest further away.
The birds will return from their winter migration imminently and if they decide to use their old nest up to half of the estate may have to be declared off-limits.
The RSPB said: ‘If those ospreys return, DFC needs to remove that cherrypicker immediately because it has the potential to cause a disturbance. If they are disturbed, then potentially that could be a criminal offence under the Wildlife and Countryside Act.
‘We will be observing what goes on and if we are presented with evidence that suggests an offence has occurred, we would not hesitate to refer it to the police.
‘This is not a good example of best practice and not at all something that we condone or support and it reflects really rather poorly on DFC.’
Strict laws govern the treatment of protected species such as ospreys, including setting up ‘buffer zones’ to prevent disturbance during the breeding season.
DFC had hoped to cut down the nest, but it is on neighbouring land to the estate and the landowner refused to allow it to be destroyed.
DFC said: ‘We’ve done the next best thing – created a new nest,
‘It is not something
we condone’
which is undamaged and in an optimum location. Our priority is to make sure that delicate measures are in place to encourage the birds to take up home in this nest.’
Strathallan was chosen as T in the Park’s preferred new home after its previous home at Balado was ruled unsafe because of an underground gas pipe.
Although up to 75,000 revellers are expected to attend this year’s festival from July 10-12, it does not yet have planning permission. A final decision is expected in May.